Rosemary M. Green, director of transfer student admissions, says she looks for students who will make a contribution to the Harvard community.

Since 1994, Harvard has admitted roughly 110 to 120 transfers each year, a decrease of about 15 students from previous levels.

Green says her office gives the nod to "interesting and talented people," adding that they come from all walks of life.

"From ballet dancers to chess players to people in the military, many transfers do bring some special experience that students directly from high school cannot," Green says. "Some transfers have very well-developed thinking along a particular line and have already decided the particular interests they have come here to develop. Some bring non-traditional experience beyond the classroom--they have started a business or worked professionally as musicians.

"Transfer students bring a great deal of enthusiasm here. Their special perspective contributes to the life of the College," she says.

But the number of transfer students accepted has been on the decline since the early 1990s, while the number of applicants has actually increased.

In 1995, only 9.6 percent of transfer applicants were admitted, down from 12.2 percent in 1991.

First-year dormitories have been renovated Green says, creating more space for first-years, whose rising numbers leave less room for transfer students in the houses.

And 30 more first-years will be admitted next year and housed in Apley Court. In order to make room for the new first-years, transfer acceptances will be cut even further.

Unique Perspective

But some transfers, including Goldbrenner, believe Byerly Hall is making a mistake.

Reducing transfer admissions "is a bad idea," Goldbrenner says. "Transfers contribute a lot to this school."

Shameel Arafin '97 left Cal Tech after his junior year, abandoning the prospects of a career in electrical engineering to study literature.

Having seen life at another school, he says, has helped him realize the benefits of attending Harvard, which he has found a lot of fun.

"In my class at Cal Tech, only 30 percent were women, and that was the highest percentage ever," Arafin says. "Here, I can go out into Boston and party quite a bit."