Transfer Student Advice

[Twig8]

Here's the low-down to give context into my question:

I spent my first two years at a small, relatively unknown state school and earned a 3.89 GPA. I was a psych major, but thought I wanted to do pre-med, so I transferred to a better school. Turns out I couldn't handle the classes involved (i.e. biology & chemistry) and I will probably be getting an average GPA of 2.8-2.9 this semester. Throughout this semester, I realized that I only wanted to go pre-med for the prestige and money (I know, what a fool I am). So, I am now going to go back to majoring in psychology also with a double major in sociology (and a minor in stats if that means anything). I will be pursuing acceptance into a Phd program down the road (probably within the next 3-4 years).

Should I transfer back to my previous school where I have a better GPA? Or should I stay where I am? Will Phd programs take this semester into account either way? The difference of decisions would be somewhere between a 3.85 GPA if I stayed (accounting for me doing well after this semester) and a 3.95 GPA (accounting for me going back to my old school and continuing to do well).

This probably seems obnoxious considering a 3.85 and 3.95 are both admirable, but I want to have the most competitive stats possible along with research experience etc etc etc.

Thank you for your time!

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[smalltownpsych]

Whichever school is doing the most research that interests you would be my thought. The more involved you are in research, the better. My thought is that GPA is a bigger factor when it is below a cutoff which usually varies from school to school but I would think that over 3.5 should suffice to keep the application out of the trash.

 

[deleted343839]

On the assumption that your current school has stronger academics and more research opportunities, I would suggest you stay put. But if your former school is really strong in psychology, you could consider going back.

How do you know which psychology program is a better bet? Look at things like (1) the number of faculty research labs with undergraduate research opportunities, (2) honors programs that allow you to work with a faculty member on an independent project, (3) presence of "superstar" students (e.g., people who are presenting at national conferences, receiving small grants, etc.), which will indicate the presence of "superstar" mentors, and finally (4) reputation among faculty psychologists (ASK your professors - most will be honest with you; for instance, the best advice I ever received from a psychology professor was to transfer to an R1 and knock on doors to get research experience).