Long flights and car rides, stuffed luggage and school supplies. New friends with wide eyes, big hugs and teary goodbyes. It’s move-in day (Fall ’22) and the latest group of first year Grovers are settling in after a long day of unpacking. Among those fresh faces are more than thirty transfer students from colleges around the country, including Julia Marsango, Leah Yendell, and Mikaeli West. They were eager to begin the next chapter of their education and complete their bachelor’s degree programs, but having undergone the unique experience of transferring schools, what advice can they offer incoming students?
Transfer experiences are so often overlooked by the education system, yet, after attending both community college and university, no one knows the education system better than a transfer. In the following articles, we’ll explore the remarkable stories of these three students. The good, the bad, the highs, the lows, and everything in between. What brought them to Grove City College? What do they love about this school? And if they could do it all over again, what would they change? This is advice from your classmates in Christ.
Julia Marsango, Spring ’24
1) Where are you from and what is your major?
“I’m from the south-central area of New Jersey, and I’m a History Major.”
2) What are you planning to do with your degree after graduation?
“I’m keeping my options open. I’m really interested in working in archives, but I might go to grad school. I guess one of the reasons I like the history degree is that it’s a very flexible skillset. When you’re practicing research and thinking from other perspectives, those are skills lots of businesses appreciate.”
3) Were you homeschooled or public schooled? Describe that experience.
“I went to public school until the third grade, and then my mom started homeschooling my siblings and I. I was homeschooled all the way through high school. Even as a kid, I knew public schooling wasn’t a good fit. I feel like homeschool spared me from a lot of the negative experiences I’ve heard about. There was still plenty of work and social activity. I went to weekly co-op meetings. I also did dual enrollment credits for community college during my junior and senior years of high school.”
4) Can you tell me about your college career and your transfer to Grove City College?
“Since I did dual enrollment, I basically completed a semester of college before I even started. So I really only did a year and a half at Ocean County Community College. I applied as a Liberal Arts major but, by the end, I knew I wanted to pursue something in history and wondered what it would be like to study history from a Christian perspective. So, I got my Liberal Arts degree and took the next semester off to work. Then I heard about Grove City through a series of coincidences, and I knew some people who had connections to the school. I went to a Creation College expo in the area, and happened to visit some friends at GCC. I never got an ‘official’ tour. I just walked around the campus in the dark and through a section of MAP dormitory with my friends on a random November night. So, I actually never saw the campus in the daylight until move-in day. Crazy, I know. After that, I threw in an application. It came down to Grove City and another school. Grove just happened to accept more credits.”
5) Why Grove City and not another school?
“Doing the admissions interview here really sold me. I had researched so many schools before GCC and was kind of jaded with the whole college search process, so having an admissions counselor who genuinely wanted me to come here meant a lot. And incorporating that Christian perspective into my education was really important to me. Grove is more expensive, and affording all this has been a lot of pressure, but I’m glad I’m here.”
6) After you transferred, what were your first impressions of the school, campus culture, classes, etc.?
“I realized the academics were gonna be really hard, but I was also excited. Much better quality than anything I’ve had. I remember being really busy. There are so many opportunities and events, even though Grove is such a small campus compared to big state schools like Penn State. In the first couple months, my impression of the people was that just because it’s a Christian/conservative college doesn’t mean everyone’s gonna think the same. It was really cool making Catholic friends, and my roommate is Pentecostal, and all different interests and personalities. It was cool to be unified by something other than just my church and my co-op.”
7) Did you encounter any issues during your transfer process?
“In community college I was really involved with the class scheduling process. I planned out all my classes. The summer before I got to Grove, I was contacting the school a lot because I had a lot of questions and wanted to plan out my classes again. That’s when I found out the registrar had scheduled everything for me, and only had me in 14 credits per semester. That was problematic, because to graduate within two years and hit the tuition limit, I needed to be in 17. To put it simply, if I’m paying for 17 credits, I’m gonna take 17. I got the classes I needed added, but I still ran into problems. Since I came in with a Liberal Arts degree and not a history focused degree, I came in with virtually no history credits. That meant I had a lot to catch up on. My biggest thing is the registrar seems to be understaffed. I don’t get my emails answered in a timely manner, and that creates issues when I need the answers before a deadline. The registrar is overwhelmed. I get some answers from the registrar and my advisor, but most of it I’ve had to do on my own. I compare the status sheets, I research the requirements, I do the audit report myself. It’s a lot.”
8) On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your experience at Grove City College?
“I think a 10 honestly. Most of the time, my dissatisfaction is not with the college itself, but with my circumstances in transferring here, and I’m to capacity, so can’t appreciate some things here the way I wish I could. I can’t have everything I want, but I think I’m getting more out of it than I’m losing.”
