Transferring to a university is a lot like Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Criminally Underrated. Community college is so cheap, it’s like taking two years of basics for 75% off. You get to live at home, which means adulting struggles get to be put on hold for a bit. Still, with these advantages come a few disadvantages traditional students don’t have to deal with. Here’s 10 realities that come with being a transfer.
New School New (Overwhelmed) Me
It is the first thing you notice when you walk around your new campus. It is ten times larger than your previous school. You’re so used to seeing the same faces around, but now you see at least a hundred different mugs daily.
Making Friends Never Gets Easier
Making friends is one of the hardest parts of being a transfer. By the time you get to your college, people have two years’ worth of bonding and memories with their friends. It is intimidating to approach a person, but as a transfer there is an added pressure of feeling left out.
Missing Friends Is A State of Being
It is also a fact that in that lonely period before you start meeting people, you will miss your friends from home more than ever. You will be walking around campus seeing groups of friends and think how perfect it would be to have them attend the same college as you.
Transfer Events Were Created By A Sadist
Like a singles event, a transfer event always seems to be a massive letdown. Most of these “pressure-free” and “low key” events are painfully awkward. You can count on the same five people showing up and the silence of people desperate for friends but unwilling to break the ice (this may seem harsh but it’s ok I’m talking about myself here).
No One Knows (Or Cares) Where You Transferred From
There is always the moment when someone asks, “Where did you transfer from?” Then they wait for the answer which will be a school everyone and their mom back home attended, but is probably nowhere near the school you attend now. Blank stares and polite nodding follow.
Going Home Is A Vacation From Reality
Regardless on how far from home you’ve veered for college, a trip back is always welcome. Home is actual food not microwave macaroni and cheese, home is those friends you wish were always with you, and home is the denial that homework exists.
Commuting Is A Nightmare Dressed Like A Nightmare
If you have a car you must pay for a parking pass, which means you might as well saw off your arm and hand it to the transportation office. And, if you ride the bus, train, or even bike you get to find out that no matter how handy public transportation is, it is truly a shame that no one has figured out teleportation yet.
Alone Time Is A Gemini
Being alone is truly the best, until it isn’t. One minute you’re all in for your solo Netflix binge, next the thought hits you, “Am I living my best life? Or should I be out making memories?” And depending on the day (as well as show and snack selection) it might be a toss-up.
Rituals: A Guide For Non-Locals
New city plus free time equals endless exploring opportunities. Whether it’s a Thursday Discount at the Movies or a weekly trip to the thrift store. Transferring means you get to become a renewed creature of habit.
Adjusting: It Happens To The Best Of Us
Eventually you wake up and walk down a path that you have walked countless times. You recognize a few of those students walking into the same building as you. You sit next to your friend in your three-hour lecture class, who also happens to be a transfer student. And so it goes.