By Meaghan Raab, Swimming World College Intern.
Another National Signing Day has come and gone with all the eager seniors signing their letters of intent to the school of their choice. But what happens if they arrive on campus and it isn’t what they expected or they decide they need something different? Transferring schools may be in their future.
Each transfer has a different story and different reasons for relocating during their career.
Hannah Moore, a current senior for the NC State Wolfpack, began her collegiate career at the University of Michigan. Moore is originally from North Carolina, so moving closer to home played a role in her decision of where to transfer.
“For me, it was ultimately based on the fact that I knew I needed something different. I was really far away from home, and family played a big role in my decision as well,” said Moore.
Transferring is not a decision that should be made lightly. There are many factors to consider: academics, swimming, coaching staff, location, scholarship money available, team capabilities of accepting a transfer and new teammates, among others.
The thought of starting over at a school both academically and athletically can be daunting. Fear can be a strong emotion when considering all the factors at hand and can make it challenging to find the words to explain to teammates and coaches.
“When transferring, I was scared that I would not swim as fast at my new team than I did in the past. I also was worried that I might not be accepted onto the team as well as a transfer student,” said another transfer student who will be referred to as Lucy Laneline for the sake of anonymity.
For Moore, the biggest fear was people not understanding her decision to leave Michigan to find her collegiate home elsewhere. Losing friendships from her year there would have been devastating to her because those people became family.
Telling coaches and teammates that you will not be returning to the team in the next season is understandably difficult. Hopefully, they will be understanding and supportive of the decision to leave. For both Moore and Laneline this was the case, as teammates understood that they were making the best decision for them.
When looking back on the original decision as a senior in high school to attend a particular school, Laneline would have taken a closer look at the academic side of the schools she was considering. She knows that her major and future job will last longer than swimming, so academics would have a greater impact on the life she wants to live as an adult. Laneline wishes she had understood that just because the swim team is a top 10 team doesn’t mean that it’s the right fit for everyone.
On the other hand, Moore recognizes that she has matured between her senior year of high school and now. It would be hard for her to say that she would have made a different decision back then.
“Sometimes you don’t know what you need until you get a little older and wiser. Attending Michigan for a year taught me a lot and I met a lot of people that I never would have met otherwise. It helped shape me as a person,” Moore said.
Family and friends are some of the people that can help the most with the decision to find a new school. They will be supportive no matter what because they love you and want what is best for their swimmer. Ultimately, the decision to transfer is the swimmer’s.
Moore and Laneline are both happy with their decisions to transfer, although they view the happiness differently. Moore says that she made the best decision in terms of her swimming, while Laneline says that she is glad for the education she received and the opportunity to swim for a new coach coming in as a junior.
Transferring is not something that athletes always consider when choosing a school. The expectation is that the swimmer will be happy with the choice they have made, but in some cases there are many unknowns that don’t surface until arriving on campus and experiencing it firsthand. In the end, each swimmer needs to find the best fit for them; if that means transferring then that is okay. Most swimmers perform best when they are happy and finding their happiness can be key to success at the college level.
All commentaries are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Swimming World Magazine nor its staff.