Let’s face it, being a transfer student isn’t easy. When envisioning my future as a college student while I was still in high school, I never could have imagined that transferring schools would have been a part of my story. However, life never goes how we expect it to. There are always unexpected turns and, for me, transferring schools just happened to be one. You may be wondering what pushed me to become a transfer student and how life has been while transitioning to Florida State University. Well, buckle up because you’re in for quite a ride.
By the end of my senior year, I knew exactly where I was going to attend college. My dream was to attend a school in the Midwest where I could be close to my grandpa, aunts and uncles. After doing a lot of research and writing countless applications, I settled on the private, all-girls catholic school Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana. As the sister school of Notre Dame, Saint Mary’s seemed to have a lot to offer me in regards to academics and the community of South Bend. Excited to start my freshman year, I showed up with a positive attitude and high expectations only to find myself disappointed and full of reservations by the end of the year. Saint Mary’s always felt a bit off to me. Although I had integrated extremely well into the community of Notre Dame and South Bend, I was left feeling a deep dissatisfaction concerning academic growth and opportunity.
During my whole freshman year, I had the idea of transferring schools in the back of my mind, but I continued to push it away because I was scared of the disruption and chaos it would bring to my college career. However, when the year came to a close, I was forced to sit and think about what I wanted to do as I continued moving forward in my college career. After spending a lot of time weighing the pros and cons, I felt that transferring schools was in my best interest. The biggest factor in influencing me was that I felt as though switching schools would give me more academic and future career opportunities. Coupled with that, I didn’t want to go into a ton of debt, so coming back to Florida where I had a full scholarship from Bright Futures was the best choice for me. My decision to transfer was not made with ease. I cried about it for weeks and hated the thought of having to leave the great friends and professors I met while at Saint Mary’s.
All summer long I pretended like transferring schools wasn’t happening. I had already sent my application to Florida State, got accepted and knew it was where I was going to be attending, but I preferred not thinking too much about it to avoid anxiety and unnecessary stress. Soon enough though, summer came to an end and I was moving into my Tallahassee apartment with no friends, no job and no knowledge of what was to come. I told myself that I needed to be outgoing and try to explore the school and city as much as possible to make the best of my situation. As someone who prefers staying home in the safety of my room, I found it difficult to go out into a place where I had no connections or experience, but I forced myself to and slowly began getting my footing in the new area.
Before I knew it, the first day of school had arrived. Already familiar with the campus from walking it in the weeks before class started, I felt confident arriving at my classes, and I was excited to see how academics and student life were at Florida State compared to my previous school. I quickly found that I was much more engaged in my classes and had classmates who were as well. I loved the atmosphere but had the sinking feeling that it was going to be difficult for me to make friends. At a school that is so much larger than my previous one, I felt like I easily got lost in the crowd at first. To try meeting some new people, I decided to join a few on-campus organizations such as HerCampus and the Society for Collegiate Journalists because they fit with my interests and major. Soon, I began to slowly meet people and felt increasingly more confident and comfortable at Florida State.
Courtesy: Megan Rizzo
Over time, I started finding people in my classes who I was able to become friends with. Soon enough, I was able to go out to restaurants, stores, or the library and not have to be myself. I still feel like an underdog at Florida State, but I am pushing myself daily to be more outgoing and to make as many friends as possible. Especially since I am graduating early next spring, I really want to make my time at Florida State memorable and enjoyable. I hope to continue meeting people on top of the great friends I have already made, and I am excited to see what my last three semesters of college hold. I definitely miss the friends I made back in Indiana and I still talk to them religiously, but I am beginning to establish some great relationships at Florida State too.
Being a transfer isn’t easy, but it taught me how to roll with the punches of life and never get too set in my expectations. After all, what may seem like a disruption to our plans is just the universe bringing us to the place we need to be.
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