Page Two - COUGAR CRY- May 17, 1988
C^veaks
Beating the Transfer Blues
This past school year has flown by
at a miraculous rate of speed. Unfor
tunately there are still a couple of
weeks to go before the end of the
year. That time too will fly by, as we
wait in joyful anticipation for the
arrival of a much needed summer
vacation. A little time to recuperate
from the nine month period of cul
minated mental exhaustion suffered
by all full time students.
After that brief interlude, it will be
time for transition. Freshmen will
move up to accept their prestigious
roles as upper classmen, and a new
class of freshmen will emerge to take
their place. It will also be time for a
large number of students to bid fare
well to WCC, as they prepare to
advance their academic careers at
major universities.
I am one such collegian, and I
would like to speak on behalf of the
entire group of transfer students in
expressing a sincere gratuity to the
entire college. The hard working,
eager-to-help faculty and staff of
Wilkes Community College is often
over-looked or taken for granted. It
has been my personal privilege to
have experienced the consistently
great feeling of having sincere assis
tance at every corner. Like a lot of
students, it took me a while to come
to comprehensive terms of just how
helpful the teachers are. Therefore, 1
encourage all incoming freshmen and
newly classified sophomores to seek
help when it’s needed, and to listen
constructively for advice when it may
not be needed—that kind may be the
most helpful.
1 also encourage students to make
wholesome contributions to the col
lege in any way they can. For in
stance, I was responsible for the
funding for the newly constructed
tennis courts through my unselfish
donations in parking tickets. If that
particular method doesn’t appeal to
you, try to become active in school
sponsored activities, or if nothing
else just be concerned about your
school.
When I began here two years ago, 1
thought I would have plenty of time
to do all of those things and a lot
more. Time flies! The first year is
spent in adjustment, and the second
year is usually consumed in the hur
ried desire to do your time and get
out. Everyone will have to do their
time. But no one said that the time
has to be unproductive or even was
ted. 1 wish 1 had taken more time to
improve the quality of my time, while
1 was doing the time. 1 will next time.
Spring Fling
Our annual Spring Fling was held
Thursday, May 5 in a variety of
locations around campus. The events
beganat 11:00a.m. withthe daytime
music being provided by WSIF disc
jockeys in front of Hayes Hall. Food
and drinks were served by the Ye
Host Club and the Phi Beta Lambda
organizations in two locations.
The events offered for this Spring
Fling were: Archery, Golf, Tennis,
Free Throw and Hotshot basketball.
Volleyball, Weight Lifting, and Tug-
a-War. Over 120 students signed up
and participated in these events. Fa
culty and staff participation included
Nancy Whittington, Jim Barrow, Joe
Linney, Robert Doyle, and Dr. Bob
Thompson.
The evening activities began at
8:00 p.m. with an “End of the Year
Dance." Approximately 175 students
attended the dance where refresh
ments were provided by the WCC
S.G.A.
Winners of the
1988 WCC Spring
Fling Athletic
Activities
Archery - Michael Souther
Golf chipping - David Johnston
Tennis - Jim Barrow
Basketball Hotshot - David Oliver
Basketball Free throws - David Hayes
and Tim Bell
Weightlifting - 150 lbs. & under -
Bart Crater
Overall - Mallory
Quick
Tug-a-war - Electronics Dept.
Volleyball - “Ha Nows” team
Mile Run - Wade Collins
100 yd. Run - Darryl Brown
*
Spring Fling End of the Year Dance.
Tug of War Casualties.
By Mark Rowh
How to happily adjust
to your new school.
Picture it: there you are, sitting
alone on the library steps, working
half-heartedly on an assignment for
yet another course you didn’t realize
you would have to take. As you look
up, other students stroll by in pairs
and small groups. They all seem
happily engrossed in their conversa
tions, unaware that you even exist.
It’s been this way ever since you
transferred, and once again you have
a case of the blues. Maybe transfer
ring wasn’t such a great idea after all.
