<p>“If I transfer with my academic record right now there’s no question that I’ll be in a lower tier school and by lower I mean much lower.”</p>
<p>How do you know that for sure? A lot of Tier 1 public flagships have quite forgiving transfer policies. If you’re starting as an upperclassman, then depending on your field, you might find yourself in classes that are comparable in size and rigor to what you have now. It sounds like a big school might be a good place to start over for you anyway.</p>