A Very Interesting Article on Transferring.

Transfer Students
1

<p>I found this oldie-but-goodie article from the Times (It's from spring 2006). I'm not sure if it had been posted in the past, but I think it's still very relevant to the students who are contemplating transferring:</p>

<p>Excerpts:</p>

<p>"Recent surveys at Ball State University and the University of Wisconsin, Madison, show that transfer students have particular difficulty meeting other students and finding friends; the Ball State survey also found that while they are more academically confident than first-year students, they struggle more socially. At James Madison University in Virginia, 80 percent of ''native'' freshmen graduate compared with 72 percent of transfers.</p>

<p>That gap struck Randy Mitchell, associate vice president for student success at James Madison. Many surveys and focus groups later, he pinpointed an adjustment problem. ''Transfer students felt they were dropped into the institution without a lot of support and they were lonely,'' he says. ''We do a great job for freshmen. What we did for transfers paled in comparison.'' "</p>

<p>"Frankie Santos Laanan, an assistant professor who studies transfer trends at Iowa State University, says that switching colleges can leave students surprised, socially and emotionally -- and can result in a **temporary dip in grades. ''It is that shock that could make a student dissatisfied or disillusioned,'' he says."</p>

<p>"PLAN AHEAD There is no academic down time in the several months between deciding to transfer and arriving on a new campus. It should be planning time. ''They need to know what they need to be doing right away when they get here,'' says Shelly Brown, transfer services counselor at the University of California, Irvine, which has set aside two dorms for transfer students. (Who wants to live with freshmen?) Ms. Brown sends e-mail messages to transfers before they set foot on campus. She wants them to foster relationships quickly with professors and arrange research that will help secure letters of recommendation for graduate programs."</p>

<p>College</a>, My Way; Lost, Alone and Not a Freshman - New York Times</p>

<p>P.S.
For those who don't have NYTimes online, you can register for free, you don't need subscription to NYTimes paper to read their online materials.</p>

2

<p>
[quote]
"She wants them to foster relationships quickly with professors and arrange research that will help secure letters of recommendation for graduate programs"

[/quote]
</p>

<p>thats probably my biggest concern</p>

3

<p>just stay on top of your game everyone and you won't become a statistic. join clubs, be active, you'll meet people</p>

4

<p>So this brings up the question, which schools have transfer groups/support, or maybe, the best transfer support? Of the four schools to which I've applied, two of them have clear transfer groups, and two seem to have limited groups. </p>

<p>UC Berkeley: has a transfer center with special scholarships, club meetings, student-parent support, advising and more.</p>

<p>Mills College: has very strong "resumer" (over-23) support, a special transfer/resumer study lounge complete with lockers (for commuters), transfer dean, transfer/resumer advising and more.</p>

<p>San Diego State College: I think they have a transfer center, but not sure. If anyone can point me in the right direction, please do...</p>

<p>Univ. of Utah: holds a transfer orientation/advising day and also offers a transfer overnight to meet other transfers, but I haven't been able to find much info about a transfer center or ongoing transfer support.</p>

5

<p>I agree with Thatgirltoo and Jordan. Some schools are more transfer friendly than others, so it's a prospective transfers job to see if they are applying to places that fall under this category. Also, it is important to be active in the community of the school that they transfer to. As transfer hopefuls, we need to realize that we will have to work harder at this than incoming freshman.</p>

6

<p>To meet people at college you just have to be friendly. Maybe as a transfer it won't be as easy as when you are a freshman in the dorms, all you have to do is be outgoing and friendly to people and you won't really have a problem.</p>

7

<p>I had a 3.8something GPA at Loyola Chicago, the school I transferred from, and now a 3.90 GPA at Northwestern (both are cumulative, but this is my first term at NU).</p>