by When I decided to come to TJC, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I was a little bit nervous about starting out at a community college instead of a four-year university, and I wondered if I was going to regret my decision or miss out on something great.
I had heard a lot of different things about community colleges—good and bad—so I went into TJC with a set of expectations. A lot of what I heard didn’t turn out to be true!
Touring Madrid with TJC Honors
Myth: Student life is non-existent
Fact: When I was a student at TJC, I was blown away by all the options I had to get involved with the TJC community through organizations and events! TJC is one of few community colleges with on-campus dorms; but even as a commuter student, I was part of tons of student life activities. It seemed like there was always something fun happening on campus—snow slides at Winterfest, Homecoming week events, or rock climbing and painting with Pinot’s Palette at Spring Fling! We even had a best-pizza-in-town contest on the quad one semester where we got to try ALL of the pizzas and vote on which was the best in Tyler!
Myth: It will be difficult or impossible to transfer my courses to a senior college
Fact: My TJC credits transferred to my senior institution seamlessly! I completed my core classes, got an associate degree, and transferred to a state university. The process was so smooth. I also was considering transferring to a private college, and I met with an advisor there early during my time at TJC, to make sure that the core classes I took each semester would transfer to that private college. I was able to transfer without problems.
Myth: I won’t have any opportunities to do cool things
Phi Theta Kappa Catalyst National Conference in Kansas City, 2018
Fact: If you don’t get involved you will never have fun opportunities—whether you’re at a two- or four-year college. I had the opportunity to travel across Texas and out of state through Phi Theta Kappa, and abroad to Spain over Spring Break one year through TJC Honors. I even worked on-campus at a job that helped me decide on a career!
Myth: Less expensive college = lower quality education
Fact: I got to engage more with my professors at TJC than at my senior institution (where tuition was more expensive). They were more interested in getting to know me and made themselves available to help me with classwork and scholarship/job applications. The smaller class sizes and more invested faculty gave me a really high-quality education.
Today as a graduate from a four-year university, I am so glad I went to TJC! I had an incredible student life experience, a painless transfer process, tons of opportunities to do things on and off-campus, and a high-quality education. I love my student memories of TJC, and my time there was a catalyst for many of my future successes!
