Number of Transfer Students Multiplies

The number of undergraduate transfer students has climbed to 75 this year, rising more than 100 percent since the 2002-2003 academic year.

The College admitted 45 to 55 transfer students last year and 35 the previous year, according to Director of Admissions Marlyn McGrath Lewis ’70-’73. “Last year we had fewer spaces, but this year we are delighted to have more spaces in College housing, as well as more spaces in classrooms, so we have room to instruct and room to house,” she said.

This marks the second year of rising numbers of transfers, following a five-year downward trend that ended after no transfers were accepted in spring of 2003.

McGrath Lewis said transfer students apply from a variety of locations, such as schools abroad, service academies and other Ivies.

Caitlin D. Green ’06, a transfer student from Middlebury College who was one of 1,100 applicants this year, said she found Middlebury’s student population of 2,400 “way too small” for her. “I also wanted to be in a city,” she said, “and Middlebury is in the middle of nowhere.”

For Jesse L. Krohn ’06, the decision to transfer to Harvard came after she decided to major in government, which she said is a relatively weak department at her previous school, Washington University in St. Louis.

Nantaporn Sombatsiri ’07, who hails from Thailand and transferred from Grinnell College in Iowa, looked to Harvard for its reputation.

“I liked Grinnell College,” she said, “but if I want to go back to Thailand for work, name recognition is important for getting career opportunities there.”

Both Green and Krohn noted similarities between the transfer and freshmen application processes, but Green felt the lower admissions rate for transfers made the experience more daunting.

“I took the essay more seriously because I was only applying to one college this time and I knew I really had to work on it,” Green said.

Previous college experiences make transfer students mature, McGrath Lewis said.

“The applications are interesting to read because transfer applicants have experienced college, and are often very reflective, very insightful, and very thoughtful about what their desires and plans are,” McGrath Lewis said.

Green and Krohn both mentioned the orientation for transfers—held the week before registration—as a key factor in easing their transition into life at Harvard.

As for academics, “I don’t think there’s more work here,” Krohn said. “But at Wash U, it was more relaxed. However, [the atmosphere at Harvard] is also indicative of the intensity of the students here, and I like that.”

And transfer students are also adding to Harvard’s talent pool, McGrath Lewis said. “If you look at how much people contribute when they’re here and how much they accomplish later on in life,” McGrath Lewis said, “you really find that transfer groups are some of the most interesting and talented people.”