Transfer Orientation: Part 2
Arriving to campus for my junior year was a new first for me. Not because I was arriving as a junior but because I was returning to Vanderbilt for the first time.
“Jeff, what do you mean… how could that be?”
Well, unlike the majority of my junior peers, I transferred to Vanderbilt for my sophomore year of college from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, so this year, my junior year, is actually my second year at Vanderbilt.
The beginning of my junior year nearly mirrored the beginning of my sophomore year. However, this time, I was a Transfer Student Orientation Leader (TSOL), and I was leading orientation instead of following orientation (ba dum tss). Basically, 15 other hardworking and selflessly amazing orientation leaders/former transfers and I gave 200+ new transfers the low down on life at Vanderbilt, and guided them through Founders Walk (a welcome-to-Vanderbilt tradition), line-danced to country music with them at the Wildhorse Saloon in downtown Nashville, worked out/bowled with them at the Rec, and more. Each orientation leader was given a group of around 15 students to act as mentors for.
As an orientation leader, I want to be a resource for the transfers, and my transfer group in particular. I have made it my goal to get to know each person in my group and to invite them to as many events as possible. Now, one month into school, I still contact my group through group message, and talk to them whenever I see them around campus. I really love hearing about how they are getting involved on campus, and so far, they all seem to be enjoying Vanderbilt.
If you’re thinking about transferring to Vanderbilt, please shoot me an email at jeffrey.a.yung@vanderbilt.edu! I’d love to share with you my Vanderbilt experience. I will say that the transition was tough for me at first, but once I started getting involved on campus, I started meeting a ton of people, and found a great group of friends. After a year and a month at Vanderbilt, I can say that I do not regret my decision to transfer at all.
Cheers!
-Jeff Yung