Transfer Newsletter SUNY OSWEGO OCTOBER 3, 2006 VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1 PAGE # 1 Off and Running! By: Chris Hockey, Transfer Coordinator I remember when I started my position as the new Transfer Coordinator, how excited I was to be working with a new group of students. I did not know much of what I was going to be doing when I started in June but as the summer passed I began to get a feel for what my responsibilities were going to be and how I was going to fit in the grand scheme of things at SUNY Oswego. To share a little bit more about myself, I have a background in Residence Life and Student Activities working mainly with first-year students, so when I decided to take this position, I was apprehensive about my abilities to perform my job because it was just so different from what I was used to. Much of my first month and a half was simply learning about what had been done previously in my position and what the transfer student population was like, not just here, but everywhere. As I got settled in and became more knowledgeable, I realized that an important part of my transition was finding ways to use my background in Residence Life and Student Activities to improve the transfer student experience at my alma mater. As the title of this article suggests, I am �off and running.� It is my job to make sure that not only do you get �off and running� but that you never stop �running� while you are here. If you are a new transfer student, I hope you see a similarity between the journey you have begun here at Oswego and the journey that I have begun. We are both going through transitions and changes and we must both adapt to our environment and use our past experiences to aid us and guide us. If you are a returning transfer student, your journey is continuing and you will soon be progressing towards the next transition as you begin to look at graduate schools or jobs. No matter who you are, remember that your time here is a marathon, not a sprint. Enjoy your run. No Time to Waste By: Dan Tascarella, Student Association President I would like to welcome you to SUNY Oswego. I hope that you have acclimated yourself and become comfortable at Oswego over the last month. It is now time for you to start to consider getting involved on-campus and becoming a greater part of the community. Every new student always asks why they should get involved and honestly the best reason I have ever come up with is to do it for you. It�s not a resume builder because it�s more than that. By getting involved you will learn new skills, improve upon your leadership skills, teambuilding skills and many more. You will leave college better prepared for the real world and in turn will have a step up on everyone else because you will have already developed many valuable assets. Get involved. Become a part of your Student Association. For those of you that aren�t aware the Student Association is the student government on-campus. Every student pays a mandatory $86 dollars a semester. Come help decide how that money is spent and on what by getting involved in student senate. Join a club or organization that interests you or start a new club. There are countless activities and programs going on campus. Be an active participate on campus and you will have a better time while you are here. If you are interested in getting involved in the Student Association email sa@oswego.edu or call X3601 and we can get you in touch with the members of a specific club or organization. You can also email me at tascarel@oswego.edu. Senate meetings are at 6pm in Lanigan 102. Know a transfer student who excels both in and out of the classroom? Next month the newsletter will begin spotlighting a transfer student who is an academic and social success. To submit a nomination, email chockey@oswego.edu. Do You Know Your Advisor? By: Harry Shock, Assistant Dean of Students Making the connection with your academic advisor is one of those tasks that need your attention early in your time here at Oswego. Transfer student advisement occurs within each department. If you don�t know yet who your advisor is, contact your department. One of the important tools in the academic advisement process is your credit evaluation. It is the record of how the credits from your previous school have been applied to your degree at Oswego. The initial evaluation is done in the Admissions office but academic departments have the prerogative to review and revise the evaluation as necessary. This process directly relates to your degree progress. If you have questions about the way credits were assigned, ask your advisor. Transfer students often seem to have a very specific timeline in mind related to their expected date of degree completion. If that is your situation, take some time now to map out your plan. Use the credit evaluation to establish where you are in terms of your General Education requirements, major requirements, and overall requirements for graduation (minimum of 122 credit hours, minimum of 42 hours of upper division course work, etc.). Pages 175-178 of the current college catalog summarize your graduation requirements. See what you have and what you still need to do. Your advisor can help you plot out the path to graduation. Spring semester course bulletins should arrive on campus about October 16 and seniors will begin registering on October 30. You should be registered for your spring courses just before the Thanksgiving break. Now is the time to start preparing. Have you met your advisor? Help! The Office of Transfer Services is currently in need of help from transfer students in many areas. We need help naming this newsletter. If you think you have a good name for the transfer newsletter, contact us. Talks have begun to develop a mentoring program that would pair returning transfer students with new transfers to help them in their transition to Oswego. The Office of Transfer Services is looking for volunteers that would be interested in helping to develop the program or serve as a mentor to an incoming transfer student. We are also seeking volunteers to participate in a focus group. We want to know what your experience as a transfer student has been like at Oswego. If you have a good name for the newsletter, want to help in the mentor program or want to share your experiences at Oswego, please contact us at x3638 or chockey@oswego.edu. Every day is a new beginning. Treat it that way. Stay away from what might have been, and look at what can be.--Marsha Petrie Sue (The CEO of You) The Office of Transfer Services is dedicated to improving the academic and social experience of all transfer students. Through collaboration with our regional community colleges and SUNY Oswego�s faculty and staff, the Office of Transfer Services aims to provide programs and initiatives that will ease the transition process for transfer students, improve academic performance and learning as well as create opportunities for social interaction and growth. LET�S TALK Office of Transfer Services 611 Culkin Hall Transfer Coordinator Chris Hockey P: 312-3638 F: 312-5183 chockey@oswego.edu AIM: OzTransferHelp Www.oswego.edu/transfer October 9th Resume Session 6:30pm-8:00pm 212 Hewitt Union October 18th Campus Center Open House 4pm-6pm Campus Center October 18th Career & Internship Fair 4pm-6pm Hewitt Union October 19th Tech Ed Job Fair 9am-12pm Hewitt Union October 19th Education Job Fair 1pm-4pm Hewitt Union