Transferring Schools

[PinkSigma3]

My parents keep bringing up that they want to move from Pennsylvania to North Carolina and I keep telling them they have to wait 3-4 years til I'm out of college.
However, I'm not sure if they are joking or serious, but they seem like they want to move soon.
My mom suggested I transfer to UNC-Chapel Hill because it was my dream college when I was younger.
I feel like the major thing keeping me at my college now is my sorority.
There is a chapter of TriSigma at UNC...but I wonder, has anyone else transferred from one chapter to another? From a small northern school to a Large Southern School? I feel like they wouldn't respect me bc I didn't rush the same etc.

What do you all think?

[adpiucf]

Why do you have to transfer to a new university if your parents are moving? You're an adult.

I'm not 100% about Tri-Sigma, but in ADPi if you transfer to another university where there is an ADPi chapter, there is transfer paperwork involved, but there is not a guarantee you will be invited to affiliate to that chapter. If you transfer to a new school where there isn't a chapter or you're not invited to affiliate where there is a chapter, you are given alumna status. Check with your adviser about your sorority's policies.

But ... why rock the boat if you're enjoying your university experience? You can go home and visit your parents for holidays, etc., or even move to their area once you have graduated.

[kddani]

also, it's not like you can just transfer wherever you want to. UNC Chapel Hill is hard to get into, especially for an out of stater (i'm sure they have minimum residency requirements for in-staters, so your parents just moving there wouldn't automatically let you be in-state i'm betting. I think usually to establish in-state residency it's like 6 months in most places). A very high % of their students are instate and they only let so many out of staters in. I'm betting transferring is even harder. UNC is a good school, so you'd better have stellar grades, especially transferring from a PA state school. Academically, it would be great for you if you could get in. But don't transfer just cause your parents are moving, that's kinda silly.

And again, there's very likely no guarantee that you could automatically affiliate with a chapter down there anyway.

[lauralaylin]

Do you need to move because of in state tuition? Why don't you visit the chapter at UNC and see what they are like? That would at least give you more information to base your decision on.

[Zillini]

It may be that mom & dad don't want to pay out of state tuition if they move and PinkSigma stays. Or they don't like the idea that their daughter is so far away from them. Or both.

If your parents pay your bills, you might not have much of a choice. If you want to stay then you'd need to pursue financial aid, loans and/or get a job to support yourself. Plus you may need to make sure you are still considered having in-state residence if/when your parents move.

If it's that your parents want you close, then it is up to you to determine what is important to you. If you choose to stay, will mom & dad lay a major guilt trip on you? Will they constantly worry? Can you can handle that?

I can only imagine that transferring from a small college to a large one would be a major change. It might be an exciting adventure for you or you could wind up miserable. Only you can answer that and you might not even know the answer until you do it.

Another question you need to answer, how easily would it be to transfer? Are you majoring in something that is highly specialized and your current school is recognized as being top notch in that field? Or is your major fairly common (and I don't mean that in a negative way)? Are your grades good enough to transfer? Will all your credits be recognized by UNC-CH or will it force you to stay in school longer to make stuff up? (This could also have a big financial impact on both you and your parents.)

As for your sorority, that would be a major change as well. Every Chapter is different. On one campus XYZ sorority is considered the best, smartest, most popular, prettiest, shallow, trampy, partiers, struggling, whatever while another campus is completely different. That is definately something you would want to check out ahead of time and factor into your decision making. Also, going from a small close knit Chapter to a very large one can also be a big adjustment.

As ADPiUCF said, you'll also want to check out your sorority's transfer procedures. With ADPi some of our Chapters welcome transfer students with open arms, while others are somewhat choosy. The actives want to get to know the transfer member very well before they issue an invitation to affiliate. Another thing, we don't offer invitations to affiliate until at least after 1 semester on campus so that we can see their grades.

Whatever you decide, I wish you luck!

[33girl]

Kate -

I totally understand your worry about the chapter/transferring thing. Not to mention if they move and you stay it's a lot of either driving or flying (and the airport isn't exactly nearby).

See what UNC's tuition/residency/grade etc requirements are, and then go from there with the sorority if it's feasible.

One of my sister-daughters transferred schools two semesters after she was initiated.

Our chapter is small in comparison to our mainland chapters, but that's typical for us since Greek Life in Hawai`i is next to non-existant. Her father (who was stationed in the Army here) retired and decided to move the entire family to Myrtle Beach. Kristen wanted to stay in Hawaii, but knew that it would be difficult traveling to and from Myrtle Beach, so she did her research, and decided that Florida State was where she wanted to go, not because we have an AGD chapter there, but because the tuition was reasonable, she really liked the program for her major there, and it was really close to her family.

At first she was nervous because she wasn't sure if a) she'd get in because at that point we didn't know if the chapter was full and b) she'd get along with any of the sisters of AGD-Gamma Beta. Luckily, a few of us (myself included) met a bunch of Gamma Beta sisters at Convention in Atlanta in 2001 and put in a good word for her.

The paperwork was done, and in the Fall of 2001 she affiliated with Gamma Beta. Sure, the paperwork was processed, the fees were paid, etc. etc., but it was Kristen's personality and good character that helped her become an active contributing and well-liked member at FSU. She even became VP-Recruitment a few semesters after affiliating.

[irishpipes]

When I was a freshman at the University of Illinois my mom moved to Oklahoma. I was born in Illinois and had lived every day of my life there. When I went to register for next fall's classes, I was informed that I was now considered out of state because my mom lived in Oklahoma. I explained to U of I that I didn't live there and they informed me that I had to be self-supporting (earning a certain amount of money) at an Illinois address in order to be considered a resident. Or, I could have become self-sufficient by taking out loans, but my mom would have had to give me up as a dependent on her tax return and she wasn't willing to do that.

So, I moved to Oklahoma where my mom lived and found out that the state schools here wouldn't count me as a resident here either until I lived here for at least 6 months. It didn't matter that my mom had already lived here for a year. So, it is possible to be a U.S. citizen and not be a resident of any state.

You may want to check out PA's and NC's rules about residency (if finances are a concern.) Also, check and see if your credits will transfer. It is pretty expensive and depressing to take the same classes all over again at a new school.

I know these comments aren't related to greek life, but they are something to consider!

Good luck to you!