The third week of October was National Transfer Student Week and UNLV took the opportunity to highlight the transfer student population.
UNLV boasts a transfer student population of over 2000. Of those students, a reported 980 came from CSN, 810 from out of state and 87 from UNR according to Anam Qadir, associate director of the UNLV/CSN transfer program.
The transfer program was created to facilitate transfer specifically from CSN to UNLV, though Qadir said some resources provided by the program can be used by students transferring from other schools.
According to a report from Columbia University’s Community College Research Center, 80% of community college students plan to transfer, but just 25% of those students make it to a four-year college within five years, and only 17% graduate with their bachelor’s degree within six years. Qadir said that when students do transfer, around 40% of transfer credits are lost on transfer in the U.S.
“I think UNLV is definitely ahead of the game when it comes to transfer students,” said Qadir.
UNLV offers transfer advisors for students, something Qadir said was unique to the university. The UNLV/CSN program also offers more resources to students to transfer with minimal credit loss and have more success once they arrive at UNLV.
UNLV is expanding resources for transfer students as well, according to Qadir.
“Our goal is to make sure that students have a path set for them to have success when they transfer,” said Qadir.
Qadir is also the staff representative for UNLV’s Rebel Transfer Student Organization (RTSO), a student organization dedicated to supporting transfer students.
Qadir said that 61% of the transfer student population on campus are first-generation students with the average age being 25, classifying most transfer students on campus as nontraditional.
Vice president of RTSO Leah Sayson, a senior majoring in kinesiology, is a first-generation transfer student from CSN. Sayson said that UNLV’s transfer advisors were much more helpful than the advisors at her previous school. Orientation was also helpful for Sayson because she got advice for the smaller, everyday aspects of life on campus there.
Abigail Boron, the president of RTSO, transferred from the University of San Diego in the fall of 2021. She wasn’t expecting her transfer to be smooth and worried that it would hurt her chances of getting into medical school. But Boron said the transfer was very easy for her, thanks to her advisor at UNLV.
“It was a smooth transition and after talking to multiple advisors at UNLV they said it shouldn’t impact my med school applications badly,” said Boron.
Despite the help from UNLV, Sayson still recommends students to attend UNLV from the start instead of transferring.
“If I had started out at UNLV then I wouldn’t have to struggle to figure out where everything is,” said Sayson, “I feel like they’re more welcoming to freshmen than to students who transfer.”
Sayson said that Transfer Student Week events helped make her feel more welcomed on campus and familiarized with resources and recreational activities available to her.
Qadir said that scheduling a tour of campus can help transfer students familiarize with what’s available to them at UNLV.
Boron and Qadir both recommend for transfer students coming to UNLV to reach out to a transfer advisor as early as possible and plan out what courses to take that will transfer successfully.
Additional resources for UNLV transfer students can be found on the university website.
