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The conversation on transferring goes both ways

Princeton is unique among the Ivies for its current policy banning transferring. This policy has received significant attention: In 2013 the Editorial Board wrote on the benefits of accepting transfer students, and in 2014 The Daily Princetonian reported that the University under President Eisgruber is considering overturning the policy.

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While the conversation about transferring in has been vocal, what about the conversation around transferring out? The discussion about transferring out of Princeton is critical to many students, but has been muted on campus. Princeton’s doors have been closed and locked to outsiders since 1990, but it often feels like these doors are locked on both sides. Of course, students are free to transfer out of the University, but the silence around the issue — the distinct absence of anecdotes and factual information — has essentially obscured transferring out as an option.

This past year as a freshman, I’ve had my share of doubts about Princeton. Many of us have periods when we question if Princeton was the best decision for us, if the “best damn place of all” is really the best for our future outcomes and present-day happiness. We’ve all experienced these doubts in some form at 3 a.m. in Firestone, jokingly or seriously.

During Preview Day on April 13, when my pre-frosh asked me if I felt like I had made the right decision, I gave an honest, nuanced response — Princeton, like all schools, has its pros and cons. She then asked me how often students transferred out of the University. I was unable to give a response, and that unnerved me since it was something I had wondered myself.

The information is hard to find. A cursory Google search turns up that Princeton has a four-year graduation rate of 88 percent and a six-year graduation of 96 percent, boasting one of the highest graduation rates among U.S. universities. However, as reflected in the statistics, there are clearly some (albeit a distinct minority) who choose to transfer or drop out for various reasons. I sifted through the Google results some more and plugged in different combinations of search words; beyond these two statistics, there was nothing. I could not find basic yet important information, like how many students transfer out each year, how to weigh the decision with a good framework, or how the University is involved in the process.

This is information that should not be hard to find. Of course, a University is not expected to actively encourage students to drop out, but it should still seek to provide the necessary information clearly. Students who desire more information about transferring should be able to equip themselves with the information privately and easily, without needing to make an appointment with the dean of a residential college or an academic advisor. While the purpose of these staff is to help us, transferring out is the kind of matter that requires time alone to process and reflect on, so the student can think about it in the beginning without being influenced by another person or feeling uncomfortable under the scrutiny. In fact, if an appointment is the only means of obtaining substantive information, some students may even be deterred from seeking the information simply because they may be uncomfortable broaching the conversation in the first place.

The purpose of the University is to improve the lives of students so that they don’t question their happiness here, and so that transferring out is less of a concern. But I think it is critical to put out essential, relevant information and to at least acknowledge that transferring out is an option. If a student is considering transferring out, they should not feel pressured to erase the option because it seems like an abnormal or extreme choice. Transferring out is a personal decision that should be made solely on personal factors, and students should not be deterred from considering it because the lack of conversation around it gives the illusion that it is rare.

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Additionally, we should create a network of students who transfer out and voluntarily provide their names and contact information, similar to the Gap Year Network. It would be valuable for students who are considering transferring to be able to connect with students who were in a similar situation and hear their experiences and motivations. Being able to speak with peers would create an open community with the mentoring and resources to empower students to make the best decision.

The number one goal is to feel happy and satisfied here at Princeton. But the reality is that, sometimes, another university would better fulfill a student’s goals. In order to allow people to make the decision best for them, we need to unlock the doors from the inside through accessible information and destigmatized dialogue.

Jessica Li is a sophomore from Chandler, Ariz. She can be reached at jnli@princeton.edu.

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