Each semester at Marymount Manhattan College brings new classes, experiences, knowledge, and most importantly, new students.  Like most colleges, Marymount Manhattan has the option for students coming from other colleges, for any number of reasons, to be admitted upon acceptance to MMC through a transfer program.  Many students transfer to their new school in the fall semester with most incoming new students, but some, like Manuel Cruz, transfer in the middle of the academic year, bringing an array of challenges differing from those who come into the school at the beginning of the year.

Manuel Cruz is a spring semester transfer from a suburb of Dallas, Texas majoring in public relations and strategic communication.  Prior to coming to Marymount, Cruz attended a community college in the Dallas area after high school. His original plan was to attend King’s College in New York City.  When an issue arose, it caused him to go to a community college near home for a period of time before finally coming to Marymount over Kings.

Transferring to a new school brings many challenges, including, but not limited to, being accepted into a new community of individuals, getting previous credits transferred, and getting the school-specific help they need regarding college life in general, especially in NYC.  Many transfers have a hard time shaking the assumption that they know exactly what they are doing since they have done college before.

While many transfers may find it more difficult to integrate into a new school in the middle of the year, Cruz stated “the transfer experience to MMC was very easy considering I was coming in for the second semester.  Overall, it was an easy transition getting here.”

However, Cruz still had his own struggles with Marymount’s process specifically.  Moving from a suburb of a competitively small city to the center of the largest American city was a challenge.  He noted that he “would recommend they (MMC) be a little more hands-on considering not everyone comes from a big city.”

For fall transfers, nearly an entire week is given to help them adjust to the city before the start of classes.  For Cruz, this was another difficulty stemming from coming in the spring. “Once officially moved in, I do recommend they check in more often with their transfer students since we do come in the middle of the year,” Cruz said.  “We need a bit more guidance compared to those who come in the fall.”

This fact does not undercut the challenges faced by fall transfers under the assumption that they know what they’re doing since they’ve already been in college, but coming in the spring can allow for transfers to often be overlooked and seen as if they’ve been at the school for the entire year.

Though Cruz had his challenges moving to New York City, he says that he had a lot of help along the way.  “If it wasn’t for my awesome roommate, I wouldn’t have known how to get to school.” He is very thankful that he had the support and understanding from his roommates.

After college, Cruz hopes to become a publicist for a celebrity.  He plans to stay in New York City for as long as his lifestyle and job allow, with a very open-minded possibility of moving back to Dallas at some point.

Though he had challenges, Cruz is eager to continue his experience at Marymount Manhattan with a positive attitude.  Thus far, he has truly enjoyed the experience. He wishes all the other transfers a positive adjustment and empathizes with any struggles they may have or have had moving to MMC.