Essay Question Help
TransferEssay
Tips for the Transfer Essay By:E. Whitney Soule, theDirector of Transfer Admission at Connecticut College
Transferring from one institution to another is competitive and complicated. Before a studentcan even think about the details of transferable credit, housing, and financialaid, he or she must get admitted.
Like freshmenapplicants, transfer students compete for limited space in a college oruniversity. Submitting solid academic credentials is an obvious requirement.However, most institutions will require an essay that explains the student'sreasons for transferring. If done well, the essay can be the most powerful andconvincing part of a transfer student's application.
Admissionofficers review hundreds, sometimes thousands, of applications every year andhave to make decisions quickly based on the information available at the time ofreview. They will be especially discerning when considering transferapplications. After all, the student has already been through the applicationand enrollment process once (sometimes twice!), and an admission officer willwant to be sure that the next landing is for good.
Since it isunlikely that admission officers will have the time to call an applicant formore information, questions often get answered by extrapolating from theinformation available in the application. Therefore, an applicant mustanticipate the questions an admission committee might ask and then answer themin the essay(s).
Withoutexception, transfer students have specific and tangible reasons for wanting toleave one college and attend another. Every admission committee will want anexplanation. It is both appropriate and important for the applicant to be ableto articulate the reasons for choosing the first school, why that school is nolonger the right fit, and why the next school will be better.
For example,if a student writes a simple essay explaining that he wants to transfer fromUniversity A to College B, "Because College B is smaller and on the eastcoast," the admission committee may interpret that the student preferssmaller classes, is homesick, prefers an undergraduate majority, and so on. Yet,had the student written a detailed essay about how his original desire to attenda large university in the Midwest was no longer appropriate given his newpassion to study marine biology in College B's new science facility, theadmission committee would have confidence in the student's motivation to pursuetransferring.
Naturally, ifan applicant's credentials have obvious inconsistencies, the essay will need toaddress those as well. For one applicant, the problem might have to do with acurious drop in G.P.A. and for another, it may have to do with a switch in majoror concentration.
Unfortunately,little consistency exists among colleges and universities regarding transferdeadlines, application requirements, admission formulas, and transfer creditevaluation. However, all transfer students will be expected to explain theircircumstances and choices, most often through an essay or two. The transferessay is a student's opportunity to tell it like it is, to get to thenitty-gritty and defend it with confidence.
E. WhitneySoule Associate Director of Admission Director of Transfer Admission Connecticut College