Finding Home at UW: My Transfer Experience

In the span of two weeks, I decided I was transferring, applied to UW, packed up my apartment, broke my lease, and moved to Wyoming. I had no idea what I was doing or getting myself into. As I drove to Wyoming, every state I passed through, it sunk in a little more what I was doing, and I wasn’t sure how I felt. Part of me was excited, so I rolled with that for as long as I could. When I got off the highway and drove onto Grand Avenue for the first time, everything looked so different from North Carolina. There were wide-open spaces, mountains in the distance, and way less traffic than I was used to. I had no idea what was waiting for me, but I was ready to see where this new chapter would take me. 

Adjusting a New Campus

Coming onto campus was nerve racking. My only goal was to at least look like I knew where I was going. I remember checking my schedule for the first time and thinking, “What is a Classroom Building, all buildings have classrooms?” I genuinely thought they had made an error. Turns out the Classroom Building is actually the name of one of the academic buildings on campus. It only took me a campus map to realize the mistake wasn't on my schedule, it was me. 

 

So, the week before classes, I took myself to campus and walked to all my classes. I physically found the door numbers, triple checked my schedule to make sure I was in the right place, and repeated. Luckily, my nerves were eased a little when I came to campus for the first time and realized it wasn’t that big. I knew I had a shot at not looking like it was my first time there. Walking around campus actually made me feel a lot better. It was a beautiful summer day, everyone I passed smiled, and the campus just felt welcoming. By the time I left campus that day, it didn't feel nearly as intimidating as it had in my head. 

Finding my people

Now that I knew my way around, for the most part, I had to make friends. Making friends can be one of the most intimidating experiences when transferring, but I couldn't let that stop me from putting myself out there because, at that point, I had nothing to lose. 

 

Going into my classes, a lot of them were upper division classes that other juniors were in too. The only problem was that those juniors had been taking classes together since they were freshmen. I decided it was a safe bet to show up exactly eight minutes before class, yes, exactly eight. This way, I wouldn’t be one of the first ones there, but there would still be room for me to find someone I was interested in sitting next to and sit beside them. 

 

You would be surprised how far the sentence, “Can I sit here?” got me. I have met so many of my friends at UW with that line. Pushing myself outside of my introverted comfort zone to talk to the people around me in class helped a lot. Even if they were just a friend I talked to in class, it was a friend, nonetheless. It only took making a few friends who would then introduce me to their friends, and so on. I had met so many people in only my first month.  

 

Posting in Facebook groups before I even arrived in Laramie that I was new and looking for housing or new friends also helped a ton. I had so many girls reach out, welcoming me to Laramie and saying they would love to grab a coffee or show me around. I actually met one of my closest friends through that post because she reached out about rooming together, and we didn’t even become roommates!  

 

There was never any need to be anxious about not making any friends, there were so many welcoming people that helped me realize that. Before I knew it, I had found my people here. The people who I grab lunch with, and we talk for three hours, the people I text for a last minute study date, or even the ones I wave to from across the hall. They all help UW feel like somewhere I’ve always been instead of somewhere I just got to.  

Getting Involved

While I had the friends to keep me occupied, I wanted to be busy in a different way, so about two months into my first semester, I applied for a job on campus. Prior to coming to UW, I had never worked a day in my life, so you can imagine how that job interview went. But somehow, they gave me the job, and I started working at Elements Café in the Classroom Building. 

 

While it was definitely a learning experience, it kept me busy. It got me interacting with people I probably would have never met just walking around campus. This job helped me come out of my shell even more. I had to talk to so many people every day, I had to learn how to ask for help (because believe me, I needed it), and it taught me discipline.  

 

After my first semester at UW, I applied for a new job in Institutional Marketing. As a marketing major, this job was right up my alley. When I got the call that I got the job, I had never been so excited. This job pushed me out of my comfort zone even more, and I met so many great faculty, students, and staff.  

 

It's always a good laugh when someone tells me, “Hey, I saw your face on the TikTok page!” because I would have never expected that to be part of my college experience. Between filming videos, interviewing students, and creating content, I've gotten the opportunity to see parts of UW that I probably never would have otherwise. 

 

In my first year, I have had two jobs at UW that helped me grow in ways I didn't expect. They gave me confidence, helped me meet people, and made UW a place where I not only feel like I can grow, but where people will help me grow too.  

Lessons learned

If there is one thing I learned from transferring, it is that it always works out. When I decided, I was transferring to UW I had no idea what I was doing and while I was excited for something new, I was still sad to be leaving where I was, and that’s okay. I rolled with excitement for as long as I could, but I won’t lie, the fall was hard. There were many times I wanted to go home and felt like I made the wrong choice coming here, but time showed me that I didn’t. Not every day has to be perfect, you’re allowed to be homesick and miss what you had at home. But I had to remember what I gained by leaving home. I met so many amazing people that were with me and understood me when I had my doubts. I learned how to put myself out there and connect in a new place. I learned growth happens when you’re uncomfortable. Almost every good thing that came out of my transfer experience started with me doing some small but scary action.

 

Moving across the country, walking into classes where I didn’t know anyone, and applying for jobs I wasn’t sure I was qualified for, all of it felt intimidating at first. But then each of those moments helped me become more assured and more independent over time. Most importantly I learned things about myself that I would have never learned if I stayed at home. So, I guess you could say I found myself in Wyoming.  

The best decision i never planned for

If I could give a transfer student one piece of advice, it would be to give it time. Not everything is going to be perfect right away, you’re going to go through ups and downs, and have your skeptics, but there is a great place waiting for you. With great people, experiences, and opportunities. You are allowed to have more than one home, and soon, the place you were totally unfamiliar with, will become a new home to you.