Transferring to an Ivy League College?

(It’s easier than you think!)

Though most of my Ivy League college admissions blog posts center around helping high school seniors who are applying to the most competitive and elite universities in the US, every year I also work with students who are already in college, and are thinking about transferring (or thinking about trying to transfer, I shall say) into an Ivy League school.

Did you hear that correctly? YES, YOU CAN GET INTO AN IVY LEAGUE COLLEGE, like Harvard, Princeton, Dartmouth or Yale…by transferring.

And, I’ll tell you another secret, too: it’s easier to get in as a transfer student than when you applied as high school senior. A lot easier. It’s the secret the Ivy League colleges like Harvard don’t really want you to know.

I speak from personal experience. I’ve been working as one of the top Ivy League college admissions consultants, for the last 10 years, and each year, as in every single year, I get students into some of the top colleges in the world as transfer students.

Now, don’t get me wrong, you need to have done really, really, well your first semester at whatever college you did decide to attend, and transferring as a freshman, after your first semester is going to be your best bet, but I have had students who got completely rejected from Harvard (for example) — as in, not even deferred if they applied Early Decision, not even waitlisted, who were a complete and absolute NO, who ended up not even going to another Ivy League school, but say some “less competitive” top 25 -ranked college that is not even in the Ivy League (someplace, for example, like NYU, Boston College, Emory University, one of the “Seven Sister” schools, or even the stand-out state schools like UMass Amherst, or Georgia Tech) who end up applying as transfers to Harvard and, are you ready for this, actually GETTING IN.

The theory is that since there are WAY less transfer students than regular freshman high school applicants, if you have done well your first semester (that’s all you need) at your college of choice, you actually have a really good shot.

In other words, if you need that spelled out for you — it’s easier to get in to the Ivy League, and the Ivy League’s top schools (Princeton, Harvard, Yale) as a transfer student, than it is an a high school senior, because the competition is LESS. There are simply not as many people applying.

You need to have great grades, and you need to have strong extracurriculars, excellent college admissions essays, stellar recommendations and college admissions interviews, but the Ivy League colleges are more interested in how you did your first semester in college, at your current school, as well as your particular reasons for transferring, than anything you previously did in high school (including your SAT scores).

I have gotten kids in as transfer students to Harvard, who absolutely would have been passed over and rejected if they applied the previous year while they were still high school seniors, as what they did in college that first semester, as well as HOW they did, is what made them stand out.

How you present yourself as a transfer applicant however, is very important. You need to think about how you want to craft your story, your narrative to the Ivy League admissions committee. You need to think about your reasons for wanting to transfer to an Ivy League college.

You’ll also be leaving your first school behind — any new college friends you’ve made, etc. though in the age of social media, maybe that’s not nearly as traumatic as it once sounded. Most of all though, if you’re thinking of transferring, and using this “tactic” to end up graduating from an Ivy League college, you need to craft your essays and profile in a way that presents a valid reason for transferring to the new school — especially when your “new school” is Harvard or Princeton.

And getting straight A’s your first semester at your old school doesn’t hurt.

If you’re interested in learning more about how to transfer to an Ivy League college, and not give up on your dreams, I do offer free consultations.

And transfer applications are due March 1. Don’t think it’s impossible to transfer into Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, Columbia, Brown, UPenn, or Cornell. Know that it is possible, and that transfer students get in every year.

If you’re not thrilled by the college you’re currently attending, or if you got rejected from the Ivy League either Early Decision or regular decision this year, know that your dream it is potentially STILL possible. Really.

You just need a strategy and a plan, which is exactly what I do, so feel free to check out my Ivy League College Admissions Blog for some great FREE Ivy League admissions tips and advice at: www.IvyCollegeEssay.com

And, see you in the Ivy League!