Do you worry about a scenario
like that? No doubt about it, transfer
ring to a new college can be a smart
move, but that doesn’t necessarily
mean it will be easy. In fact, adjusting
to life at another school can be even
more difficult than making that first
big jump from high school to college.
As a transfer student you’re on
your own like never before, trying to
fit into a strange environment where
virtually everybody else at your class
level has already had months or years
to learn the ropes.
“Things are usually tougher for
transfer students,” says Dr. David
Sallee, vice president for admissions
at Oklahoma Baptist University (Shaw
nee). “Everyone is attuned to the
needs of freshmen, but nobody pays
much attention to the problems of
transfers. In many respects, you’re
on your own.”
Fortunately, it’s not impossible to
avoid the transfer blues. Here are
several tips for making the best of the
transfer process.
Planning Ahead
Some of the biggest problems faced
by transfer students can be avoided
with smart planning. In fact, the
single best strategy for heading off
the blues is to keep problems from
developing in the first place. How?
By planning ahead.
“If you’re thinking of transferring,
it’s important to start as early as
possible in making some definite
plans,” Sallee advises. “The sooner
you select a senior college or univer
sity and begin making the necessary
preparations to transfer, the better.”
According to Sallee, starting early
is especially important in course selec
tion. Every course you take should
reflect not only the requirements of
your two-year college, but also those
of the college where you plan to
transfer.
“Don’t assume everything will trans
fer,” he notes, “because that’s not
always the case. It’s quite common
for students to lose credits in trans
ferring.”
But wait, you might say, waving
your catalog in protest. My college
advertises that credits earned here
are fully transferable.
That may be, but you can still lose
credits. The issue is not the quality of
classes, but basic differences in pro
gram requirements from one college
to the next.
For example, your college may
require three credits in world litera
ture, while a senior college mandates
American literature instead. Even if
your literature credits transfer, they
may not count toward graduation
requirements for a four-year degree.
Consequently, you’ll end up having
to complete American lit as an “extra”
course.
When the same story is repeated
for several courses, the end result can
be an extra semester or year of
studies needed before you can com
plete a bachelor’s degree.
How can you avoid this problem?
One way is to study the course re
quirements of colleges you're con
sidering as transfer prospects, and
then choose your two-year college
courses against those standards.
In fact, if you’re sure of transfer
ring, degree requirements for the
two-year program are much less rele
vant than those for the senior college.
If it comes down to choosing between
conflicting standards, remember that
you really don’t need an associate’s
degree to transfer, but simply enough
of the right credits. So the more
consideration you give to transfer
needs when selecting your junior-
college courses, the better.
Another way to head off problems,
according to Ken McElvania, vice
president for marketing and admis
sions at Upper Iowa University (Fay
ette), is doing what might be called
comparison shopping.
“It’s best to think like a consumer,”
he says. “ Before committing yourself,
check out three or four colleges and
see how they treat transfers. Get a
transcript evaluation done as far
ahead of time as possible, and see
how many of your credits will trans
fer. Some colleges accept a lot more
than others—don’t assume that every
school will treat you the same.”
Me Elvania suggests visiting several
prospective colleges to get a first
hand look at the campus. This is
particularly important if you have
been a commuting student and will
be going away to school for the first
time.
Every college produces colorful
brochures designed to make it look
attractive to prospective students, so
don’t depend on publications alone.
Nothing else can really substitute for
an actual campus visit in sizing up a
new school.
Meeting deadlines is another cru
cial part of the planning process. Pay
careful attention to application dead
lines, differences in school calendars,
and other crucial dates.
If you plan to apply for financial
aid to a new school, it’s especially
important to apply as early as pos
sible. Many aid programs have a
March 1 deadline, even though appli
cations for admission may be accep
ted well past that date.
If you're late, you could be accep
ted as a transfer student but still miss
out on financial aid for an entire
academic year.
