As students progress throughout their college career at the University of Rhode Island, they often find themselves questioning why they chose to attend this school. They have also probably found themselves facing other questions like why this campus was built on a hill or why 8 a.m. classes are still a thing.
Now, while the answers to the last two questions might still not be clear, some light can be shone on the answer to why students have chosen URI over other schools. In response to students wondering if they should have taken their time and money elsewhere, several transfer students were asked about their previous college experiences before attending URI.
Joneilly Alicea, a transfer student from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, shared what it was like to live on the MCPHS campus. Aside from the fact that on-campus housing was offered only to freshmen, the cost of living there was tremendous. Just one semester’s worth of housing was more expensive than living in a freshman dorm at URI for an entire year. Alicea said that students “had to share dorms with the students at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design (Mass Art).†The students at MCPHS also had to eat at a shared dining hall with Mass Art students as well, a big contrast from the two dining halls that students have to choose from at URI. Alicea added that she didn’t feel the same sense of belonging at her previous school that she now enjoys at the university.
First-year student Allison Hernandez was a transfer student from Rhode Island College. Hernandez said campus life at RIC was not nearly as eventful, nor did it offer the freedom that is provided here. “It didn’t even feel like you lived there,†she said.
Hernandez said the only areas students had access to using their student IDs were the academic buildings, dining halls and their individual dormitories. To be allowed into a friend’s dormitory, Hernandez had to wait outside to be let in, and once inside she must then get signed in by that friend as well as signed out before leaving. Hernandez said this system reminded her much of high school, and was one of many restrictions that prevented her from enjoying a true college experience.
Similarly, sophomore Alexander Wojtkowiak, a transfer student from Salve Regina University, found that even his academic routine reminded him much of high school. “You had the same classes with the same people in your major,†he said. Much like RIC, Salve Regina was a smaller college that didn’t offer classes big enough to meet new people with career paths different from his own. While smaller classes didn’t seem all that bad at first, Wojtkowiak said this seclusion from other students ended up causing a divide among them, as well as a weaker sense of community. Both Hernandez and Wojtkowaik agreed that even student involvement at their schools was not nearly as prevalent as that of URI. Â
Networking was also an issue that caused many students to transfer to a larger university such as URI. Wojtkowaik is currently an environmental science major here at the university, while Hernandez is pursuing a degree in psychology and Alicea is studying histotechnology. Each of these students noted that the professors and other resources here, such as the Academic Enhancement Center, have increased their opportunity of finding internship opportunities and future options for career paths.
While URI certainly isn’t for everyone, this school provides many luxuries and opportunities that may not be found at just any school, according to transfer students who made the decision that this school was the better choice.