For most students at American River College, community college is a stepping stone to better and brighter things–but it is not always clear what better and brighter things are. To help clear the fog and establish a clear path forward for students, ARC hosts an annual transfer day fair.
Taking place in the Student Center main lobby on Oct. 9 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., all students will have opportunities to speak to representatives from universities from all over the country.
“This is actually part of a much larger statewide fair where around 60 private universities, out of state universities, California State universities and Universities of California tour all the different California community colleges,” said Fong Tran, a transfer center specialist.
The event, designed to expose students to the wide variety of university options they could transfer to, makes space for all the questions students have about transferring to a university setting after obtaining an associates degree.
Each university will have its own table, with Sac State and UC Davis bringing multiple department representatives each, as they are the most common transfer options for ARC students. There is no preregistration required and students will be allowed to wander from booth to booth at their own pace.
“[Students] will be able to talk to any of the representatives about admissions, financial aid, what student life is like there,” Tran said. “[As well as] any type of specifics as it relates to [the University’s] departments like biology, nursing, whatever department they would like to ask further questions about.”
After the main fair, there will be two workshop panels for students to meet with University of California representatives from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., as well as a panel for nursing program students from 3 p.m. to 4:15 p.m., with both panels taking place in Community Room 1.
Students who are not able to attend the transfer fair should not fret. The Transfer Center located in the Welcome Center is open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Wednesdays from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. with a passion to help students make transfer plans that best support their futures. Counselors and coordinators like Martin Gomez are available to meet with students in office, help organize conversations with transfer representatives at other schools and much more.
“The goal is that [students] can accomplish their goals in the future,” Gomez said. “There are resources available for guidance and direction, but we can play an important role in shaping [their] future, and having stability and academic and financial success in the future by earning a degree.”
