To a Transfer, from a Transfer

Hi all! My name is Jay Chu, and I’ll be representing the life and experiences of a transfer student at LC! Since this is my first post to RealLifeLC, I’ll start off with a short bio and then jump right in to a few things!

About Jay, and how he might apply to You!

After a 3-day mountain biking trip near Hope, Alaska

I was born and raised in the south bay of LA county and spent much of my time growing up going back and forth from California to the small island of Shikoku in Japan, so you can be sure to see that theme come up in my posts. As I mentioned before, I am a transfer student who spent his freshman year at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland and part of sophomore year at San Diego Mesa College (a community college), and I’m excited to help other prospective transfer students take a sneak-peek into the experience here. My previous school was much larger than LC, so for those of you curious about choosing an LC-sized college, I will also be reflecting on making that transition from a large to a small community in my future posts. Besides weekly highlights, I’ll also be blogging about what I love doing, namely, outdoor adventures, cooking, martial arts, and cooking. For those interested, I am also an Environmental Studies major (one of the most unique programs in the country) and a Japanese minor. To my surprise, LC is not only allowing me but encouraging me to go term abroad next fall. So you can see, there is so much to look forward to, so please stay tuned as I will be posting every week!

I’ll start off with my experiences so far transitioning into life at LC specifically as a transfer student. It’ll be one of the most info-heavy posts, but there is valuable opinions and info! Enjoy!

Starting a New Life at LC: The Transfer Experience

It’s the beginning of October over at Palatine Hill Rd., and the summer is giving away to a beautiful fall of colorful leaves and clean crisp air. Up to this point, my life so far (as with all transfer students) has been filled with advisor meetings, Pre-Req clearances, new faces, a new campus, and fresh starts, and as you can predict, this can be a really stressful time because of the extra burden of transfer responsibilities on top of work. However, I have been enormously supported by the people and offices here that are devoted to the success of us transfers; having come from a large university catering to over 15,000 undergrads, I was shocked at how much help was available for any aspect of life at LC. If you have a question or problem, you can bet that LC has someone or people to help you out, and as transfer students, this is HUGE! No matter whether you're transferring as a fresh/soph/junior, regardless of your age, if you have kids, or if you spent the last 3 summers volunteering abroad, the folks here are happy to help you. For the LC community, being a transfer student isn't about who you were or where you were previously, it's more "Where are you now, and how can LC help guide you to where you want to be in x years?" From day 1, LC encourages transfer student to transfer student relationships by creating all-transfer orientation groups, and it's refreshing to see other non-traditional students navigate this new world. If you are following through with advisor meetings in the first month, you will feel grounded and confident your new life here. I won't lie, it's a lot of work, but the difference is that at LC, there are enough resources and staff that your hard work will generate the results for you to move forward in your academic career. I can't emphasize enough how organized, prepared, and knowledgeable the staff here are, and to graduate in the time you want to, having these resources is very much welcome. As we move into the fall break, I can confidently say that myself and the other transfers have very much found a loving and comfortable new place to call home.

For Fun

Fun nights, full stomachs!

I’ll always add a “For Fun” tidbit for my posts. This past week, my friends and I organized a sushi-making party for a birthday! Thanks to LC’s close relationship with Japanese universities, we have many Japanese exchange students on campus, and it’s a great first time experience with Japanese or East Asian culture for many first year students. The common rooms and kitchens in Holmes Dormitory are well-suited to host these events. The party was loads of fun, so this weekend will be another party focused on a special Japanese festival food called Takoyaki!

Please feel free to send and all questions/comments to jaychu@lclark.edu If I don't have the answer to your question, I will find someone who does!