I’m an incoming sophomore at Dartmouth (on med leave) and I think I most likely made several BIG mistakes in my decision to go there. Consequently, now, I’m looking to go someplace else potentially. Unfortunately, I have no idea where I should go.
I’m not a particularly social person, and I would like a VERY laid back introvert-friendly college. I prefer lectures over seminars, because I don’t like being put on the spot and being forced to have a view/opinion on something. I like some level of challenge, but I don’t like unnecessarily hard things. I’m a poorer kid, and I’ve learned that, as bad as it is, I’m rather uncomfortable around wealth, so I’d like to go to a school that doesn’t feel super rich. I’m also worried about the straight up extra costs of transferring (moving my stuff, dealing with new fin-aid, potentially being in school longer if credits don’t move smoothly).
I want to be able to go to classes and then do my own thing. I almost think going to school online would be best for me, but there aren’t many online schools that I know of that are supposed to be really good academically. I’ve dealt with trying to make the best of a poor education system for most of my life, and having gotten a taste of Dartmouth’s quality, at least on the academic front, I think It would be hard to adjust. Plus I would feel guilty if my academics take a hard blow because I just didn’t like/couldn’t handle Dartmouth socially.
I’m not sure if transferring is the best move for me, but I find it dang near impossible to imagine myself being happy if I go back. I have a lot of deep negative emotions towards the place and what it represents. I almost just want to drop out of college entirely, but I know I need a degree for financial security. Since I’m currently stuck at home with the med leave and with no one to talk to about it, I’m looking for some advice here.