Apparently, Foresters were not the only people excited to arrive at Lake Forest College after a long winter break. Nyemba Bryant ’20 and Nick Edlund ’19 are just two of the 24 transfer students who enrolled at the College this spring semester. They are also both transfers from a rival school, Knox College.
Knox and Lake Forest are two Midwestern liberal arts colleges that share a lot in common; they have almost identical enrollments, compete within the same athletic conference, and are members of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest (ACM).
Despite these similarities, transfer students have noticed some significant differences since enrolling at Lake Forest College. For one, Edlund pointed out that Lake Forest has more “improved and up-to-date facilities and infrastructure.”
Location sets these schools apart, as well. “The area is extremely different; Knox has a very rural community,” Bryant said, clearly eager to be near a big city like Chicago.
The former Knox Prairie Fires’ reasons for transferring do not differ much. Bryant was looking “to be closer to a big city” as well as have the Urban Studies minor available to her, while Edlund wanted to switch his major from chemistry to business.
After one and a half semesters, it might seem hard to transition into a new college away from good friends and helpful teachers, but Edlund is getting along better than he expected. “Transition is going well. I’ve gotten really comfortable with the atmosphere and culture of the school,” he said.
Of course, missing friends and teammates will consequentially occur for transfer students, which Bryant and Edlund both attested to. “I miss my friends…I miss some things about the familiarity of Knox,” Edlund said.
Yet while keeping old friends in their hearts, Edlund and Bryant are not struggling to make new ones. “I do miss being on the Ultimate Frisbee team and the people on it, but the transition is going really well, and I’ve met so many awesome people here,” Bryant said.
Bryant and Edlund actually attribute a little bit of why their transition is going so well to the great people they have met at Lake Forest. “The second floor in Harlan has been a huge help in transitioning to Lake Forest College,” Bryant said.
Edlund specifically paid gratitude to Anna Sandler and the football team. “Both have made this transition incredibly easy,” Edlund said.
As any Lake Forest College student can tell you, the school is known for the small classrooms and great possibilities for close relationships with professors. Edlund has already been able to take advantage of this awesome aspect. “Professor Bopp is great. She is so accommodating and for that I am thankful,” Edlund said.
The students really make being a transfer student look easy, even after leaving good friends and familiar surroundings. Edlund expressed his surprise about his transfer process. “I’ve been pleasantly shocked by how seamless this whole process has gone,” Edlund said.
Both students agree that the people at Lake Forest have been the highlight to their transition. “I’ve made some really good friends here, and that’s been great,” Bryant said.
From Galesburg to Lake Forest, Edlund and Bryant shared that they are more than happy with their decision to transfer schools. “I love it here,” Bryant said.
