Every year, the University of Mississippi welcomes more than 1,000 transfer students to campus. These students arrive from community college and other four-year universities, and they are drawn to UM for its academic programs, campus traditions and community.
While the transition can be exciting, it introduces a unique set of challenges. Transfer students have to step onto an already moving campus, where it may sometimes feel overwhelming and difficult to fit in.
“I was nervous I would not make friends at first, but I already have a friend group and it is pretty amazing. I am here to make great memories, get a good education and go home knowing I put my all into this experience,” Ashford said.
Ashford describes her experience as nothing but wonderful thus far.
“I think it is very different, but I know this campus has a lot to offer,” Ashford said. “I am excited for where I am going to go next and feel as if I will highly succeed here.”
Ashford has embraced this change in her life with determination. Though the adjustment has been a lot to navigate, she credits the people on campus for her experience moving smoothly.
“The people here are just so nice; they make me feel so welcome,” Ashford said.
Brooke Jankowsky is a senior management and marketing major from Macomb, Mich., and the vice president of the Transfer Leadership Organization on campus.
Jankowsky described her transfer experience as positive for the most part, but she states that transfer students can sometimes “fall through the cracks.”
“I thought the university itself was super welcoming,” Jankowsky said. “I just wish that there was more intentionality in certain aspects of getting transfer students the resources they need without having to do as much legwork.”
Jankowsky believes that transfer students could use more resources that are readily available to incoming freshmen.
As a member of the Alpha Omicron Pi sorority, Jankowsky voiced Greek life as a setting where she was welcomed in quickly.
“It is definitely more difficult to go through recruitment as a transfer student,” Jankowsky said. “You can get cut for your age, and the process does not run as smoothly.”
“I am very extroverted and always looking to make new friends,” Jankowsky said. “I thought joining Greek life was a great way to get to know people, and I am excited for the things that come with it.”
Anniston Lyles is a sophomore transfer student from Holmes Community College in Ridgeland, Miss. She says her experience of recruitment as a transfer student went well, but she wishes there were some improvements.
“There were a lot of difficulties with my GPA transferring that affected my experience. I wish they would do things differently. There are a lot of transfer students that could not even go through recruitment due to the amount of hours that were transferred over,” Lyles said.
Lyles is also a member of Alpha Omicron Pi.
“I did have a great experience going through recruitment when I honestly expected to be cut due to my age and the fact that I did not attend Ole Miss freshman year. However, I have found my home and great friends,” Lyles said.
Tres Jones, a senior public policy leadership major from Rienzi, Miss., and president of the Transfer Leadership Organization, spoke highly of his transfer experience, though he said it was not without its adversity. He offered words of wisdom to students navigating campus after transferring.
“One of the hardest parts about transferring is stepping onto a campus where everybody already knew what was going on,” Jones said. “My advice for transfer students is simple: Get connected early because the sooner that you get connected, the sooner Ole Miss starts to feel like home.”
