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Every year, thousands of students arrive to campuses ready to start their first semester of college. And every year, as the weeks pass, a small percentage of those students begin to suspect that they chose the wrong place. If a student’s academic performance is up to standards but they still aren’t satisfied with their college, it may be time to look elsewhere. College is a pivotal time in a student’s life, and students deserve to be happy. If they’re not, they should absolutely consider transferring colleges.

Deciding Whether to Transfer: Defining the Student’s Struggle

Humans have a tendency to engage in “if only” thinking — imagining that one big change in life would make all the other pieces fall into place. It’s important to keep this tendency in mind when considering transferring colleges, because in this case, there’s some truth to it. College is an all-consuming endeavor, and positive college experiences can be transformational. At the same time, students sometimes encounter problems that transferring won’t fix. That’s why in deciding whether to transfer, students and their families must first work to clearly define the student’s struggles.

Students might encounter struggles external to their college experience. For instance, is the student dealing with ongoing mental or physical conditions? Facing substance abuse issues? Reeling from a romantic or friendship breakup? Undergoing a family divorce? College can exacerbate all sorts of stressful situations, and transferring might be part of the solution, but it cannot be the whole solution. In these cases, students and families should consult with professionals such as doctors and therapists to consider the next step.

Other struggles arise directly from college life. Is the student experiencing roommate conflicts? Not enjoying classes in their intended major? Feeling normal homesickness? Struggling with time management? Eating irregularly or unhealthily (which could be symptomatic of a disorder or could be the result of having myriad choices in the dining hall)? If the student is eligible for accommodations from the college Office of Disability Services, does the student know that, unlike in high school, they have to invoke accommodations for each class, and does the student know the process for invoking them? Has the student not yet found their people through joining student organizations?

With support from their families, professionals, and on-campus resources, many students can address these challenges without transferring. Even if the student applies to transfer, we recommend taking the steps to address these struggles, because most will not disappear at a new school and because the student may stay at the original college. Additionally, working through these problems helps students acquire more confidence and problem-solving skills.

When the student struggles with something about a college itself that will not change, the need to consider transferring colleges is clearer. Maybe the student is earning straight A’s but not feeling challenged. Maybe the college is too big, or too small. Maybe the student enrolled in an intensive arts program, only to realize that they instead want to study a subject a conservatory does not offer, or vice versa. Maybe the college formats lots of classes as large lectures, but the student learns best in small seminars. Maybe the courses the student wants to take have a hard cap and are impossible to get into until junior year. Maybe the research programs that enticed the student are largely for grad students, not undergrads. Maybe the student was cut from the sports team they hoped to join. Maybe the geographic location doesn’t suit. In these cases, the student and their family can immediately start the transfer process.

One situation in which we caution potential transfer applicants is when a student aims for a dream school that rejected them as a first-year applicant. It’s definitely possible that a student could apply as a transfer and get in. But some elite colleges, such as most Ivies, accept transfers at rates even lower than their first-year admissions rates. The enduring hope of the dream school keeps some students from engaging with the college they actually attend. Even if they do transfer, participating deeply at their first college will make for a more positive experience there (and give them more to talk about in their application essay).

Choosing Colleges to Transfer To

When students build their list of potential transfer colleges, they should work directly from the definition of the specific struggles they are facing and seek colleges that would help them move beyond those struggles. For instance, liberal-arts colleges offer more personalized experiences than large universities, and they tend to have robust undergraduate leadership and research programs. Schools in “college towns” or rural areas offer a tighter sense of community than colleges in cities, where many of the attractions lie off campus. Many college performing groups post recordings of their concerts and productions online. As part of considering transferring colleges, students should research each new school in depth, making sure to review the list of majors offered.

While the number of colleges a student applies to is highly situational based on the reasons for transferring — for instance, applying to conservatories requires many applications and rounds of auditions — we recommend applying to four to six colleges. All should be colleges that the student would prefer to their current school. If possible, at least one should be a college that previously admitted the student. Students may worry that schools that previously offered them admission would resent not being chosen the first time, but in fact, it’s the opposite. A student who was a good fit a year ago will likely be seen as a good fit now.

Our recommended number of schools may seem low compared with first-year applicants’ lists, but because transfer applicants are already in college, they should have a more concrete sense of what they do and do not want in their new institution.

When to apply to transfer

The break at the end of the calendar year, which typically occurs between the fall and spring terms on a semester system, is a good time for students and families to deeply consider transferring colleges. Then, before the student returns after the break, the student and family can work together to start a college list and to compose the first draft of the student’s transfer essay.

Most schools’ transfer deadlines are later in the year than their first-year deadlines. For instance, March 1 is a popular transfer deadline for fall admission, and many colleges also allow spring transfers, for which the deadline is in the fall. We recommend that students who want to transfer apply in time to start their third, fourth, or fifth college semesters at their new colleges — in other words, so they are able to enroll at their new school as a sophomore or first-semester junior. Applying earlier means starting transfer applications right after first-year orientation, when a student hasn’t yet given their college a fair chance. Applying later means having to take extra courses at the new college, since many only accept a certain number of transfer credits and want students to complete at least half of their undergraduate education there.

One exception to this timeline is intensive, conservatory-style arts programs, whose rounds of digital and in-person auditions start earlier in the fall. In that case, students might need to spend a summer getting their materials in order.

