Meet Kenna Armstrong, a transfer student from Nashua (Kansas City), MO!

Kenna transferred to Missouri State University from Metropolitan Community College. Kenna is pursuing the Journalism major with a Strategic Communication minor at Missouri State University. Kenna is also involved in Sigma Kappa sorority.

When asked why Kenna chose to transfer to Missouri State University, Kenna knew she wanted to transfer as soon as she participated in a tour of the campus, saying, “I felt at home immediately and connected with the people I met. I knew this was the place I wanted to be!”

While Kenna knew that Missouri State University was the right place for her, Kenna discussed the challenges of being a transfer student, stating, “Entering a new environment and trying to make friends, knowing I was going a different route than my friends from high school, was challenging.”

Participating in URSA helped ease Kenna’s concerns. Kenna says, “URSA helped me meet people and make friends immediately! I’ve surrounded myself with people who feel like we’ve been friends forever, even though we’ve only known each other a few weeks.” Kenna says the campus events and the friends she’s made have been the most enjoyable part of her transfer experience.

With that knowledge, Kenna’s advice for a new transfer student would be, “Everything feels scary until you actually do it – whether it’s doing something alone or even asking someone to do something with you because you don’t want to go alone. But participating in those opportunities and meeting those people are worth it!”

Kenna would like to take this opportunity to thank the people who have helped her the most throughout her transfer journey – her support system. Kenna cites the faculty and advisors at Metropolitan Community College, as well as her parents, sisters, and friends, for being so supportive and helping her make the adjustment to a new school.

Meet Rachel Robinson, a transfer student from Hollister, MO!

Rachel transferred to Missouri State University from Ozarks Tech. Rachel is pursuing the Entertainment Management major. Rachel is an active member of the Entertainment Management Association (EMA), which she was able to join as an OTC student prior to arriving at Missouri State University.

When asked why Rachel chose to transfer to Missouri State University, Rachel said, “Missouri State is really affordable and easily transferrable with OTC’s 2+2 plans. I will be able to graduate debt-free, having used my A+ at OTC, and having received several scholarships from Missouri State, including the PTK scholarship, the Mo State Access Award, and a scholarship from the Foundation Scholarship of St. Louis. Plus, MSU is close to home!”

Rachel says the most enjoyable part of her transfer experience so far has been meeting new people and interacting with her faculty. Rachel particularly enjoyed the Transfer Student Social (part of Welcome Weekend) and the EMA social at Andy’s, as they allowed her to meet new people.

Rachel is a commuter student and mentioned some of the challenges that can come with being a commuter student, including making the daily commute to campus and getting used to the parking situation. Rachel’s advice to future transfer students who want to commute to campus is to, “Prepare yourself for the upcoming academic year – take a tour of campus and figure out where your classes are and where the best parking spot will be. And, once you’ve figured that out and the semester starts, get to campus early! Create a morning routine that works for you but also factors in parking and making sure you bring everything you need, so you don’t have to turn around and go back home to grab anything. Additionally, get to know people in your classes and join one student organization! That will be the best way to meet people and make new friends when you aren’t living on campus.”

Rachel would like to take this opportunity to thank the people who have supported her the most during the transfer process: Her parents, her friends, her high school teachers, and her advisors. Rachel says her parents have been incredibly supportive of her decision to transfer to MSU and encouraged her throughout the process. Rachel’s high school teachers, Lynn Morris and Katie Schiefelbein, have also stayed in touch with her throughout her college journey and have inspired her to give back to her community and stay ambitious. Her high school advisor, Arie Good, guided her through her college decisions during her senior year of high school and informed her of many opportunities. OTC advisor, Savannah Whipple, and MSU advisor, Sarah Terry, were both incredibly supportive and made sure she had everything she needed to graduate from OTC in two years and graduate from Missouri State in two years. Lastly, Rachel would like to thank the Scholarship Foundation of St. Louis for their generous RootEd renewable scholarship, allowing her to graduate debt-free.

