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Transferring from one college to another, though, seems to be more normalized. People don’t seem to think it is as difficult as they do when they think about K–12 transfers.

I transferred from Ohio University Online to Mount St. Joseph University. I had spent the last three years of my life doing college online from my house and working was two minutes away. Not only was I now going to have the “transfer” label, but I was also going to be commuting to campus.

The Mount has a high percentage of commuter students. According to the “Fast Facts” portion of the MSJ website, 87.2% of students are commuters. So, the vast majority of students are commuters, but why does that matter?

Being a commuter can have a huge impact on student involvement. When you are a residential student, you have built-in opportunities to get involved. You are already living in a dorm with other students around you. You also have an RA who you can go to with questions about campus life and getting involved.

Commuters don’t necessarily have those same opportunities. They drive to campus, walk from the parking lot to class, and then go back to their cars and drive home. Of course, you could argue that commuters don’t get involved because they choose to go home right away and don’t stay around long enough to participate. But I think there is more to it than that.

I transferred to the Mount this year, and so far, I have absolutely loved it. Walking through the hallways of the classroom buildings and having professors know my name is still odd to me. It makes me feel appreciated and valued. I feel more comfortable asking questions because I feel like I have a relationship with my professors. The small class sizes have made me feel like I am actually in a class, rather than sitting in a giant lecture hall where I am just another face in the crowd.

I also transferred from a communications major to a primary and special education dual licensure major. That is a pretty big difference. I’ll admit, I was extremely nervous to start here. I had no idea what “real” college was like, and I was worried that I was going to be the oldest student in my classes since I was starting an entirely new major, and many of my credits didn’t transfer toward it.

My first day of class was a whirlwind, but I realized something that day: this school isn’t just about getting as much money as possible. This school cares about its students.

It has been only six weeks, and all of my professors already know my name. They will talk to me when they see me in the hallway. My advisor at my previous institution didn’t even know my name and would repeatedly call me the wrong name in emails and on Zoom calls. My professors here check in on me and make sure I am doing well in my classes. I never had that before.

Being a part of the School of Education has been amazing. There is definitely a community, and the professors play a huge role in creating it. I always thought that college was simply a place to go, get a degree, and graduate. I didn’t think professors cared that much about their students because I imagined them teaching classrooms filled with hundreds of students. The Mount has completely changed the way I think about college.

I am firsthand experiencing what MSJ strives to be. I am learning so much while also feeling like I am a part of something bigger.

The Mount has shown me more in six weeks than my last university did in three years. Transferring can be intimidating, especially when you are leaving behind a place you have spent years at. But sometimes, transferring can lead you to a college experience that you didn’t even know you were missing.

For me, the Mount has been that experience.