In autumn of 2024, I transferred from Columbus State Community College to The Ohio State University. When my first day of classes arrived, I had no idea what to expect. I just turned on Google Maps to navigate me to my class and started walking. Now, over a year has passed and so much in my life has changed. Truthfully, I can hardly recognize the person I was a year ago compared to who I am now.
It can be difficult jumping headfirst into a new college, especially because most people consider freshman year the time to acclimate yourself to college and form friendships that will last you throughout your college experience. Each university is different, and if you are a transfer student, it’s easy to feel like you’re at a disadvantage academically and socially. However, if you approach your transfer with the right attitude and knowledge, it is absolutely possible to have a joyful and fulfilling college experience. As someone who has been through this process and has come out the other side, here are my top tips and advice for how to make the most of your transfer to a new school.
1. Explore the Campus!
One of the biggest challenges that transfer students face is being unfamiliar with their surroundings, despite being second- or third-year students! I know firsthand that it can feel embarrassing wandering around campus, too nervous to ask for directions. Luckily, Google Maps offers us directions at our fingertips, which is definitely an asset when you are getting to class or work.
But Google Maps can’t help you find the best study spots, the cutest coffee shops where you’ll spend those rainy college days, or the nearest mom-and-pop pizza place where you and your friends will go after a night out. Knowing where things are on campus is one of the easiest ways to not feel homesick and, instead, to make the campus your second home.
So, when you arrive on campus, my advice is to take long walks around the campus and take note of the places you want to stop, the food you want to try, or the best green spaces. Knowing your way around campus will not only make your experience a little more manageable during the period of transition, but it will also ensure that you’re able to feel confident and self-assured in other areas of your life, because you won’t always have to be worried about how to get where you’re going.
2. Explore Student Organizations
Something I wish I had done before transferring was dedicating time to explore my university’s clubs and student organizations. Student organizations are a wonderful way to make friends, as well as to build your resume, which will be imperative, especially if you are halfway through your college years when you are transferring.
Most universities have a page on their website detailing all the student organizations that meet during the school year. There are so many different options to choose from, and truthfully, if you have an interest, hobby, or skill that you’re inspired to share with others, there will likely be a place for you in a student club. It’s important to research these organizations before you transfer so that you can ensure you’re joining at the beginning of the year and not joining halfway through. This will help you feel like you at least have one thing going for you, even if you’re still figuring out the other parts of campus life.
Student organizations will allow you to connect with people you otherwise would not have met on campus, which will help you build community throughout your years spent at university.
3. Don’t Be Afraid to Take Chances
The biggest challenge I had as a transfer student was the reflex to stay in my comfort zone. Part of why I had started out at a community college was because I wasn’t confident in my abilities to thrive at a big university. So, when I graduated high school, I did what was easiest: I stayed at home and took online classes. But after two years of doing so, I realized that this wasn’t how I envisioned I would spend my college years. That realization helped me make the first step outside of my comfort zone, and I applied to transfer to Ohio State and was accepted.
Considering how I had been previously living, this already felt like a HUGE step. But once you take the first big step, it is so much easier to push out of your shell. After I was accepted, I started reaching out to potential roommates to try and find off-campus housing. I toured a few places that just weren’t the right fit for me, and time was ticking. A week before classes started, I reached out to one last person on the university housing portal and finally found the right fit. I promptly moved in the day before classes began, which was one of the most nerve-wracking things I had ever done. I had only talked to my new roommates once over the phone and had not even met them in person. While it took me some time getting used to living with people other than my family, the three of us quickly found our groove, and by the end of the year it had felt like I formed my own campus family.
Two years ago, I would not have imagined myself moving in with two strangers, and my past self would not have been able to imagine that these two girls that I met on a university rooming portal would turn out to be two of my closest friends. These girls helped me feel so welcome on campus and even introduced me to their own friends, which helped me feel so much more comfortable in my new environment.
So, if you’re looking for a sign to take a chance on something that feels scary or new, let me be a testament to how wonderful it can be when you take that chance! I truly believe that the chances of something turning out good are higher than the chances of something turning out poorly.
4. Put Yourself Out There
Similar to my last tip, I want to urge transfer students to not be afraid to put themselves out there. Something that felt so freeing about transferring was being able to reinvent myself. Up to that point in my life, I considered myself shy and a homebody, but my choice to transfer to a school with over 67,000 students and to move in with strangers seemed to contradict that belief. College is the best time in your life to begin to solidify who you are as a person, and an even better time to combat limiting beliefs that you have carried with you.
Chances are, most people on campus don’t know who you are and don’t know the negative labels that have been given to you. All that to say: you can be a different person if you want to be when you transfer. You can be outgoing, an introvert, a party animal, or a recluse. All that matters is that you are living by your own standards and striving to be your most authentic self. Putting yourself out there is one way to reinvent yourself, especially if you don’t view yourself as that type of person.
On my first day of class, one of my friends texted me a good luck message and told me to challenge myself to talk to one person in my class that day. I did, and I even asked for her Instagram in case we wanted to chat about the class. This felt a bit uncomfortable for me because I had never been so forward before! While we didn’t become the best of friends, we sat together in class for that whole semester, and I had a friend in class to help me through it.
Doing these small things that push against your perceptions of yourself can not only increase your confidence, but it can also make it easier to put yourself out there in other situations, whether it’s at career fairs, interviews, parties, or more. It’s always a good idea to trust yourself.
5. Maintain A Positive Mindset
Last but definitely not least, the biggest piece of advice I want to give to any incoming transfer students is to keep a positive mindset. Give yourself grace. You have already made such a big change in your life by choosing to switch schools, so it is okay if it takes more time for the rest to come together. Try your best to remain positive when you face setbacks. If you don’t immediately make friends or find a community on campus right away, have faith that what is meant for you will find you, and that eventually you will be surrounded by the people you are meant to find.
Something that I have had to overcome is feeling like I am falling behind students who have already been in university since their freshman years. While transferring might put you at a disadvantage, it is so important to remember that everyone goes at their own pace, and to honor the pace that you are going at. It can be easy to fall into the trap of comparison, but as you are navigating your transfer, try to remember that you have every right to figure out your own path in life, and it might not look how everyone else’s does, but that is normal. If you can begin to practice the art of having faith in yourself during this transformative period of your life, you’ll start to notice how your attitude and mindset improve because of it.
One thing that helped me begin this practice was starting my morning with a video of recorded affirmations. It always felt too overwhelming to say the affirmations myself, but when I first transferred, I can confidently say that starting my day off on a positive note helped me preserve this energy throughout the day and helped me as I navigated new experiences and overcame limiting beliefs.
I hope that if you’re reading this—whether you’re a transfer student or not—you’re able to take something away from my experiences and apply them to your own life. While it can be intimidating to be a transfer student and place yourself in an entirely new environment, I hope you carry with you trust in yourself and the belief that everything will turn out beautifully.