I’ll admit it. I pity rising Winthrop seniors. The prospect of sharing one cot that rolls out of a basement custodial closet with four blockmates isn’t pleasant. But n-6 housing doesn’t mean we should give transfers the ax.
It was beyond cruel how the Admissions Office announced they would accept no transfers after applications had been composed and recommendations obtained. Imagine if an I-banking firm announced in mid-March that they suddenly wouldn’t need any interns or employees, after candidates had slaved away over résumé building and interviews.
Plus, returned transfer application fees are cold comfort. If they suddenly decided not to give me a degree after four years, I sure as hell hope Harvard wouldn’t just offer me my money back. When Continental cancels my flight, they don’t just apologize over the loudspeaker and hand me a wad of cash. Please. I’m getting a free night’s stay at the Sheraton and enough flier credit to get me to Bora Bora the next morning.
So maybe there is no room left in the Houses. But why not let transfers simply find their own off-campus housing and then come to class? Judging from the attendance of Ec-10 lecture, there’s certainly no shortage of classroom seats.
But what I hate most about this new policy is that I now know the unfortunate truth about Harvard’s future. Fitzsimmons is actually phasing out the College. First, we saw early action wave goodbye. Now, transfers. What’s next? Sayonara wait-listers. At this rate, within a couple of years, they won’t be accepting regular decision applicants either.
Harvard’s objective? Number one in the US News rankings. Princeton’s got nothing on a zero percent acceptance rate.
