The first year of college is filled with orientation hook-ups, fake friendships and meeting 29 new people every day. For some, however, this unique experience occurs more than once.
Hailing from a variety of schools—including the University of Arizona, Washington University-St. Louis and Williams College, 61 students transferred to Wesleyan this year.
Avinash Sridhar ’10 transferred from Boston University, explaining that the school’s large size—with graduating classes of nearly 5,000—was not for him. He described the university’s atmosphere as “cold” and “socially disjointed.”
“It was difficult to form meaningful connections with both the classmates and professors,” he said. “In BU, an intro to chemistry class consisted of 600 students. That was definitely overwhelming.”
Benjamin Bernstein ’10 came from Colby College, a liberal arts school located in the isolated backwaters of Waterville, Maine.
“It’s a really small school, with only 1,800 kids,” he said. “The school population was very homogenous, with a prevalently preppy, jock-ish culture.”
An aspiring musician with a desire to double-major in music and English, Bernstein was disappointed by Colby’s lack of a thriving music and arts scene, especially in the
self-proclaimed creative bubble of a small liberal arts college.
Another student disappointed with the homogeneity of her ex-school is Mariel Matze ’10, who transferred from Wesleyan’s unofficial “other”—Wellesley College.
Instead of nurturing, budding friendships, the all-girl environment served to diminish the school’s sense of community and social scene, according to Matze. There would be a mass exodus to nearby Boston each weekend, where the parties—and the men—were.
“The all-girl class was definitely a problem,” Matze said.
In choosing Wesleyan, the overarching sentiment of all three students was essentially the same: they wanted a well-rounded, liberal arts education in a comfortable setting that fosters individuality. So far, they have not been disappointed. The level of personal attention given to each student here impressed Sridhar.
“The professors seem genuinely interested if you reach out to them,” he said. “They really want to see you succeed.”
The nurturing environment at the University is not, however, restricted to the classroom. Bernstein has already committed himself to numerous musical endeavors around campus—he is enrolled in Intro to Experimental Music, plans to participate in the Musician’s Alliance and is currently
working on a project with a fellow musician.
“The music community at Wes is very supportive,” he said. “By virtue of the fact that there are so many people interested in music on campus, it makes you try harder and work harder on your music.”
The level of intellectual curiosity among the students here struck Matze. Upon revealing the fact that she came from an all-girls’ school, Wesleyan students’ most common questions were surprisingly not the usual incredulous exclamations of “Why did you go there?” and “What were you thinking?”
“People were more interested in understanding the dynamics of a girls’ school and what the implications were in terms of diversity and points of view,” Matze said. “I got the sense that Wes students just wanted to learn, in and outside the classroom.”
All three transfers were especially impressed with the ease with which they assimilated themselves into the school.
“The Transfer Students Orientation really helped me make new friends and eased me into this new environment,” Sridhar said.
Matze also expressed her appreciation for the friendliness of the student body in general.
“The people here are really warm and generous, so I think I have found a good balance of both transfer and non-transfer student friends,” she said.
Despite their relatively smooth adjustment to Wesleyan life, the transfers did express appreciation for their year spent at previous schools, noting that it gave them some perspective.
“I’m glad that I went to BU in my first year, as it helped me realize and define what I wanted out of my college experience,” Sridhar said.
Matze also learned from her different college experiences.
“What I discovered after coming to Wes was that boys bring a much-needed diversity of opinion to the classroom,” she said. “Really!”
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