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Advising Center - Transitioning to College

This guide provides information about making the transition to college for freshmen and transfer students.

As with any new environment, you may experience what social scientists refer to as culture shock or is the experience of disorientation when first encountering a new environments, peoples, or way of life or thinking. 

 

You have probably experienced culture shock before if you've done any traveling and had to learn new environments with different food, different language, different infrastructure.  You may have also experienced it at your first job or when you've switched jobs.  On a smaller scale, you've probably experienced something like this if you've had roommates or a significant other living with you.  

 

For college students, culture shock can happen when they first begin at a college (even if they have been at other colleges before) as they learn to navigate new systems and new campus cultures.  

 

Review our Keys to Success for understanding college students and culture shock: