The MichiqarrDaily-Thursday, September 10, 1981-Page 17-B
Transfer students discuss
unique status at University
By LISA CRUMRINE
Along with the thousands of incoming first-year
students in September, thousands more transfer to
the University from other colleges. These students -
most often juniors but often at other levels - ex-
perience the same discoveries that await freshper-
sons, but face unique pressures as they approach the
completion of their majors.
According to Charles Judge, director of counseling
for the LSA college, students transfer to the Univer-
sity after hearing about specific programs
unavailable two years ago. Many others, who applied
but were not accepted earlier, are admitted after
racking up credits elsewhere.
SOME STUDENTS, like Rick Pazin, a transfer
from Wayne State University in Detroit, have friends
who influenced them.
"I visited one of my friends a lot," he said. "Just
from those short visits, I knew it was the right thing
to do. I knew it was a good school and I had to come
here."
Dave Hall, also a Henry Ford transfer, said he
came to the University to enjoy the engineering
program and the "good reputation of the school."
According to statistics from Joanne Meagher in the
Office of the Registrar, there were 1,517 transfer
students in the fall of 1980, the Winter term, 558
students were enrolled.
WHILE TRANSFER studentsd may come here for
different reasons, and from unique backgrounds,
they seemed to agree that transferring to the Univer-
sity was the right decision.
"I've always liked this place," said Nancy Schuur,
a transfer from, Western Michigan University
majoring in political science. "There's a lot more to
do - it's much more challenging. I've gotten in-
volved with it. In some ways, I do wish I'd been here
earlier, to get into a sorority earlier, but it makes me
appreciate Michigan a lot more."
Entering the University as a junior does have its
drawbacks, though, according to Jim Zimmerman.
He mentioned that "It was difficult to come in. I lived
at South Quad and felt like a freshperson. There was
so much to learn. It was tough - I never identified
with the class of 1980, which I really was." Yet, he
agreed that the University was a good thing for him.
"Henry Ford was a 'weekend-type' school -
people had jobs. Here there's a sense of unity you
don't have there," he said.
"CHANGING SCHOOLS was the best thing I've
done so far career-wise," said Pazin. "I'm in the
business school and for me, it really fulfills the
purpose. It's very competitive."
Despite all the beneficial things which seem to
characterize transfer students' opinion, certainly
there are some large adjustments which have to be
made.
"Transfer students tend to need a lot of advice,"
said Judge. "The students have to see how their work
done somewhere else applies here. They are
automatically different in their program. The
greatest problems are in science and math, where
coursework builds on itself. The burden is on the
transfer student to adjust."
ZIMMERMAN AGREED that there are problems
in sequence courses. He said biology was differently
paced here than at Henry Ford, and that it was a
problem.
Academically, the transition can be awkward.
"Coming here from Wayne State with a really high
G.P.A. and then coming to business school and fin-
ding myself in the middle of the pack was difficult.
There were so many pressures at first - taking five
classes at the same time, feeling pressure to do
well."
Nancy Schuur said that for her; one of her
academic adjustments was in getting used to the
professors.
"I'm kind of disillusioned with the professors, the
problem is that they're so good!" Added Schuur,
"The counselors were unhelpful. I had a really bad
time - different counselors told me different things
in terms of graduation requirements.-It's important
to always get a second opinion."
IN ADDITION TO the academic problems imposed
on transfer students, there are also the social ad-
justments. "The transfer student doesn't have the
same support systems that a freshperson has", said
Judge. "The transfer student probably doesn't live in
the dorm. He may not be able to have the same help,
the informil network that first year students have.
Some transfer students feel isolated, that the Univer-
sity is not fun. The transfer students don't have a
good way of getting socially integrated, they don't
have reasons to get to know people."
Living situations have a great deal of influence on
the social and acadmeic experience of transfer
students.
"I lived in Bursley, and if I had it to do over, I
would definitely do it differently. The whole at-
mosphere really set me back - probably six months
to a year academically. It took me my first two terms
to get used to this place, partly because of living out
on North Campus," said Hall.
"THE DORM REALLY didn't help," said Zim-
merman, who lived in South Quad. "I didn't ap-
preciate the pranks, I didn't have fun. Personally, I
would rather have gone into an apartment."
The transition from a small residential school or a
commuter type college to a large rschool like
Michigan is a big one. The academic potential is
greatly increased, and socially, the organizations
here offer what seems like endless possibilities.
