Can I transfer to another school during grad ?

[kcppt]

I've just registered in UMCP as a grad student but honestly I'm kind of disappointed of the community and the ambience. Can I transfer to another university with the same major or a different major like undergrads do? How? When should I get started? Guys please help! I really feel dangerous and upset here.

[Lisa44201]

You have to go through the application process again. Furthermore, not all of your credits may transfer, even if you are accepted somewhere else.

[Quantum Buckyball]

It would be very hard, especially if you're funded by the department. Unless you know someone from another school is willing to take you in...

However, you may be able to transfer to a different department within the same school, if you can (1) find a sponsorship, or (2) pay for your own tuition and other random fees..

[fuzzylogician]

Generally speaking it is much more difficult to transfer in grad school compared to undergrad. There is no established procedure. In your case you'd be transferring out of your own initiative, not because your advisor is moving to a new school or another external reason. This means that you will need to find an advisor to take you on at the new school and obtain funding there. Usually there is no good way to do that other than reapply and start over at the new school, once you're accepted. You may be able to transfer some credits, but more often than not you won't, and you really will have to start over. 

 

If you're convinced that your current school is not a good match for your interests, I suggest you seriously consider reapplying to graduate schools this year. You have enough time to prepare your application (I assume a lot of it can be reused from last year). You'll need to address why you're not following through with the offer that you've accepted, but a bad fit between your school and your interests/personality is a very good reason. I'd suggest being careful about how you discuss the community and ambience issue, especially given that (based on your post) you can't have been at your new school for more than a month. There is an adjustment period that it's worth going through before you decide that the school is not right for you. So maybe what you want to do is go through at least one semester, perhaps year, of your current program, and also at the same time consider reapplying to grad school either in the coming application season or the following one, to keep all your options open. If you do stay in your current program for a year -- give it a fair shot! Try and keep an open mind about it, and accept the possibility that you may have only had a bad first impression but the program is better for you than you are imagining it is right now.  

 

If you do that: if you end up liking the school you're at (which is quite likely, as first impressions can be deceiving!), then you will have lost some time and money on the applications, but you will have gained a year of school. If you don't like your current school then you will have lost a year of school, but you'll be able to move to a new location as soon as possible after this experience, and I'm sure that the year you'll spend at this school will not have been in vain--you'll still learn a lot! 

 

 

ps: I merged this post with the post you made in the IHOG forum. There is no need to post the same question in multiple forums. 

[guinevere29]

Maybe I missed this information, but are you in an MA or a PhD program? I just assumed when first reading your post it must be PhD because as an MA only lasts 1-2 years, fit is not as big of an issue. I agree with Fuzzy's suggestion that it might behoove you to give it a try since you've already invested a lot in getting to the point you're at now. If you are in a PhD program and do not yet have an MA, you could consider leaving after you have finished the coursework for an MA.  I know people who have decided that grad school isn't for them and leave with an MA, but in your case you could apply elsewhere. Maybe it would help for us to know some more information about what type of program you are currently in.

[Sigaba]

FWIW, I changed schools but after earning a MA at the first school and getting the "blessing" (so to speak) of a few professors.

 

The lesson learned is the value of looking before leaping--the second school's program is, in many respects more rigorous but the professor I transferred to work with proved to be, ah, problematic. 

 

I recommend taking FL's and G29's guidance to heart and making the best effort to explore all the opportunities that your current program and new community have to offer.

[juilletmercredi]

First of all, you just started - give it a chance.

Second of all, graduate school is not really about the ambiance and community.  It depends on the interpretation of ambiance and community, though.  Do you mean that peoplle are competitive and cutthroat, and you wanted a more laid-back and collegial place?  Is it a snake pit?  Those are good reasons to transfer.  But if it's just that the students are busier than you imagined or they're not always willing to go out to happy hour, then consider that most grad schools are like that.  Is this program good for you academically?  Is it a good fit for your interests and future career goals?  Things like that are far more important, and you can always meet friends and find a social life outside of your department and university.  Unless you feel miserable or unsafe, I would think there are other better reasons to transfer.

Third, if you decide you really want to transfer - no, the process of transferring is not like undergrad.  Most of the time you have to apply just as if you were a new student, and then negotiate credit transfer (and often there is none - you have to start over).