Congratulations to all the incoming Transfer Students! Feeling both nervous and excited is normal; I felt the same way when I first committed to UCLA as a transfer. Here are five tips every transfer student needs to know.
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Live in the Transfer Dorms: Living in the transfer dorms provides you with a community of other transfers that you can rely on for support. My friends who chose to live in apartments because they wanted to be independent regretted not having this experience.
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Don’t feel discouraged by Transfer Stigma: Stigma against transfer students exists at most universities. Many students feel that we had any easier chance of getting into school than they did. Remember, the school accepted you because someone recognized your hard work–you deserve to be at the school you are at.
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Get involved as soon as you can: As transfer students we only have two years, leaving little room for procrastination regarding joining clubs and getting involved in other campus organizations. This is also a great way to meet friends who share similar interests as yourself.
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Build your resume rather than your alcohol tolerance: As a transfer student our priorities are different than freshman. While freshman have time to party every single weekend, we are going to be in the workforce in two years. Focus your energy on building your resume by looking for internships and jobs, and then have fun.
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Read the many emails from your department adviser: During my first two years of college, I always ignored the emails my advisor sent. However, when I finally started opening them when I transferred to UCLA, I learned that they contained all kinds of helpful information from scholarship opportunities to job listings.