Okay, before I go into more detail with my question, I need to give a little background information first. I am currently a first semester college freshman at UT Austin in the McCombs School of Business pondering the possibility of transferring to CU Boulder (I'm a Colorado native, too).
Anyway, at the end of my senior year of high school, I had no idea where I wanted to go to school. With everything happening (AP exams, prom, graduation, etc.), I made my decision rashly, choosing UT Austin because of its top notch business school. However, when I visited the school during the spring break of my senior year, I was extremely disappointed and even crossed it off of my list once I learned of my acceptance to UCLA and CU Boulder. I just didn't like the feel of the campus and had that gut feeling that it wasn't the school for me. Now, UCLA was my absolute dream school, but I didn't choose it due to the facts that it didn't have an undergraduate business school, tuition was too expensive, and fear of extreme homesickness (like I said, I'm a Colorado native, and I was afraid of extreme culture shock by living in L.A.). Once I crossed UCLA off of my list, I was pretty sure that I was going to CU Boulder. However, many of my friends decided to go to highly ranked out-of-state schools (UCB, UNC Chapel Hill, etc.), and I felt that I needed to "jump on the bandwagon" in order to compete with them and impress others. Knowing how highly ranked McCombs was, I chose UT Austin, even though I didn't really like the campus after visiting it during spring break . As soon I accepted my offer of admissions, I felt like I had made a huge mistake because I knew deep in my heart that I didn't want to go there. Still, I rationalized by saying that happiness is a mindset and that I would adjust once I got there. So I went for summer orientation in July and came back home dreading having to go back for the semester in August, but I didn't tell anybody how I really felt. Once at school, I tried to keep busy with my studies and social interactions to distract my mind from thinking about my decision, but I eventually fell into a deep depression (I contemplated suicide many times, disengaged from any real social interaction, and didn't have any motivation to do schoolwork; in essence, everything was the opposite of what I hoped college would be). Eventually, I decided that I would do anything to leave, so I filled out a transfer application to CU Boulder. Things slowly got better after that. I became more motivated in my school work and less depressed because I believed that I would be transferring for the spring semester. Now, here's where the problem arises. All of a sudden, I have started to wonder if I really should transfer colleges. I know that McCombs School of Business is a really strong program, and I feel that I would be wasting a huge opportunity by leaving and keep rationalizing that I'll adjust. However, I still think I might be happier back in Boulder because of the proximity to my home, cost, and the fact that I can study whatever I want (My parents will only allow me to study business at UT Austin due to cost. The problem is that I don't know what I want to major in and feel locked into business).
In the end, I know that only I can make the right decision, but I was wondering if anybody had any insights or advice. Basically, what do you think? Should I transfer schools?
Anyway, at the end of my senior year of high school, I had no idea where I wanted to go to school. With everything happening (AP exams, prom, graduation, etc.), I made my decision rashly, choosing UT Austin because of its top notch business school. However, when I visited the school during the spring break of my senior year, I was extremely disappointed and even crossed it off of my list once I learned of my acceptance to UCLA and CU Boulder. I just didn't like the feel of the campus and had that gut feeling that it wasn't the school for me. Now, UCLA was my absolute dream school, but I didn't choose it due to the facts that it didn't have an undergraduate business school, tuition was too expensive, and fear of extreme homesickness (like I said, I'm a Colorado native, and I was afraid of extreme culture shock by living in L.A.). Once I crossed UCLA off of my list, I was pretty sure that I was going to CU Boulder. However, many of my friends decided to go to highly ranked out-of-state schools (UCB, UNC Chapel Hill, etc.), and I felt that I needed to "jump on the bandwagon" in order to compete with them and impress others. Knowing how highly ranked McCombs was, I chose UT Austin, even though I didn't really like the campus after visiting it during spring break . As soon I accepted my offer of admissions, I felt like I had made a huge mistake because I knew deep in my heart that I didn't want to go there. Still, I rationalized by saying that happiness is a mindset and that I would adjust once I got there. So I went for summer orientation in July and came back home dreading having to go back for the semester in August, but I didn't tell anybody how I really felt. Once at school, I tried to keep busy with my studies and social interactions to distract my mind from thinking about my decision, but I eventually fell into a deep depression (I contemplated suicide many times, disengaged from any real social interaction, and didn't have any motivation to do schoolwork; in essence, everything was the opposite of what I hoped college would be). Eventually, I decided that I would do anything to leave, so I filled out a transfer application to CU Boulder. Things slowly got better after that. I became more motivated in my school work and less depressed because I believed that I would be transferring for the spring semester. Now, here's where the problem arises. All of a sudden, I have started to wonder if I really should transfer colleges. I know that McCombs School of Business is a really strong program, and I feel that I would be wasting a huge opportunity by leaving and keep rationalizing that I'll adjust. However, I still think I might be happier back in Boulder because of the proximity to my home, cost, and the fact that I can study whatever I want (My parents will only allow me to study business at UT Austin due to cost. The problem is that I don't know what I want to major in and feel locked into business).
In the end, I know that only I can make the right decision, but I was wondering if anybody had any insights or advice. Basically, what do you think? Should I transfer schools?