The Transfer Application Process

The transfer application process itself is similar to the first-year application process. Many colleges use the Common Application, and applicants submit essays, transcripts, and instructor recommendations. The question of whether to seek college or high-school instructor recommendations can be a delicate one. It can also be a challenge to strike the right tone in the main Common App transfer essay, in which students describe what they have learned at their current school and why they hope to transfer. Our team can help students and families follow an efficient and productive path through this landscape.

Don’t Forget to Visit

If at all possible, we recommend that students visit all colleges they apply to, if not before applying, then at least before deciding where to matriculate. This visit is important even if they’ve been to the college before. Applicants may be surprised by how much more they perceive this time around, now that they have spent lots of time on a single college campus. Everything they notice will help them make the right decision — one that will help them forge a rewarding and memorable college experience.

For help with your college transfer process, please contact our office.

By Brad Hoffman, M.S.Ed., Board Certified Educational Planner, and Faya Hoffman, M.A., Board Certified Educational Planner

While starting college can be exhilarating for a number of reasons — living away from home, making new friends, studying new subjects — those same factors can make the college transition difficult. As a result, it’s common for students to struggle a bit academically in their first college term. But sometimes, the challenge lasts longer or becomes more extreme, which creates a dilemma: How much struggle is ok, and how much is too much?

When students and families consider transferring colleges for specifically academic reasons, in addition to following our general advice for a college transfer, we offer some additional guidelines to help make the right decision.

Mindset: It’s About What’s Best for the Student

As a family and a student start addressing their struggles, it’s essential to help the student see that the struggles will not last forever. One way to do this is to shift the overall framing of the situation from an obstacle to an opportunity. Low grades are not a moral judgment. They simply signal a potential incompatibility between a student and their academic situation. Students need to see that there’s nothing “wrong” with them and that facing these challenges ultimately can help them know themselves more deeply and find a satisfying college experience.

This shift in mindset is not easy. Academic struggles can evoke fear and sadness, and whether a student has struggled before or has always excelled, their self-image may suffer. They may blame themselves for choosing a college that now feels “wrong.” They may not be able to accept that transferring colleges is the most viable way forward. Families might experience the student’s struggles as a shock, or as a worry that has become reality. The prospects of taking time off, saying goodbye to a college with family legacies, or leaving behind a long-sought field of study can be disorienting.

For many families, it can be particularly hard to consider schools ranked less elite than the student’s current college. But this process is not about abstractions of what is “the best.” This process is about determining what is the best for this particular student. Ultimately, if a student and their family undertake a clear-eyed search to find that “best-for-me” school — whether that’s the current school with some adjustments, or a new one — the student will step forward into a happier, healthier future.

Defining the Struggle

As with our general guidelines for transferring colleges, students and parents considering transferring colleges for academic reasons need to figure out what exactly is going on. That is, they need to clearly define the student’s struggles and all the factors that are contributing to them.

Some of these factors are primarily academic, such as difficult course content (for example, understanding readings); unfamiliar instructional formats (such as lecture format); a high amount of courses required per term; and whether a student eligible for disability accommodations has invoked them. Other factors can affect academic performance but are not strictly academic, such as noisy dorms; overcommitment to sports or clubs; and physical and mental health issues.

Among these factors, some are rooted in the individual student, such as executive function challenges, whereas others play out at an institutional level, such as courses that grade on curves. Additionally, some factors might be alleviated without changing colleges, such as switching majors, whereas others might only be alleviated by choosing a different college, such as finding a school that offers no big lecture courses or a curriculum with no core required classes.

Only by defining the struggle can students and families figure out next steps. Because this is a stressful process and because it can be difficult to identify every contributing factor, we recommend working with an admissions professional and possibly a therapist to navigate this analysis.

Measuring and Reacting to the Struggle

It’s also crucial to recognize the magnitude of the student’s struggle and react to it — and to do so immediately, since many students don’t reveal low grades to their families until the crisis is acute. First steps might include accessing all available on-campus services, such as tutoring centers and counseling; intensive subject support with private tutoring; dropping a class or two; taking an immediate leave of absence; or planning a leave of absence for the following term.

All of these steps are preferable to academic dismissal from the institution. But even if the student is academically dismissed, it’s important to help them understand that hope is never gone and to move forward with the process of figuring out next steps in their education.

Solving the Struggle and Beginning the Transfer Process

With immediate steps put into place, students and families can look at their longer-term options in terms of staying at a school or transferring. While this process mostly aligns with our general guidelines for weighing a transfer, when a student is considering transferring colleges for academic reasons, some additional measures can ensure that the student doesn’t end up in the same situation again at a different school.

The student will need to apply to at least one “definitely will get in” school or one with open admission. They should start their college list from scratch, with different priorities from those used in their first applications, with consideration of every factor that has contributed to their current challenges, but also with consideration of their personal strengths and interests. The student needs to recognize that they may no longer be a strong candidate for schools that admitted them as a high-schooler.

The student also should not limit their plan to enrolling right away in another traditional four-year college. Depending on their needs, they may benefit from innovative ungraded colleges, bridge programs for neurodiverse students or students with learning differences, four-year colleges that specialize in working with students with learning differences, gap-year programs, internships, short-term therapeutic or rehabilitation programs, outdoor programs, and taking courses part-time.

Going Forward: Remember The Guiding Question

“What is the best thing for me?” is not a simple question. But for college students considering transferring colleges for academic reasons, it is an essential one to answer. If they and their families work through the transfer process with this framework as their guide, students can find the affirming and joyful college experience they deserve.

For help with your college transfer process, please contact our office.

By Brad Hoffman, M.S.Ed., Board Certified Educational Planner, and Faya Hoffman, M.A., Board Certified Educational Planner