Meet Lydia Johnson, a transfer student from Piedmont, MO!

Lydia transferred to Missouri State University from Southern Baptist University and Three Rivers College. Lydia is pursuing the Social Work major at Missouri State.

When asked why Lydia chose to transfer to Missouri State, Lydia said, “The online Social Work program, and the cost of the program, were huge draws for me. This program allows me to be able to work full time, in the career field I want to work, while also going to school full time.”

Lydia put in a lot of work to get to Missouri State, sharing, “When I left my first institution, I was in a low point mentally. This negatively impacted my GPA. I applied to Missouri State and was unable to get in because of my GPA at the time. I then transferred to Three Rivers College, where I was able to take courses toward my degree and raise my GPA. I was then able to reapply to Missouri State and was accepted!” Lydia’s hard work has paid off, as she is a member of Tau Sigma, the national honors society for transfer students.

Lydia says the most enjoyable part of her transfer experience has been, “the Social Work classes. Social Work was a new major for me when I transferred institutions. I have supportive professors and really enjoy my classes, which is an incredibly positive change for me – it has made a big difference.”

Lydia’s advice for a new transfer student would be to, “keep trying, don’t give up, and don’t let your fear of failure hold you back from the things you want to do. I didn’t get in the first time I applied to Missouri State, which was really hard for me, but I worked hard to get my GPA back up to be able to get in to Missouri State. I was really nervous about going back to school after taking time off, afraid that I would repeat the cycles that led to the grades I didn’t want, but everything has gone well!”

Lydia would like to take this opportunity to thank the people who have impacted her the most throughout her transfer process: 1) her mom – “my mom was very supportive of me going back to school”, and 2) her coworkers – “My coworkers are super supportive. A lot of them are either in school or have recently graduated, so it’s helpful to have people to talk with who have recently studied the same things.”

Meet Sam Cope, a transfer student from Verona, MO!

Sam transferred to Missouri State University from Crowder College. Sam graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Physics/Astronomy & Astrophysics with a minor in Mathematics and undergraduate certificates in Computational Science and Astrogeology. Sam is now pursuing the Master of Natural and Applied Sciences degree.

When asked why Sam chose to transfer to Missouri State University, Sam mentioned three things: 1) the location – “MSU is a half-hour drive from my family, so distance was a factor”, 2) cost – “The financial aid opportunities were more abundant than they were at other schools”, and 3) the tour experience – “I toured several other schools and Missouri State’s physics department was not only willing to meet with me while I was on campus, but they gave me a tour of the facilities and really treated me like they wanted me to be a student here”.

Sam described the most challenging aspect of his transfer experience as being in a unique place academically and socially, saying, “I earned my associate degree at the same time I graduated high school. So, I was academically a junior but the age of a typical freshman. It was challenging at first to navigate this situation, but I was able to make friends with students of all ages.” Sam describes those friendships with his fellow students, as well as the relationships he was able to develop with his faculty as the most enjoyable part of his transfer experience. Several of those friendships came through Sam’s experiences in student organizations on campus, including the Society of Physics Students, the Ozarks Amateur Astronomers Club, and the PAMS Outreach Society.

Sam’s advice for a new Missouri State transfer student would be to, “Take things at your own pace. Be sure to create time management skills and learn to balance your priorities, whether they be friendships, academics, or anything else.”

Sam would like to take this opportunity to thank the individuals who helped him during his transfer experience: 1) his family – “they supported me not only through the transfer process but also through becoming my own adult”, 2) Missouri State faculty Dr. Mayanovic, Dr. Morrison, Dr. Baran, Dr. Besara, and Dr. Sakidja – “these professors helped me with the transition to Missouri State and with career choices as I worked through my degree”, and 3) Crowder College employees Samantha Fay and Dr. Rawwagah – “their instruction was excellent. If it wasn’t for their help and encouragement, I wouldn’t have finished my degree. They gave me the foundation to succeed.”