Why it’s OK to transfer

At the end of your senior year of high school you are supposed to make the biggest decision of your young adult life – where to attend college.

How the hell are you supposed to make this huge choice when you still have to ask your teachers to go the bathroom? How are you supposed to find your home for the next four years in a city you’ve never been to? How can you get the vibe for a campus on a quick weekend visit?

You can’t, and sometimes you might make the wrong choice.

19-year-old Kate decided to go to college on the East Coast in the big city of Boston. She had never been to East Coast, but thought she was ready for change. Kate slowly started to realize during her first semester that she didn’t belong at Boston University. She was dying to head back to the West Coast.

“I knew my college wasn’t the right fit when even when I was out having a great time. In the back of my head I didn’t want to be there. I was more excited to go home for thanksgiving and Christmas then I had been for anything the whole semester. My friends at school loved going there and over holiday breaks would be dying to go back, but I would be dying to stay home.”

Kate knew she wanted to go to college in a city, she just picked the wrong one. While being home on winter break she came to the realization that she wasn’t happy at her school and that was okay. Rather than staying in an unfamiliar city she already hated, she decided to return home and go to community college for the spring semester.

She spent the spring semester taking two classes while working at Nordstroms. This gave Kate the time to get to (really) know herself before leaving the nest. She was able to find herself. She didn’t need to stay at a school where she was unhappy, but she took her happiness in her own hands and has matured more in the last six months than she ever has in her entire life.

This was her second time applying to colleges so she really understood the process and what worked or didn’t the first time. She was able to narrow her decision down to two schools, the University of Denver and the University of San Fransisco. Kate made her decision based on her previous experiences in each city. She had never really been to Denver and did not want to feel miserable at another school.

Kate was very familiar with the city of San Fran and had the West Coast vibes Kate had been craving on the East Coast. When Kate received her acceptance to her dream University it felt like her future was finally coming together, just as it had for all her friends who already loved their schools. Everything was all starting to click for Kate’s college career.

Kate has a few weeks until she will embark on her new journey. She has taken the time to save money, grow as an individual, and understand that you can always can your mind. She is ready to take on a new city and try to figure out the age old question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”