The Transfer Student Association (TSA) is a newly-established organization on campus that provides a “home away from home” to transfer students.
Ruth Kang, a senior social and behavioral science major and president of TSA, said she wants the organization to “integrate the current and incoming transfer students into their new home at Seton Hall University.”
“It is our goal to answer any questions that the students may have, while also informing them about the different resources that the University offers,” Kang said.
Kang said TSA’s goal is to inform transfer students about the different resources on campus.
As president, Kang said she plans to expand the organization. “Our organization would like to extend their community beyond what meets the eye by creating a welcoming group that hosts events on and off-campus,” she said.
Alyssa Lackland, a second-semester junior marketing major and vice president of TSA, said the organization plans to hold many social events such as bowling, hiking, city trips and going out to eat. “Since this is a new organization, the events we do are really going to be picked by the new members,” Lackland said.
TSA will also be integrating a “peer-mentor type program.” Lackland said new initiative will pair new transfer students with a previous transfer student who will assist them with any questions or concerns they may have about the transfer process.
Kang said she created the organization based on her own experience of transferring from Rutgers the second semester of her freshman year. “I remember feeling quite lonely and lost as I did not know a single person on campus,” she said.
After attending the student involvement fair and not seeing many organizations geared toward transfer students, Kang said she was inspired to establish a student-run organization geared towards helping transfer students feel more welcomed on campus.
Some transfer students say they face unique challenges that the everyday student may not be aware of. Darlene Benjamin, a senior marketing major and general body member of TSA, shared her experience transferring to Seton Hall. “I had to get used to a new class schedule,” Benjamin said. “At my previous institution, I took classes that met Monday and Thursday instead of on a Monday and Wednesday schedule.”
Small aspects of campus life are where the TSA seeks to guide new Seton Hall students. Lackland said transfer students should join TSA to have access to all the information that is not always easily accessible for transfer students, such as being granted proper course equivalency, a day-to-day around campus, the best places to eat in town and much more.
“During life, especially during college, many students are still finding themselves,” Kang said. “Specifically, transfer students could find it more difficult to find themselves as they do not know where to receive the help they need, or where to find their group of friends. However, that is why TSA has been established.”
Lackland added, “Moreover, transfer students should join this organization because it has been made to benefit them and to provide them with other students who are in the same situation. Also, there will be awesome events all year round, so I totally recommend joining.”
Bianca Stover can be reached at bianca.stover@student.shu.edu.
