Newly admitted transfer students shared their experiences as they ramp up in preparation for exam season.
Transfer students make up a significant portion of the wider UCLA community. With transfers making up almost one third of the student population, transfers have become an integrated part of the community.
In particular, Aram Manafi, a transfer student majoring in business economics, shared her experience. Since the start of her time at UCLA, Manafi mentioned that “I have had lots of fun and new experiences.” However, as a transfer, the transition is an adjustment. “The quarter system has been very different from what I’m used to in the semester system.” With the quarter system, she said, “time goes by really fast,” and, “I don’t really know where to look for resources” with everything being so new.
She is not alone in her experience, with several other transfer students remarking the stark transition as a learning curve and a bit of a struggle. She said that as a business economics student, it has been difficult to adjust to the large class sizes at UCLA. “It’s been honestly really difficult, the classes have been difficult because of class size. Because class sizes are so big it’s not really personal.”
However, she said that as finals week approaches, she coped by “making to-do lists and writing very specific details on what to do,” which helps. She also discussed “using a calendar which will notify what is due and what event you need to go to that day or that week” and “putting time limits on my phone or specific apps.” She emphasized the importance of being focused and not getting distracted.
With several commitments, she mentioned it’s hard to balance extracurriculars with finals. “It’s been stressful with finals because having different clubs and priorities you don’t know when to take a break or lock in and everything is going by so fast you don’t know where to start.” As a board member for the content creation club, a member of the Persian sorority and a member of the Transfer Student Representative for UCLA Student Government, or USAC, there is a lot to balance.
Manafi is able to find balance is by doing “something other than academics that allows me to bring out my creativity. I love storytelling, and I love using cameras or coming up with ideas, whether it’s skits or music videos.”
She said another way to offload her stress is through her Persian sorority, PSCO, and she said it’s “a good way to meet up with other girls, relax and connect with our culture and traditions.”
However, her lack of accessibility to resources and help is still a looming concern for Manafi. Due to the lack of resources, especially within her major, Manafi said she has faced some barriers in trying to keep up with her classes. “I have to spend so many hours per week studying for it, and having less help compared to community college, it’s been even more difficult.” She emphasized an increased need for transfer student help, especially in regard to major-specific classes, and she’s not alone in that call for more resources.
Benjamin Wheatley, a newly admitted transfer anthropology student, has some similar sentiments. He mentioned that this quarter “has taken some getting used to,” his assignments piling up very quickly, and remarked that “it has been an adjustment.”
A UCLA student seen studying for a final exam in the library. Students enjoy the quiet ambiance that Powell Library provides. Photographed by Siena Hunt/BruinLife.
He said that as an anthropology student, his classes are very reading and writing heavy and “intense with theory and philosophical topics.” He described that the switch from his community college to UCLA has been hard to navigate. With a shift in grading from professors to teaching assistants, he stressed the importance of doing everything you can to stay ahead and cultivating a relationship with TAs.
He mentioned that as finals approach, he feels like “I’m not doing enough, I could be doing more.” With community college, he said, “That’s the weird thing about the transition, it was so streamlined, just do all that was needed and you would have a good year, but now it’s up to you to navigate that.” The path to academic success is no longer as straightforward.
At UCLA, he said that “I feel like there are so many things happening at once it’s hard to focus. We live in a little party.” But in order to stay focused, Wheatley stressed the importance of putting the phone down. “When I am stressed, I use my phone more instead of less, when I’m nervous or have anxiety, and you gotta put it down because it’s doing more harm than good.” A common denominator for students is being able to refocus.
Saghar Naderi, a first-year transfer political science student with a minor in Iranian studies, mentioned her own challenges in navigating exam season. “I personally love my political science classes… but I’ve just been very stressed as finals approach because I don’t know how to plan everything well. Everything moves so quickly it’s hard to manage your time well, but I’m learning through the process of it all.”
She said she goes “to the library and study spots. It’s good to see everyone so focused and dedicated, and being in that space makes me want to focus more. Going into study spaces makes me want to do better. The environment is good to be with your peers and work through it together.”
Naderi said that in order to keep up, “I just have to be very careful with what I do with my time and plan it out precisely.” As a member of the PSCO, the internal activities member for Her Campus and director of outreach for the Persian Pre-Law society, she stays up to date by using a paper calendar. She utilized her extracurriculars as a time for balance. “I try to balance my pre-law stuff with my fun stuff like the Persian sorority. The sorority, especially meeting all the smart girls who are motivated, makes me motivated to do more.”
As finals wink at us from around the corner, transfer students tackle their courses and the new terrain of UCLA. Some find space in socializing with friends, through creativity and finding balance. But through it all, transfer experience is one of uncertainty and resilience.
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Featured Image Photographed by Siena Hunt/BruinLife
