This Spring marks my first semester at Goucher College – I’m a transfer student who studied at Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) for two years. At CCBC, I worked hard in my courses and tried to find out what future I see myself in, with my major ultimately being Humanities and Social Science with a concentration in Creative Writing.
I passed all of my courses with flying colors through my semesters, which resulted in me graduating with an Associate of Arts degree in Fall 2022. I had been planning to transfer to enroll in a 4-year college and earn a bachelor’s degree since I first decided to go to college. My original plan was to apply for Towson University because it’s very convenient to where I live and the most well-known college to me. However, because they didn’t have a creative writing major and I knew that I would feel overwhelmed by its large campus, I had second thoughts about applying there. So, I wondered what else is there for me that would have the major for me and make me feel comfortable in my environment.
Then, one day, there was a transfer fair in CCBC and that’s when I met Tina Caretti, who is a Transfer Advisor for Goucher. She told me that Goucher College has the best creative writing program in the state of Maryland, so I was very interested in Goucher’s writing program and I decided to apply for the school. I got an acceptance letter in late December – I was so happy! After I graduated from CCBC, I dedicated my educational pathway to being a fulltime Goucher student with a Professional and Creative Writing major. I would like to share my experience as a transfer student.
The most difficult thing I had to go through during the transfer process was registering for courses. Throughout this semester, I had to communicate with a lot of people to help me register for the courses that I want to take. Since I have credit for all of my classes from CCBC, I had to make sure that those classes fulfill some courses that are from the Goucher Common Requirements, which was a major struggle because the Registrar did not count some of the courses that I assumed should fulfill some requirements, and parts of my DegreeWorks were missing.
For example, I took an Astronomy course in CCBC, which fulfills the Biological and Physical Science requirements. It took a lot of emails for me to make sure that the courses from CCBC fulfill the requirements in Goucher, which I am still dealing with. Some of the courses didn’t fulfill the respected requirements, so it’s a stressful cycle to find out what I should do next. Even when I talk to my advisor, there’s a whole process of talking to multiple faculty and staff members at once just to make sure that the credits from my CCBC courses won’t go to waste!
So, the process of registering and keeping track of requirements is very tricky as a transfer student because there were a lot of errors in my Degreeworks that go further beyond what I expected to repair. However, I am still holding onto hope because all the people, including my advisor, helped me through so much to make sure that my CCBC courses give me extra steps in achieving my goals in Goucher.
As a fulltime student who just graduated from CCBC, Goucher has major differences that make it stand out. The environment of Goucher’s campus gives me a sense of comfort because the campus is small, so going from one class to another isn’t overwhelming. I love walking through the clean environment with such a beautiful atmosphere and seeing such a diverse campus that has students with different identities and backgrounds. It gives me a whole new perspective of the world around me.
I have met many great people here from the moment I stepped onto campus, even though I’m a commuter who lives just 10 minutes away. Even though I don’t have the pleasure to experience a residential life, I still feel included by the community. This school has so many gateways of opportunities, which is what I like the most about it.
Ever since I transferred here, I promised myself to be more open to college events, joining organizations that I believe would benefit my interests in writing. I’m very grateful for joining The Quindecim because it gives me a chance to show off my writing skills and prove to myself that I can have a career that involves my passions. Goucher allows me to explore my interests with its amazing programs and events. For example, I have developed an interest in playwriting, poems, and fiction, so not only did I decide to have a writing major, but also a theater minor to develop an interest in working with theater, while also continuing my development in writing. I would like to thank Tina Caretti, William Uren, and other Goucher members for their hard work in helping me find my place in this school that’s filled with pride, diversity, and opportunities.
