We all have different backgrounds, different situations we’re coming from, different stories. Some students came on over to the University of Idaho right after high school, some left themselves some time before coming here and others are transfer students — UI isn’t their first rodeo.
Meet Debbie Abon-Germany, Amaya Hotchkiss, Hannah Ireton, Lia Miller, Sasha Smith, Julie Tennant, Ella VanCleave and Norah White to learn about their experiences as transfer students as they share their story of how they ended up here at UI.
What made you want to leave your previous college?
University
“I decided to leave because the campus didn’t have a lot of student involvement. I enjoyed my professors and the classes I was taking, but the lack of socialness and student engagement was disappointing. While I was at Idaho State University, my sister was in a sorority at UI, and I always found myself a little envious of how many cool things she was able to be a part of — philanthropies and formals and date dashes and being able to be around such great people. I guess I wanted to be a part of that too, so I decided to transfer,” said Hotchkiss. Hotchkiss is majoring in marketing and sports management.
“Several reasons! I loved the Rochester Institute of Technology but after taking a gap year for personal reasons, I realized that I wanted to finish my degree elsewhere. UI seemed like the best fit,” said Tennant. Tennant is majoring in art education.
Community College
“I had always planned to leave the College of Western Idaho. I knew since high school that I wanted to start at a community college and get my general education done, then transfer to UI,” said Debbie Abon-Germany, a sustainable food systems major.
“I finished my AA, but wanted to continue my education,” said Ireton, a transfer student from Centralia College. Ireton is studying general sciences.
How did the classes compare from your previous college to those at UI?
University
“The class structure is pretty similar at both. Art students typically take studio classes which are about three hours long — plus other, shorter classes like art history or other electives. I like that long format a lot, honestly. It feels so satisfying to work on something consistently in a room full of people just as passionate about art as you are,” Tennant said.
“So far, my classes at UI have been larger and less niche. Whitman is a liberal arts college, so the classes tended to question the nature of things. At UI, classes are much more practical and they focus on imparting knowledge and skills,” said Miller, a transfer student from Whitman College. Miller is studying music here at UI.
Community College
“Most of my classes were online. My in-person class was pretty small; there were maybe twenty to thirty of us. It was a chemistry class, and everyone in class fit into the lab, so we all had the lab together, too. My online English class only had three people in it, though,” said White. White transferred from Helena College and is studying architecture.
“At CWI, the classes tended to be longer. They were usually an hour and forty-five minutes to three hours long. They’re shorter here. Most of my classes are fifty minutes long. I have a lab that is an hour and a half long, but we don’t usually use all of the time,” said Abon-Germany.
How do the colleges compare in terms of activities, clubs, sports and events for students to participate in?
University
“UI activities have a lot more engagement and there are many more to choose from, probably because it’s a much larger school,” said Miller.
“It’s very different with clubs, since the community here is more friendly,” Smith, a journalism major, said.
Community College
“I was on the student government, so I was involved with a lot of the extracurriculars. There were less things to get involved with, but you could be really be close to the other students and to the faculty with the things that you were involved in,” Ireton said.
“There were barely any events or clubs at my community college. There was one baseball team. There were events maybe once a month, and there were only a couple clubs: a STEM club and the baseball club. It was really small compared to here, where there’s an event pretty much every day and there are over two hundred clubs,” said VanCleave. VanCleave transferred from Clackamas College, and she is majoring in civil engineering.
Did you have any issues transferring from your previous college to UI?
University
“Initially, a lot of my credits didn’t transfer properly, but the staff of the College of Art and Architecture, my advisors, and the registrar were super helpful and we ended up working it out. It was definitely a bit worrying for a while, though. Also, it’s a very long drive from New York to Idaho,” Tennant said.
“It transferred perfectly! I even had an extra credit go through,” Smith said.
Community College
“I had no issues transferring credits because I had completed my degree! This meant that even credits that usually wouldn’t be transferable were because it was a completed degree and not individual credits. For example, I had a guest lecture class for a humanities credit and that usually wouldn’t transfer here on its own, but it transferred fine because I had it as a part of the completed degree,” Ireton said.
“I had no problems transferring credits, but I did have a rough time figuring out what classes to sign up for here because the credits took a while to transfer. I am part of the Honors Program and part of the architecture program, and I was only a couple credits short of an AA, so I had to meet with three different advisors – my community college advisor, my Honors Program advisor, and my architecture advisor. It was hard to meet with all three counselors and it took a couple months, but I got it figured out,” White said.
Did you already know people who go to UI when you transferred?
University
“I knew a few people here before I came. My boyfriend goes here. I also knew a couple other people from work. Other than that, I didn’t know anyone,” Smith said.
“I knew my sister when I first got up to Moscow, but that was it. I have been able to meet so many amazing people since, though,” Hotchkiss said.
Community College
“Nope! I didn’t know anyone,” VanCleave said.
“I already knew some people, because quite a few people from my high school came here right after they graduated,” Abon-Germany said.
Overall, how do the people compare from your previous college and UI?
University
“The campus definitely feels a lot more social and vibrant at UI, but I would honestly chalk that difference up to COVID. My years at RIT were right after the pandemic and I think that people were still very much recovering from that. Both campuses were full of awesome students and I feel very welcome at UI,” Tennant said.
“So far, I’ve had a much better experience at UI! I don’t think this is any fault of Whitman’s, as they say college is what you make it. However, UI has a much more practical mentality to it, in my opinion. The people feel very authentic and down to earth,” Miller said.
Community College
“The people here are a lot nicer! The teachers are similar in personality and kindness. Their teaching styles are different, but it’s also just different in general because the general education classes are pretty different from the architecture classes,” White said.
“The biggest difference is age. Most people at my community college were in their thirties or older and were going back to college to learn more or try again at a career. They usually were already married and had families and houses. Here, I know maybe one or two people over thirty in my classes,” VanCleave said.
How does the dorm life compare from your previous university to UI?
University
“Dorm life has been very similar,” Miller said.
“Dorm life at Idaho State was pretty much the stereotypical college room. It was me and another girl in a pretty small room. We were on the seventh floor. The community bathroom was subpar. The food at the dining hall was actually pretty good, and there were plenty of options for any time of day. Obviously, living in a sorority is very different and I enjoy it a lot more,” Hotchkiss said.
“I can’t speak much to the dorms at UI, but I really like that they have kitchen areas and hangout spots, like the Wallace basement, where students can spend time together. The dorm I lived in at RIT had a small room on each floor for meetings and gathering,” Tennant said.