Even though she came from a smaller school,
Schuur says she feels more comfortable here now.
"You get more grouping - I feel closer to people
here, since people join more organizations. If you
transfer, you have to make more of a point to know
people."
"DON'T EXPECT THINGS to come to you," ad-
vised Jim Zimmerman. "In a small school all the in-
formation is on the bulletin boards. Here you have to
search those things out - about grad school, and by
talking to counselors. You're a step behind, you
must search things out quickly."
According to Hall, the most important thing a tran-
sfer student can do is "to get to know someone who
goes to the University in your field, and who can tell
you what to do. I've had formal counseling all
through engineering school, but I didn't really get all
that much information."
Judge explained that since the support-systems
aren't as sound for transfer students as for freshper-
sons, "being aware of the fact that the burden of ad-
justment is left to the transfer student is important.
Be cautious that there will be frustration, but that if
the student is willing to make the effort, there is sup-
port around. Use the counselors that are available."
"The best advice I can give," said Pazin, "is that
even though there's a lot of talented people here, you
have to immerse yourself in whatever interests you
have. It's important to get involved in clubs and ac-
tivities - to concentrate on two or three things. Go
out of your way to meet people, and when you give
something, you can't necessarily expect anything in
return."
Daily Photo
Killer
THE RESIDENTIAL COLLEGE in East Quad has been known as a haven-
for-the-offbeat for years now, but the recent "Killer" wars at the dorm have
l made earlier behavior seem placid. Residents "kill" each other, one by
one, and only the fittest survive. Start your stockpiles.
Wat toa C avoi*d the
mai stemporm
U,
offers several
unique alternatives
By ANN MARIE FAZIO
There is life beyond the common
l~piversity programs - lots of life, as a
tter of fact.
e University offers a wide variety
of ways to get a degree, from taking a
German class in German, to attending
a small college within the large Univer-
sity. Students can even design - their
own majors if standard programs don't
suit them:
\THE MOST WELL known alternative
study program is the Residential
,Allege, located in East Quad. The RC
a four year undergraduate, degree
granting program with its own concen-
trations.
Some RC academic requirements are
the same as LSA requirements. But
there are several important differen-
ces, however, according to assistant
director Razelle Brooks.
One difference is the RC core
curriculum, consisting of a first-year
seminar, foreign language proficiency
and an arts practicum.
IN ADDITON, RC students are
quired to live in East Quad for their
first two years in the program, Brooks
said.
The grading system is also unique to
the Residential College. For the first
two years, students are graded on a
pass/fail basis, and they are given writ-
ten evaluations. In the junior and senior
years, students have the option of
r meiving a letter grade or continuing
*ith the evaluations.
- The classroom atmosphere is dif-
ferent also, according to Brooks. Class
size is usually 15-20 students, and
enrollment in the school usually only
reaches about 650. The faculty is also
very accessible, Brooks said.
NOT ONLY DOES the size add to the
unique atmosphere, but the students
are unique, she said. They tend to be
"intellectually aggressive, forward and
politically involved," Brooks noted, and
about one-half are from out-of-state.
Students are encouraged to par-
icipate in the student government
committees which decide all the mat-
ters of the college's curriculum, per-
sonnel, and budget. she added.
The Pilot Program, housed in Alice
Lloyd, is the forerunner of the Residen-
tial College, according to Director
David Schoem. It grew out of the six-
ties, he said, and currently personalizes
e college experience of about 500
Iudents,.
THE PILOT program is a two-year
supplement program within LSA.
Students and Pilot Program course
teachers, all graduate students, must
live in Alice Lloyd.
That is one of the most important fac-
tors, Schoem said. It integrates the
academic and residential experience.
Students can talk with their teachers at
any time of the day or night, he said, in
a more relaxed atmosphere than usual.
The program is much less structured
than the Residential College. There are
only a few Pilot Program courses to
take, and most are not applied to a
students' major, he said.
THE STRONGEST emphasis is on
the student as a unique individual,
Schoem said. There is a sense of com-
munity in the dorm and "you don't get
lost," he added. "You feel like you
count."
Along with the courses they offer, the
Pilot Program directors often plan out-
side events such as films ;or poetry
readings, and field trips.