9) If you could go back in time knowing everything you know now, would you do anything differently?
“If I had the money, I would’ve come here as a sophomore. I needed some time at home before coming here. I wasn’t ready then, and coming in as a sophomore would’ve given me the space to spread out my credits.”
10) What advice can you offer incoming students?
“Don’t be afraid to ask questions. If you need to email people, email them. That applies to professors too. You’re never gonna get A’s here if you don’t meet with your professors and go to office hours. Don’t rely on the school to sort everything out for you. If you’re not active in the whole process, you might not end up getting exactly what you need. Do a lot of research. Figure out what resources are available. Get the bulletin, get the college catalog, get the status sheet for your major, learn how to navigate mygcc.org. The tools are there, but they won’t be helpful if you don’t figure out how to use them.”
Leah Yendell, Spring ’25
1) Where are you from and what is your major?
“I am from Mars, PA, and I’m an Elementary Education Major.”
2) What are you planning to do with your degree after graduation?
“I plan on teaching the third or fourth grade. I really like upper elementary, because they’re young enough to joke around with, but old enough to understand a lot of things. I’d love to work with that age group, and do my art at the same time.”
3) Were you homeschooled, private schooled, or public schooled? Describe that experience.
“Public schooled. My public-school experience was very interesting. I would say it was pretty diverse. You know, your stereotypical jocks, athletes, cheerleaders, etc. Lots of stuff to do in high school.”
4) Can you tell me about your college career and your transfer to Grove City College?
“I went to Edinboro University, which is in Erie, PA. I wanted to be an art teacher. I was getting my Art Education Bachelor’s degree, but during my second semester, I didn’t know if I enjoyed the art classes. So, I switched my major to Elementary Education. I spent my freshman year there. I made quite a few friends, but COVID made it hard to meet people. It was also a very left-leaning school. Probably more than most state schools. I don’t feel like I fit in very well there, because I couldn’t speak openly about my faith. Then Edinboro started merging with two other campuses, Clarion and Cal U. If I continued my degree with them, the majority of my classes would be online. So, I did some research about Grove City and the rest is history.”
5) Why Grove City and not another school?
“I think it was the Elementary Ed program that drew me here, and also the perspective of faith. I wanted to be free to explore my faith, and this just seemed like the best place to do that. I never really wanted to go out-of-state, because it would have cost more for my parents, and I wanted to be close to them. Edinboro was close to home, but Grove City is a bit closer.”
6) After you transferred, what were your first impressions of the school, campus culture, classes, etc.?
“I thought the campus culture was very welcoming. There’s a great sense of community here immediately, like Orientation Board for example. The classes were also more rigorous than I expected. It was tough getting used to, but I eventually settled into a routine.”
7) Did you encounter any issues during your transfer process?
“Yes. So, a lot of my classes transferred, but most of them came in as electives. I thought everything was fine until the spring semester of 2023. Scheduling for this year’s classes was weird. I was like, why am I only taking 13 credits in the fall and 12 in the spring? I should have been scheduled for way more. I heard from one of my Ed professors that Education Majors need to be scheduled for 16 credits minimum every semester. So, that was news to me. I was upset, because now I’m taking 18 credits this semester and next semester, while also taking physics over winter break. I was under the impression that I was good to go, because my advisor told me I was. When I scheduled with an advisor over spring semester last year, everything seemed fine, but when I went to register for this year’s courses some of them weren’t offered, so I had to totally rebuild my schedule from scratch. Hopefully I’m on track to graduate. Fingers crossed.”
8) On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your experience at Grove City College?
“I would rate it around a 7.5, because I do really enjoy my Ed classes and community life. Transferring was harder than expected though.”
9) If you could go back in time knowing everything you know now, would you do anything differently?
“A lot of the Ed professors are great. Even after everything I went through with the registrar, I would still want to attend GCC. It’s a great education. They care more than most schools and the people here are really smart. They encourage you to be better than you are, because they see your potential.”
10) What advice can you offer incoming students?
“Do activities that push you outside of your comfort zone. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, because you’re gonna make a lot of them. Quizlet is your best friend. Right after you have a lecture read over the notes you took, because that really solidifies the information you just learned. When it comes to registration, just do it yourself. You could meet with your advisor of the registrar, but you can figure it out on your own. I check in with the registrar a couple times a semester, but definitely don’t rely on them. When you graduate, you’ll be doing that type of stuff on your own, so it’s important to develop those skills.”
Mikaeli West, Spring ’25
1) Where are you from and what’s your major?
“I’m from upstate New York. Bridgeport, New York, and I’m a Social Work Major.”
2) What are you planning to do with your degree after graduation?
