<p>Hi, guys. I’d be very grateful for some quick and serious advice. Last July, I began a severely limiting, rigid English program in India; now I’m applying to some incredulously selective American colleges, including Harvard, as a transfer student. I’ve always loved English, but being given no options whatsoever in as liberal a subject as literature is really frustrating me, as is the lack of emphasis on writing, my main interest within the discipline. I’m so deeply unhappy with the system here that I’m questioning the point of an English degree for me. I feel like I should switch over to environmental science instead, while indulging my literary passions according to my own liking outside the scholarly sphere.
I’m really confused about what I should tell the admissions officers. What would make for a more compelling case for transfer into sophomore year: my discovering that I only want to minor in English, specializing in a new area, environmental science, for which I have no relevant coursework (thanks to the narrow scope of my current program), or me wanting to continue focusing on English in a much freer, interdisciplinary context, while pursuing an environmental minor?
I’d really appreciate your opinions. I’ve been trying to figure this out for a while; it’s driving me nuts! Thanks a lot!</p>
<p>The transfer admissions rate for Harvard and other selective colleges in the US is much lower than regular admissions – less than 2%.</p>
<p>See: [Harvard</a> College Admissions § Applying: Transfer Program](<a href=“http://www.admissions.college.harvard.edu/apply/transfer/evaluation.html]Harvard”>http://www.admissions.college.harvard.edu/apply/transfer/evaluation.html)</p>
<p>Evaluation of Candidates
In evaluating transfer candidates, the Committee seeks students with clearly developing academic interests that can be well served by Harvard. Students preparing to apply as transfer candidates should take challenging, liberal arts programs, including mathematics, science, and a foreign language, if they are not already proficient in these areas. The Committee also looks for strong preparation in the student’s expected field of specialization.</p>
<p>In regard to standardized test scores, most successful applicants have verbal and math SAT I scores of 600 or above and, for foreign applicants who submit a TOEFL result, a score of 600 or above on the paper test, or 250 or above on the computer test, or 100 or better on the iBT version. For those using the ACT as an alternative, the composite score is usually 30 or above.</p>
<p>Though good grades, strong programs, and test scores are important in determining the academic potential of a candidate, the Committee also looks beyond these for such qualities as creativity, resiliency, tenacity, intellectual curiosity, and independent thinking.</p>
<p>Other factors weighed in the evaluation of transfer candidates include significant non-academic talents and personal qualities such as a capacity for leadership, energy, enthusiasm, motivation and a sense of responsibility.</p>
<p>In each of the past two years, Harvard has been able to enroll twelve transfer students from applicant pools of over six hundred and nearly fifteen hundred. The number of well-qualified candidates far exceeds the number of students admitted. It is therefore recommended that students who wish to transfer from their current colleges explore a variety of options.</p>
<p>I know, hence “incredulously.” xD I’m also applying to colleges with acceptance rates over fifty percent, so hopefully I’ll get in somewhere.</p>