Schoem added that the diverse
population of students adds to the
programs' uniqueness. More than 50
percent are from out of state, and 15
percent are minorities. Students can
"experience (other) students who have
experienced life different ways,"
Schoem said.
SOME STUDENTS in the Study
Abroad program decide to get away
from the University altogether for a
while and go see what the Romans do
when in Rome.
The basic reason why students go
abroad to study is to achieve fluency in
a foreign language and to exerience,
first hand, a foreign culture, according
to Hank Peters, director of the LSA of-
fice of Study Abroad.
"Sometimes, in experiencing a
foreign culture, you learn more about
your own," he said, because you see
things you take advantage of here.
THERE AREaTHREE basic types of
programs in this area - full year,
semester and summer programs - all
with varying degrees of host language
proficiency requirements, Pieter said.
One thing to keep in mind, he added,
is whether the program matriculates
the student into a European institution
of higher education, or whether the
student is just being taught by an
American professor in Europe.
European teaching methods are very
different from those here, he said.
There is usually no discussion - simply
a professor with lecture notes. Office
hours are virtually nonexistent.. The
place of the professor is much more
exalted, and students are not en-
couraged to ask questions of inter-
pretation, he said..
THE ATTITUDE is changing, Pieter
said, and the American style of
dialogue in the classroom is becoming
more common.
Study abroad is not cheap, he said,
but prudent students can do it for not
much more than what it costs to go
here. Being prudent, Pieter said,
means eating in student cafeterias,
living in dorms, not eating or drinking
too much, and restricting outside
travel.
Usually, students going abroad
through an American college program
can take any financial they would have
gotten here, Pieter said. Some
programs have independent scholar-
ship programs based on need and
scholarly promise..
PIETER ADVISED that students
should go through a University spon-
sored program to assure credit transfer
and to find living arrangements more
easily and cutting red tape.
If students do decide to stay here, and
in LSA, they don't have to stay with the
structured departmental curricula to
get a degree, according to LSA coun-
selor Liiha Wallin.
The Individual Concentration
Program was developed for students to
essentially design their own majors, if
there isn't one fitting their particular
needs offered here, she explained.
To apply to the ICP, students must
write out their intended majors, listing
goals and the classes they hope to take.
This must befapproved by the ICP
Committee before students can go
ahead with it.
THE COMMITTEE members have
two main concerns in mind when
reviewing someone's major, Wallin
said. The program must have a focus,
theme, or thread that runs through
every course; and the concentration
cannot duplicate an established
University concentration.
Common ICPs are Urban Studies,
Labor and IndustrialvRelations,Cand
Organizational Behavior and Com-
munications.
The ICP is for students who know
what they want and have a lot of deter-
mination to get it, Wallin said.
THE BACHELOR OF General
Studies degree is another alternative
route within LSA, Wallin pointed out. It
was created in 1969 because some
people thought the Bachelor of Arts or
Science degrees. might not be flexible
enough for some students to shape their
own academic program. The language
requirements were a particular con-
cern, she said.
The only requirement of the BGS
program is that of the 120 credits
needed to graduate, 60 of them must be
upper level classes, and no more than
20 can be from any one department.
Many students that choose the BGS
degree are pre-professional students
going into professional school or
looking for a job right after graduating.
There is also a high percentage of
returning or transfer students, Wallin
said.
lIERMONETTES
An octet of singers/entertainers
from the Women's Glee Club; are holding
AUDITIONS for new singers this fall.
Call Teri 996-0654 for details.
,.
r
'1
offers you the following and more:
" Beit Midrash (15 Judaica
courses)
" Concerts.
* Counseling
" Dorm Programs
" Films
" Friday night dinners
* Grad group
* Great parties
* Holiday celebrations
Independent study
O PEN
[ Israeli dancing
" Jewish Elderly Project
(Psych. 201, Outreach)
" Jewish Joggers of Ann Arbor
* Kosher co-op meal plan
* Lectures
* Musical groups
" Scholars-in-residence
S-Shabbat services
(Reform, Conservative, Orthodox)
*Sunday evening delis
HOUSE
STUDENT HEALTH Q. & A.
QUESTION: What's new at UNIVERSITY HEALTH SERVICE THIS
YEAR?
ANSWER: Lots! For one, a new and more comfortable lobby.
D _ _ -1 . : Y _ _ .., ....J-- 9 - - ;m r ' n n i r+
Thursday, 10,81301 Sept.11PM
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