Is it worth it transferring 2nd year and then applying to medical school?

[boxasaurus]

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Hi everyone,

I'm currently a 2nd year undergraduate at uci going down the pre-med track. I plan to apply to medical school in 2014. my cGPA's currently around a 3.65 (3.61 sGPA), and that's with 2/3 physics courses completed. I estimate that my sGPA would be above a 3.75 by the time I apply.

However, my parents insist that I transfer out to usc. You see, my parents believe that the prestige of a college school correlates with the amount of money one makes in the future. That, and my dad is a usc alumni.

Here's the current plan I have for myself:
1. Finish ochem now and review for the physical sciences section of the mcat.
2. Major reviewing for the MCAT this coming summer.
3. Take the MCAT early 2014, once or twice, depending on how I score the first time.

If I transfer out then that would of course mess up my schedule because I have to replan out everything I want to take and I would have to take extra courses just to make sure that I graduate on time.

At UCI, I have the following guaranteed:
- Research position at a drosophila lab (+ LOR from mentors)
- Leadership (club position for 3 years, which at this points looks like it will be V.P next year followed by President during my 4th year)
- Volunteer hours (clinical and relief-ish)
- Hospital position/intern

But my parents argue that if I go to usc, that I will have the following
- potential hospital position
- smaller class sizes (which I believe does not make much of a difference because I will be in my upper division classes by then)
- potential research
- "Happiness"

My main concern is that I will lose everything that I've built at uci and that all the LORs I have prepared at uci would be weakened by this decision.

There's also a financial stance in this debate too, since I don't receive financial aid, and so I would pay an extra total of $60k, and though my parents would pay for it all, I would not want to imagine them living with $30k less every year because they're already living pretty spartan-like.

So my question is, is it worth it transferring to another undergraduate school?

 

[Xenops]

It's really up to you, whether you most value established opportunities or saving your parents money.

 

[boxasaurus]

It's really up to you, whether you most value established opportunities or saving your parents money.

That's the thing though, they're only opportunities and aren't guaranteed like everything I have right now.

 

[neekzg]

I would personally definitely stay at UCI. I really don't think there's much that USC can offer you that you aren't already getting at Irvine. (I might be a bit biased since I'm a Bruin myself though..) Someone who actually goes to USC should chime in, but from what I can tell the environment doesn't seem to be as cut-throat, and their pre-med population is not as big as it is at UCLA or UCI.

You seem to be very well settled in at Irvine, and (especially) if you're already happy there, don't move--even against your parents' insistence. If their main reason they want you to move is because the USC label will look better on a med school app, I don't think that would be wise.

 

[Textbookversion]

Seems dumb to swap schools given the expense and the fact that it will have zero impact on you getting into medical school. Also lame to make your parents pay for college but w/e.

 

[boxasaurus]

Seems dumb to swap schools given the expense and the fact that it will have zero impact on you getting into medical school. Also lame to make your parents pay for college but w/e.

Exactly!

But that's something that my parents won't get into their head. They're too concerned with the assumptions that I will be gloriously happy at USC, that the class sizes will be smaller (Even though I'll be taking upper division chemistry classes), and that the USC name will somehow get me more money in the future.

 

[LizzyM]

Is your father still singing this song after the debacle in El Paso? How happy are students and alumni today?

🙄

Seriously, you would be giving up a lot of what you've built at UCI and risk something by tranferring as a rising junior:

You'd be giving up the position you've built in your college clubs with no hope of rising to a leadership position at USC as a new student.

You'd lose the research position you have lined up with no guarantee that you'd find one at USC

You'd get less strong LORs from USC given that the faculty will have had less than a year to get to know you before you will be asking for a letter.

If your gpa drops in your junior yr, adcoms could assume that you aren't capable of USC-level academics and that your UCI gpa is a bit inflated (because USC is more competitive).

Why not show your parents your original post and tell them that you can't afford to transfer...

Would yoru parents be pleased if you went to USC Keck for med school? Tell them that you will have the best shot at being admitted there if you can maximize your research and gpa at UCI.

 

[byaaaaaaah23]

If you're happy, stay where you are. Transferring should only be done if you are miserable where you are, otherwise it's not worth the risk in my opinion. What if you get to USC, hate it, and your grades drop?