I’m looking to transfer to Rice for the Fall of 2017.
I’m taking a class at “University X” now called “Engineering Projects in Community Service.” I think that this class would look good on a transcript, especially because I’m hoping to transfer into the school of engineering. This class has an amazing idea behind it: it lets engineering students work with community partners to help solve real local issues. However, I’m not really enjoying the class; the project I’m assigned to isn’t well thought out, and the people on my team are not motivated. In addition, it’s taking up a lot of my time, even though it’s only one credit (almost two and a half hours of class time per week). If I withdrew from the class, I would use the free time to take coding classes on Coursera, which might count for something on the Common Application and might also catch the eye of the admissions team.
However, I’m not sure how the admissions officers at Rice would view a withdraw on my schedule. In addition, I’m going to transfer to “University Y” in the Spring (closer to home) because “University X” isn’t a good fit for me, and I feel like if I have to explain too much in the personal information section of the Common App, it might be a turn off for the admissions officers, i.e., why I transferred once, why I withdrew, what I did in my free time.
Would anyone be able to give me some advice? Thank you!