Here is text of an article I recently had published in Private Colleges & Universities magazine:
The college search process can be stressful. Part of what makes it stressful for many students is the belief that they have one chance to get it right, one chance to pick the right school that is going to be the perfect fit and open the doors to a bright and successful future. Transfer = Failure. That’s the myth.
Here’s the reality. No matter how well you’ve researched your schools of choice, how many times you’ve visited campus and how many “experts” you’ve consulted; the odds are you may consider transferring out of your school of choice. 33% of college students transfer each year according to the National Association for College Admission Counseling. That’s 1 in 3 students! In other words, a lot more students than you might think decide to start at one school and then end up graduating from somewhere else.
Reasons for transfer are as varied as students. Some start off with a plan that involves transfer – enrolling in a two-year private or community college with intention to move on later. Others will transfer because they change major or career path and find that the institution they are enrolled in doesn’t offer the academic program to support their new direction. Many others just find that the school they chose didn’t meet their expectations, either in terms of academic offerings, social outlets or it just wasn’t the right fit. Regardless of the reason, there are many advantages to transferring.
If you find yourself at your school of choice and suddenly realize you are in the wrong place, chances are things aren’t going well for you. The fact that you aren’t happy is may be affecting your academic performance. In fact, there is a well documented correlation between student satisfaction and achievement. So, if you aren’t happy, you won’t do as well. Pursuing transfer in this case is not a barrier to success, it is paramount to it. By starting over in a new environment, you can keep moving forward rather than continue to look back.
What happens if you change your academic focus? Believe it or not, this is a regular occurrence on college campuses. Did you know that 70% of college students change their major at some time in their college career and the average student changes majors 3 times? Chances are you won’t graduate college with the same major you intended to pursue or with the same career intentions. Let’s use me as an example:
When I went to college (back in the stone age), I was convinced I was going to be a lawyer and majored in Political Science because all lawyers major in Political Science, right? It wasn’t long before I learned two things. First, all lawyers do not major in Political Science and Political Science was not at all what I thought it would be. I ended up graduating college with degrees in Theatre and English (subject areas I truly enjoyed) and fell into a career in higher education. Who saw that coming? No one goes to college thinking about a career as an admission counselor. Part of college is finding yourself and, if what you find at your first institution is what you want to do with your life, then that is a major accomplishment. If that school doesn’t have the academic program to help you achieve your new goals then it is time to move on to somewhere that can. No failure there!
One of the more popular reasons for transfer is the planned transfer. 39% of American college students are enrolled in a public or private 2 year college (approximately 7 million people!). Of these, some are seeking to earn only an Associate degree, but the majority enrolls with intentions to transfer to a 4 year college or university. Why start 2 year? There are many reasons. Location is a big one. For many students, moving away from home right after high school graduation can seem quite daunting. Enrolling at a community college close to home gives you the chance to ease into the college experience without leaving the nest, so to speak. Another reason is cost. Most 2 year schools, public and private, are less expensive than 4 year colleges because they don’t have the same infrastructure costs. This means you can save a lot of money and take fewer loans by starting in a 2 year and transferring, leaving you with significantly less debt upon completion of your Bachelor’s degree.
For the majority of students at Dean College in Franklin, MA, starting at a 2 year school is all about positioning to gain admission to their dream schools. Let’s face it, high school isn’t for everyone. I spend my days getting to know students who perhaps didn’t live up to their potential in high school but who are capable of incredible success on the college level. Unfortunately, a large part of the admission process at many of the more selective colleges and universities is based on the academic transcript so a student with intelligence but not the grades or test scores to match can get shut out. By coming to Dean, these students are given the opportunity to reinvent themselves academically, learning important organization, time management and study skills in the process. In some cases, it may also provide you the chance to prepare for a collegiate transition you may not have been emotionally ready for right after high school.
They do this within a very traditional residential college environment, going to class alongside students with similar experiences and even students in our baccalaureate degree programs. When they graduate, they earn admission to schools that may not have even considered them coming out of high school (98% of Dean graduates who seek transfer are accepted). At graduation each year, I get to share in their successes as I learn of their admission to schools like New York University, Boston University, Cornell, University of Michigan, University of Southern California and many, many more. When they earn their diploma from these selective schools, there isn’t a designation that says “transferred in and graduated”, they get the same diploma as the students who studied there for four years. Success is about what is accomplished at the conclusion of the journey, not where you started.
The transfer process is much easier than you think. Most colleges and universities accept transfers each year and the criteria for admission is often less stringent than the requirements for freshmen admission. How can this be? Basically, you’ve proved you are able to succeed at the college level. For example, a highly selective school may have an average accepted freshman GPA of an A-, but they are willing to accept a transfer student with a B average in college. Some colleges will even waive SAT/ACT requirements for students who have a minimum number of college credits, so if test scores kept you out the first time, proving yourself capable of succeeding in college classes can reopen the door to you.
Transfer is not taboo. Want proof? Talk to people in your community and ask them if they graduated college from the same school they started at. You might be surprised with what you find. As you enter into your college search, keep in mind that there are always second chances and many different paths to the same destination. If you find that your school of choice isn’t what you thought it would be or you don’t gain admission to the places you hope to, remember that the transfer option is not only available, it may just be your ideal road to success.
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