If you're unhappy with your current college and think you made the wrong choice when it came to deciding where to go to school, transferring might seem like a reasonable option. Before you go through the work needed to apply and transfer to a new college or university -- or, worse, before you actually do transfer -- make sure you're clear that your reasons for doing so are justified and well thought-out.

The last thing you want to do is recreate your unhappiness somewhere else.

Bad Reason #1: You aren't making friends. It might be difficult, but really be honest with yourself on this one. Have you made every effort possible to make friends at your current institution? Have you joined clubs, talked with people in your residence hall or apartment building, attended campus events, looked into intramural teams, and tried every possible avenue to meet people? If you're spending most of your time alone in your room and then do the exact same thing at another school, your friend problem won't go away. Instead, it will just follow you to your next campus.

Bad Reason #2: You want to be closer to a boyfriend or girlfriend. Are significant others a valid, highly important, and significant factor of your life? Definitely. But they shouldn't be a factor in your decision about where to go to school. If you're 100% convinced that you and your partner are going to be together forever, then staying where you are won't influence that commitment one way or another.

And if you aren't sure, focusing on the reasons why you picked your current school can help remind you of what long-term goals you have for yourself and any future significant other you choose to be with.

Bad Reason #3: You don't like your living arrangements. Think carefully before you transfer colleges because of your living arrangements. If you don't like your roommates, for example, you can change roommates; if you don't like your residence hall or apartment, you can also request a change. And while you may or may not be able to move somewhere else within the time frame you'd like, moving campuses because of your living arrangements is like using a wrecking ball when you just need a hammer. Making one small change -- like with whom you share your living space -- can vastly improve the rest of your experience at your current school.

Bad Reason #4: You think your adjustment to college will be easier somewhere else. Adjusting to college -- especially as a first-semester student -- is difficult no matter where you are. If you're feeling frustrated, sad, homesick, and overwhelmed, those sentiments aren't necessarily specific just to your institution: they're specific to someone making a major transition to an entirely different life. And while putting an end to that transition might be appealing, it's not a good reason to transfer. After all, if you do transfer to another school, you'll have to end up going through the entire process twice.

Bad Reason #5: You're homesick.Being homesick is a perfectly normal, perfectly reasonable emotion to be feeling when you're away from home. And if you're far away from home, possibly for the first time, there can understandably be a lot of appeal when you think of all the comforts home offers. Fortunately, homesickness gradually goes away for nearly all college students, and you'll soon learn that your campus is a new and exciting kind of home, too. If you transfer back, however, you'll never let yourself take that leap of faith.