Where should I set my limits to?

Andale
Sat, 15 Mar 2008 21:00:45 +0000

Some of those would be reaches, some I’m not familiar with.

Here’s what I would do if I were you:

Carefully research the cost element of schools that appeal to you - what are their financial aid/scholarship policies for transfers? (Usually right on their websites). Drop schools which just will not help financially.

Then, of those with transfer-friendly financial aid policies, include some with 60%+ transfer acceptance rates (some of the ones I mentioned) (should be safe). Then some with 30%+ transfer acceptance rates (more match-y). And then however many reaches you want. But don’t include more than 1 reach which tends to have average SAT scores in the very high 1300s or more.

From your list, BC and Carnegie Mellon are reaches for just about anybody. Lehigh could be reach-y, but they do accept a reasonable % of transfer applicants (maybe in the 40% range?).

Would you be able to visit and interview at some of these schools? If you feel you interview well (I’m betting you do based on the way you present here), that might be a good idea.

You are right that it’s hard to figure out “where you stand” because the stats on admissions are usually for freshmen and SAT scores are often used to gauge chances. Are you taking the SATs again? Or submitting your old ones? Or will the schools you apply to not require them for jr. transfer? Schools which had 20% or more freshmen with SATs in your hs range should be safe, because you have really stepped way up from that. Schools which had “some” in that range, but not many, would be match. Schools with none or almost none in that range would be reach.

One way to go about comparing your GPA to accepted freshman profile is to average you hs and cc GPA’s, which would put you at about 3.2 and use that to compare to a college’s freshman profile of acceptees. Just as a gauge; you probably won’t be submitting your hs credentials and even if you do, I think the upward trend will mean they’ll look at you more favorably than the 3.2 guesstimate.

These are all just rough proxies, because the data aren’t out there for transfers the way they are for freshmen.

On College Board or on some schools’ websites or Common Data Set, you can find the average college GPA for accepted transfers. That may help.

I believe you could succeed at most of those schools, even the reach-y ones. Some, however, in the biochem major, may be very intense (CMU for example) and might be more pressure than you would enjoy. But I don’t know you, so that might not be an issue. Think about whether you want a really intense, high-pressure academic environment or more balanced and relaxed. If you are able to visit, sit in on some biochem classes and try to get a feel for the atmosphere and academic pressure the students are feeling.

Some schools have Transfer specialists within their Admissions Offices. I think you should try to speak, by phone or in person, with some of those. They are usually very very helpful. I believe Lehigh is one. Ask about cc transfers and what they are looking for and what makes a strong candidate.

I’m not a fan of the SATs, but maybe re-taking them would show your strength and make you a stronger candidate (just an idea).

Maybe as “ultimate safeties”, apply to 1 or 2 of those publics which your cc has a great track record with. Whichever you like the best.

Do either of your recommenders come from a school that might be right for you? Do either of them have recommendations for where you should consider?

Finally, I’m not sure what type of schedule you are on - if you are a sophomore, will you have completed 4 semesters of work at the end of this term? If so, you may have missed the deadlines for transfer as a jr. for the coming fall? Or do you have another semester or more to go after this one?

Good luck. I wish I could be more helpful. But it is complicated to gauge chances when the cc record is so much stronger than the hs record.