“I’m hoping to work as a case manager for some kind of nonprofit organization. That means I’ll help with intake paperwork and getting people connected to the resources they need, so things like food, shelter, prenatal care, etc.”
3) Were you homeschooled, private schooled, or public schooled? Describe that experience.
“I was all three. I was private schooled until fourth grade. Then homeschooled fifth grade to eight, and then halfway through eighth grade I was public schooled all the way to graduation. It was very unorthodox from beginning to end, but I feel like I learned a lot that way. To have a private school that was intense about academics and building a solid foundation in Christ. Going into public school was good for socialization and making new friends. Learning how to talk to others about Christ, especially when they don’t believe in Him was important for me too.”
4) Can you tell me about your college career and your transfer to Grove City College?
“I took a lot of dual credit courses in high school, so when I went to community college, I had a whole semester of credits done. I graduated early in December, so I came to GCC January 23’, unlike most people who came in August 22’. I started in community college because it was more financially practical and closer to home. Plus, I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted to do, so starting at community college just made sense. I got an associate degree in Human Services, which is intended to fit perfectly into a Social Work degree on a bachelor’s level. I thought about transferring to a college in Mansfield, PA or another school called Buffalo State, but I was drawn to Grove City for their morals and Christian values.”
5) Why Grove City and not another school?
“A friend of mine from community college (who was also a Social Work Major) transferred here and said the process was great. I looked at a lot of colleges and, for me, Grove City was the only school that fit all the criteria I was looking for.”
6) After you transferred, what were your first impressions of the school, campus culture, classes, etc.?
“I think GCC is so used to the process of freshmen coming in that when I came in as a transfer there wasn’t a lot of contact. I felt like I had to do a lot of the communicating and reaching out. Part of that is my fault, because I came in at a weird time. It got better when I actually moved in, but it just feels like GCC prioritizes freshmen, so sometimes transfers fall through the cracks.”
7) Did you encounter any issues during your transfer process?
“My biggest shocker was that there’s a lot of things this school does differently than my last one that I wasn’t told about. I took a social work class here and it was expected I knew things like with APA formatting and where to go for help, but I didn’t know any of that. I didn’t know my resources or what the system was. I’m sure freshmen encounter similar issues, but the academic rigor of this school was just shocking. Getting classes organized was another issue. I could have talked with the registrar more at the beginning. I wasn’t used to setting classes up on my own, so that was a big learning curve. I had taken a biology course in community college that the registrar here didn’t count. Now, I feel like I’m relearning stuff because I’m in classes I shouldn’t have to take which is frustrating. There are also a bunch of Humanities courses and it’s hard fitting them all into your schedule. Freshmen have more time to space things out unlike transfers. Now I’m paying for an extra semester just to balance all my classes, and that’s something I probably wouldn’t have had to do anywhere else.”
8) On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your experience at Grove City College?
“Honestly it depends on the day. I’d say a solid 7.5 or maybe an 8, but there have been lots of times when I really thought about my decision to come here. I wonder if I should have transferred somewhere that was cheaper or wasn’t so academically difficult. I feel like the stereotype of the school is true in a lot of ways. The ‘Grover Achiever’ mindset of feeling like you have to do everything, and the general atmosphere of being a Christian. At my last school, I was really close to God. I had to be, because everyone was starving for Christ. I had to be prepared to share the faith and to have my faith challenged, but at GCC, God is everywhere. No one is challenging me about what I believe. We go to chapel, and we’re surrounded by churches. It’s much more passive, because I’m not pushed to maintain an active resilience in my faith like I was back in New York.”
9) If you could go back in time knowing everything you know now, would you do anything differently?
“I learned after coming here that I could get jobs with my associates degree. I have a lot of friends back home who got an associates and went into the work force, or who didn’t go to college at all and they’re living their best lives working or traveling. I love that for them. Ultimately, I want to get my masters, so I’m glad I’m getting my bachelors, but the loans I’m taking out are double what they would have been at any other school. I can’t take them out through the government. I had to do it privately because GCC is a private institution, and I didn’t consider that when I was looking at my tuition. The interest on the loans is gonna destroy me. I also have a job, and that probably would have been easier at a state school because of the academic excellence GCC expects of its students. If I could go back in time, I don’t know if I’d be here, but now that I’m here I’m not going anywhere else. I think I’m where I’m supposed to be.”
10) What advice can you offer incoming students?
“Find out as much as you can before coming here. Finances were my biggest thing, and knowing how much it’s gonna cost (especially if you’re taking out loans) is really important. Academically, communicate with the registrar as much as possible, and know that your GPA might be a little lower because this is a harder school. That’s okay though, because it means you have to work harder and learn to discipline yourself and build a routine.”
