TeenHelp - Transfer process (college)

TeenHelp (http://www.teenhelp.org/forums/)

- Education and Careers (http://www.teenhelp.org/forums/f22-education-careers/)

- - Transfer process (college) (http://www.teenhelp.org/forums/f22-education-careers/t140634-transfer-process-college/)

Transfer process (college)

I'm trying to transfer to a better college and I was just wondering if anybody has gone through the process. So far, its been brutal. The application is coming on top of a 32 credit hour equivalent (school + work) and I don't have any blowoff classes to make it easier, leaving lots of homework. The essays suck. Could anyone give a quick explanation of the process, just to make sure Im not missing anything? I'd prefer it from people who successfully transferred.

Re: Transfer process (college)

I didn't have any essays and mine took all of about 10 minutes. All I had to do was fill in the basic information, get a letter of recommendation (because the school I was transferring to required one), and request/submit all my transcripts and test scores which was the most annoying part after I secured a recommendation. Never heard of essays being required of transfer students. Just make sure you're using the transfer student application and not the one for new freshmen (sounds obvious I know).

Re: Transfer process (college)

Well, I'm trying to transfer to a school thats barely half a step below the Ivy league. Maybe I'm just freaking out about the whole thing, but its really hard to finish for me, and I feel like there are a ton of steps. There are 4 essays and an optional one for any extra details not covered in the other ones.

Re: Transfer process (college)

Does your current university have writing labs or services that help edit students' papers? My undergrad did, along with career services which helped me write my personal statement for graduate school, and it was incredibly helpful. The most important thing is establishing a good GPA and record at your current university so you seem like a good investment for the new university (are you involved in organizations? Are you in the honors college or equivalent at your university? Etc). Also, essays are generally a lot more important than test scores. They're more personal.

Re: Transfer process (college)

Coming out of high school, my essays were garbage. Now, I'd say they are very good to great considering one of them is approximately 100 words, another is max 300, another max 500, and the personal statement is max 650. Whereas I tried to say before, "hey, look at me and what I've accomplished", this time I tried to convey my growth as a person and leader, my competitive nature (which is a stretch, I'm very passive), my dedication to my field, and my research into the university and why the curriculum is relevant to me (that essay was the hardest but I think I nailed it). My personal essay, as my mom puts it, reads like a good book.
The reason I'm still worried is because of the nature of transferring to a much better university. Its much tougher because the field is usually smaller and more selective. I have a 3.67, which is well above the 3.0 starting point, but I don't have time for any distinguishing clubs or anything. I do have 3 letters of recommendation, and I think its safe to assume they'll be excellent because I aced those professor's classes and was friendly with all of them.
So yeah. Worried, but confident that I put forth my best effort this time.