Before I made this change, I knew what I wanted out of a college or university. Simply, I wanted a place where I could get the best education possible, meet new friends and remain relatively close to my home. I had researched several schools that met these guidelines, but Cabrini stood out. The reason for this stand-out, was that I had several friends and family members attend Cabrini over the years. I called them, and they all told me about their great experiences at Cabrini and recommended that I take a tour.
I felt like their relationship with Cabrini, as alumnus, spoke volumes to the type of welcoming and friendly environment Cabrini has on and off campus. So, I took a tour, and after seeing the campus and meeting some very nice admissions employees I was sold, but not with total confidence.
I was unsure about what my experience would be like at Cabrini coming in as a transfer student, and no with current friends or family attending. I wasn’t sure if I would make friends, and since I decided to live on-campus, I was intimidated about having new responsibilities and freedoms unlike any I had before.
The Skyfactor Mapworks conducted a survey of new college students living away from home. The survey concluded that 34 percent of students extremely missed their friends at their old school, and 27 percent of students extremely missed their families back home. Even though I felt uneasy about these new changes, I knew that if I just acted like myself and was open to doing new things with new people, it would all work out.
Soon enough, I proved myself right. I met some new friends, joined a club and worked towards getting hired for a summer internship. I met friends throughout the dorms I lived in, orientation groups, the gym, classes, mutual friends and just meeting people on-campus. Everyone I met was so friendly and welcoming, that the transition felt almost non-existent, like I was at Cabrini since freshman year!
Purdue University’s Glenn Sparks explained why friendships made in college are so strong and important by stating, “This is a kind of a unique time in people’s lives, and they have the time and the frequency of contact with each other to really develop these kinds of close relationships.”
I had a great year and can say that choosing to attend Cabrini was an extremely positive change in my life. I, like others that helped me, would highly recommend Cabrini University to anyone.
