Transferring to a Bigger Name School

Transfer Students
1

<p>Hi, I’m a high school senior who didn’t get into his top two choices: I was wait-listed at Washington University in St. Louis and rejected from Harvard. At this point, it looks like I’m probably going to go to either University of Arkansas or University of Oklahoma on a full-ride scholarship but I think that I would like to transfer to a higher-end school, preferably Harvard, after a year or two and I would like some advice on how to be competitive for admissions.</p>

<p>In high school: 4.4 GPA (4.0 unweighted, top 1% of class of 350), 34 on the ACT (35 math, 35 English, 33 reading, 32 science), 2080 on the SAT (650 writing, 670 reading, 760 math, 720 math level 2, 690 literature), National Merit Finalist (semi-finalist at the time of application, still waiting on final decision), member of band for 4 years (top school ensemble 3 years, 1st chair 2 years, top jazz band 2 years, member of district band 2 years, various 1’s at solos and ensembles at contest, section leader 1 year), member of math club 3 years (state qualifier 3 years, captain 2 years), DECA competitor 1 year (1st place district, 6th place state) member of various other clubs and honor societies throughout high school (StuCo, NHS, etc.).</p>

<p>Outside of school I’ve done 40+ hours of non-required community service per year, had a job at a grocery store for a year, and been in a locally fairly popular band.</p>

<p>So basically, I thought I was on the right track and had a fairly well-rounded r</p>

2

<p>It’s impossible to pick the minds of the admissions committees and you seem like a very qualified candidate. That said, Harvard is very difficult to transfer into (they accept about 13 transfers per year). WUSTL on the other hand isn’t nearly as hard, but still relatively difficult. However considering your credentials, you would be a very competitive applicant for WUSTL as a transfer. </p>

<p>Were there any other schools you were considering? You would have a very good chance with Emory, Vandy, Northwestern, Cornell, and a few other high end schools. The ivies (aside from Cornell) and a few other top ranked schools accept a very little amount of transfers, but as mentioned before, your HS credentials would make you a very competitive applicant.</p>