For most people, the idea of starting anew at college was equally exciting and terrifying — and not something they would care to do again. Yet a small percentage of students at most universities have gone through this process not once, but twice, and some even three times. These are transfer students.
Some transfer for a different social atmosphere, some for academic reasons and some simply in the pursuit of happiness in their college careers. This past fall, 95 out of 875 transfer applicants to Tufts were admitted; 33 of these students enrolled. This number is down significantly from the previous two years' incoming transfer groups, with 748 applicants, 148 accepted and 75 enrolled transfers in 2009 and 741 applicants, 146 accepted and 74 enrolled in 2008. The size of the incoming transfer class is dependent on the number of accepted freshmen who decide to enroll, according to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions.
This smaller transfer pool presented both challenges and benefits, both to the transfers themselves and to the people who organize orientation. The addition of a transfer orientation to the program is only a few years old, according to Laura Doane, program director for advising and scholarships.
"It's one of those things that I wish I could say there was an actual structure," Doane said. "It's really just been a growing number of individuals who care about this getting together and pushing to get something done."
For the orientation office, creating a separate program for a group of transfer students that is about half the size of those in the two previous years presented more opportunities.
"I can only speak for my own experience, but there's no magic number," Doane said. "A smaller group is easier in some sense. You can target to a small group. We talk to the orientation leaders who were transfers and see if they want to do something fun, and we can do it. If we had 150 transfer students, then there is more of a push to do a completely separate program. When you have that in−between number, then it's challenging."
For the transfers themselves, being part of such a small group had its benefits, including more of a push to look for friends outside of an established circle.
"I think [a larger class] would have been a lot more like high school, where you're forced to hang out with people due to sheer proximity," sophomore Alexandra Schmider, who transferred into Tufts this year, said. "Due to the fact that the group was so small and Tufts was so small, you don't have to settle for people. You can choose your own niche."
Others were similarly appreciative of the support a small class provides.
"I would have still been miserable at this point probably," sophomore Sanaya Daruvala, who also transferred in this year, said. "[The transfer class] was so integral to making me feel at home here, making me feel like I was part of this community. I would have been lost."
Senior Eugenia Lee, who transferred into Tufts as a junior last year, has worked with the admissions office in an effort to make the process of transferring easier. Lee also wrote a blog for Tuftsblogs.com called "Thoughts of a Tufts Transfer."
"Fall 2009 might have been the second or third time they had a transfer orientation, which is completely different from a freshman orientation," Lee said. "It was nice because we had our own transfer reception, because right away we had this good group of friends. A lot of us were in the same dorm. I met my best friend at Tufts through transfer orientation. I felt pretty quickly that I had a supportive network. I felt like I had a base to work off of. A lot of my social life came from my transfer orientation."
By the second year, though, the social dynamic of the transfer community tends to change, Lee said.
"I don't think we're cohesive," she said. "Definitely there's a lot of friendliness. There are definitely certain groups of friends that have stuck together, but they're mostly twos and threes. But I think that's something normal no matter what the situation is."
Regardless of class size, both new and veteran transfers noted the unique outlook that being a transfer affords for college life.
"I think it's great because we have the perspective of a transfer," Lee said. "I think you have a different school experience to contrast with. For example, [other Tufts students] are so unengaged with Boston. I have friends who have spent a year or two [more here], and I know Boston better than they do. As a transfer, you're really aware of how cool it is. I have something to contrast that experience with, and I appreciate it more."