Getting A djusted
Once the actual transfer is com
pleted, you will face the challenge of
adjusting to life at a new school. As a
first step, make yourself familiar
with its unique features,
“Although colleges are pretty simi
lar in a board sense, there are a lot of
picky little differences from one
school to the next,” says Sallee,
“Watch out for differences in every
thing from financial aid procedures
to grading policies. One way to do
this is to read everything you can get
your hands on, from bulletin board
announcements to the college cata
log.”
Also, take advantage of any infor
mation sessions that might be avail
able. Most colleges offer an orienta
tion program for new students. It will
be worth your time to participate
even if the sessions are designed
primarily for freshmen.
If an orientation program isn’t
offered, find a staff or faculty mem
ber who will be available on a regular
basis to answer questions as they
arise. This might be an adviser, a
professor in the academic department
of your major, or a resident assistant
in your dorm. The important thing is
to take an active role in asking ques
tions and getting information.
According to Sallee, there’s a lot
riding on your own initiative. “Too
often,” he says, “students wait until a
problem develops and then complain
that ‘my adviser didn’t tell me.’ But
the real responsibility should rest
with the student. If you’re aggressive
in looking out for your own interests,
you can avoid problems.”
Of course, college life is more than
rules and regulations. A vital element
in adjusting to your new environment
is becoming active socially.
“If you want to fit in, get involved
as soon as possible in some activities,
advises McElvania. “Try intramural
sports, or music, or student govern
ment. The type of activity really
doesn’t matter—^just do it. There s no
better way to meet people and make
new friends.”
Every campus has a variety of
organizations for student involve
ment, and most are eager to bring in
new members. In fact, one risk is
becoming too involved and overload
ing yourself.
“It’s best to limit yourself to one or
two activities at first,” McElvania
says. “That’s enough to get involved
without overdoing it.”
With an aggressive approach and a
willingness to become a part of your
new setting, transferring to a new
college can be a great success. Natur
ally, it may take some time to become
fully adjusted, so don’t expect too
much too soon.
But the transfer process need not
be a traumatic one. With the right
planning, you won’t be singing the
transfer blues.
Submitted by: Matt Cashion
SGA Officers
for 1988-1989
The newly elected SGA officers
are:
President Mark Royall
Vice President .... Mark Barker
Secretary Tamara Stokes
Treasurer David Oliver
The sophomore class officers are:
President Jeff Cashion
Vice President Tim Bell
Secretary Matthew Shaw
Treasurer .... Jonathan Francis
Senators Scott Jones
Rodney Tinnin
Rodney Crater
Ed Jackson
The above officers along with the
1988-1989 Freshman officers that will
be elected next fall, will make up the
Student Government Leaders for the
next academic year.
They are looking forward to a
good year with lots of activities for
the students to participate in.
PBL
Another exciting year is almost at
its climax, but that’s not true for Phi
Beta Lambda. Still striving to “make
the most of it. PBL” is very much
involved with activities. Throughout
the entire year, the club has been
actively involved in many fundrais
ing activities to prepare themselves
for the “big event.” The words “State
Leadership Conference” brightened
many of the PBL members’ eyes
during the weekend of April 8-10.
Six Phi Beta Lambda members at
tended the State Leadership Confer
ence entering eight different competi
tive events. The State Leadership
Conference was held at the North
Raleigh Hilton in Raleigh, NC. There
were over thirty colleges and univer
sities throughout the State partici
pating. There were two awards won
by students, and one special award
was given to a business person in the
community. Shirley Welborn won
second place in Accounting I, and
Kim Tucker won Who’s Who in Phi
Beta Lambda. Cecil Barnes, who is a
CPA, won Outstanding Business
Person of the Year, Any student who
wins first or second place in an
individual event at the SLC is eligible
to compete on the National Level, In
essence, Shirley will be competing at
the NLC which is going to be held
June 29-July 2, at Cincinnati, Ohio,
Until then, PBL will be sponsoring
several fundraising activities. Please
support PBL in their efforts to raise
money for this next event.
. . . Kim Tucker
]
NORTH
CAROUNA
ICCMVIMUNITY
CX)LLEGE SYSTEM