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Changing Places

Transfer students access a robust range of opportunities

Posted in: University

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Each year, more than 2,100 transfer students choose Montclair State for the scope of its more than 300 majors, minors and concentrations, as well as for its broad range of leadership, extracurricular and experiential-learning opportunities.

“We value the unique perspectives and contributions transfer students bring to campus,” says Director of Undergraduate Admissions Jeffrey Indiveri-Gant. “Transfer students choose Montclair State because of our excellent education, leading-edge programs and facilities and supportive environment.”

A Perfect Fit

Sophomore Justin (J.R.) Wintle transferred from Alvernia University in Reading, Pennsylvania, this fall. Hoping to become an international luxury real estate agent after graduation, he chose Montclair State’s business program because it is one of a handful in the nation offering a real estate concentration.

“I’ve known what I wanted to study and what my long-term plan for my future is for about five years now and Montclair State offers the best fit to help me achieve my goals,” Wintle explains. “There really aren’t any limits to how you decide to tailor and tackle your educational and life goals.”

As Wintle sees it, Montclair State is a perfect fit for students eager to exploit campus resources. “The professors do all they can to help you reach your goals,” he says. “I also love the social scene here and the vast array of clubs and activities. You have to put yourself out there, but when you do, it comes back to you tenfold.”

Best of all, he says, he has been encouraged to believe that he can succeed. “No goal or dream of mine is too big or too far-fetched to achieve.”

A Place to Thrive

Senior Rebecca Yellin speaks frankly about why she transferred from Parsons School of Design in Manhattan in 2014. “I left to seek treatment for bulimia nervosa, which I’d battled since age 14, and moved back home to Montclair. I applied to the University because of its close proximity, my desire to continue my education and the plethora of studies offered.”

A nutrition and food science major, Yellin was attracted to the field as she worked to regain her health. “I recognized the gap between my health and what I eat and was driven to understand how nutrients work on a biochemical level and how to apply that through the consumption of whole foods,” she says. “Nutrition is so crucial to eliminate the epidemic of food-related preventable illnesses that are prevalent today.”

For Yellin, Montclair State’s vibrant community of dedicated, diverse students, faculty and staff has far exceeded her expectations. “When your plan goes askew, you find a new place where you’re meant to be,” she confides. “I was meant to thrive here.”

Along the way, she has seized opportunities to write about nutrition topics for the student newspaper, The Montclarion, and to serve as secretary and president of the Montclair State Dietetics Organization.

Exceeding Expectations

A senior concentrating in both international justice and paralegal studies, Samantha Milano transferred to Montclair State in 2016 from Middlesex County College. “I’ve had more opportunities here than I would have had anywhere else,” she says. “I feel accepted at everything I do and have so many people who are willing to help me.”

Milano has participated in competitive programs such as the NEW Leadership program at Rutgers University’s Center for American Women and Politics, and a Political Science Conference at Monmouth University, where she won an award for best paper. As a campus leader, she creates and leads 45-minute workshops for students in the Leadership Development certificate program.

While Milano credits professors and staff with her outstanding GPA, she half jokingly insists that after graduation, she intends to “run the world.” Her future plans include law school and working for the United Nations.

A Seamless Transfer Process

According to Indiveri-Gant the University is committed to building strong transfer partnerships with community colleges that simplify the transfer process.

One such partnership is the dual enrollment automatic transfer initiative forged between the University and Bergen Community College (BCC), which lets BCC associate degree candidates to transfer seamlessly to the University and pursue bachelor’s degrees in selected programs. The specialized 2+2 model facilitates an accessible four-year path to an undergraduate degree from Montclair State.

Zabdi Medel received his AA from Brookdale Community College before transferring to Montclair State and graduating with a BA in visual arts in 2016. Today, while pursuing a master’s degree in educational leadership, Medel also works for the University’s 2+2 program as the Bergen Community College representative. “I’m fully engaged in the student affairs field as I want all students to have the same positive and fair transfer experience I had,” Medel says.

As an undergraduate transfer student, Medel appreciated Montclair State’s diverse and inclusive community, noting that, “I felt welcomed everywhere.”

Wintle agrees. “Montclair State feels like a second home. I’ll be able to look back years from now and say, ‘I chose – rather than settled – for this life.’”