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A crucial part of the college experience is escaping your comfort zone. This philosophy guided sophomore Celia away from a small liberal arts college and toward a big state university like the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Coming from Acton, Maine, Celia was accustomed to small-town living and thus looked for a college that offered a similar experience. She chose to go all the way to Ohio and study at Oberlin College, a school with an undergraduate population of fewer than 3,000 students. However, after settling into Oberlin, it occurred to Celia that her school “didn’t have the range of activities, interests, and majors that I wanted to pursue.” It was time for a change. 

Celia ended up choosing UMass for a variety of reasons, partially because she was sick of the tedious and difficult commute from Maine to Ohio. But her main reason was that UMass was an excellent fit for her desired course of study—legal studies with a minor in women, gender, and sexuality studies. With this degree, she hopes to advocate for reproductive justice for all women, and upon coming to UMass, she was refreshed to see how her classmates and faculty are “aware and vocal about social issues that are going on.” 

Here at UMass, Celia is a member of the Commonwealth Honors College. With that comes additional benefits such as a scholarship, enhanced dormitories, and enriching academic experiences. In Celia’s case, she has taken honors-specific courses such as Ideas that Change the World, along with adding on honors requirements to her legal studies class, which gave her a more in-depth understanding along with more attention from her professor. 

The transfer process can also be daunting from a social standpoint, but Celia did not let any apprehension stop her from building a new community for herself. Celia opted to live in a transfer Residential Academic Program so she could meet other new transfers and bond over their shared experiences. Additionally, she found friends on campus by joining the Club Swim team, which also helped her stay active. Even though she has spent less than a full year as a UMass student, Celia could not be happier. She credits her success to “prioritizing my happiness and my mental health over everything.”