Union Student Looking to Transfer

karenlandon
Wed, 15 Aug 2012 15:46:15 +0000

As the title of this thread alludes to, I am a current student at Union that is considering transferring out before my Junior year. As of right now I am less then thrilled with my college experience so far. The main problem I have currently with the institution stems from the general education requirements that I feel are to demanding and prevent me from exploring academics like an adult. They do not seem to stimulate learning but rather stifle it. The student body is extremely homogenous, (rich kids from Connecticut and Massachusetts) and does not seem to be particularly intellectually curious. Lastly Union’s recent drop in college rankings from 29th to 62nd on forbes, and its constant hovering around the 40th position on the US News scale is troubling.

Perhaps I am reading to far into the drop in rankings, I actually hope that I am, and that someone reading this thread can shed some light on why there was a drop and if it is significant. Union’s admissions office was not aware of the drop nor where they of any help when I called recently and asked them about it. In my opinion, (and I can be entirely wrong) I do not feel as though Union is doing enough to keep up with, and surpass its peer institutions, and this is reflected by its stagnated position in the US news rankings. I would hope that if I continue to work hard throughout college, I can expect to get a good job, because I think that is what an elite liberal arts college’s degree should earn someone.

With all this said I am still on the fence with regards to transferring. This is because for all that I dislike about Union, there are still things that I enjoy. The campus is beautiful, the school has a great history, the political science department is small yet strong, and a huge emphasis is placed on studying abroad.

The schools I am currently looking to transfer into are Hamilton, Wesleyan, and perhaps Vassar. Hamilton and Wesleyan are not only exceptional colleges, but also offer an open curriculum which makes them extremely attractive destinations for me.

I am hoping that perhaps alumni or parents of alumni can shed some light on the Union experience with regards to employment opportunities and graduate school admissions. Is the school highly regarded in the professional world? If so, what would be the schools it is typically compared to? This is a stressful time for me and so any help or advice someone can provide me with would be appreciated.