I submitted my college applications in a Harvard University sweatshirt, with stacks of ACT prep books lined up against my walls and hopes of achieving Rory Gilmore-esque academic prestige.
As an intellectually-driven student who grew up surrounded by marketed images of what success looks like for women in academia—think Rory, Christina Yang, and Elle Woods—settling for less than an Ivy League equated to settling for mediocrity in my mind. Simultaneously priding myself on my individualism yet attempting to situate myself into a curated identity, the reality of my situation soon began to seep in.
More so than this realization that Ivy Leagues represented an aesthetic of academia rather than academia itself, was the very real, very tangible, concern of money.
I quickly learned that my grades, extracurriculars, and passion for learning meant nothing to universities if I didn’t have the economic standing to back it up; and having lived on my own since 16 and handling the finances of higher education myself, even a state school was out of the question. I turned to the place that I had driven past every day on the way to school but had never approached with serious consideration— community college.
With an acceptance rate of 100% and a graduation rate of 37%, Hutchinson Community College was certainly not elite, but it was a place where everyone could get an education; in this sense, its lack of prestige was exactly its appeal. After my personal experiences, combined with lots of studying on my part (I highly recommend Gangster Capitalism’s podcast on the college admission scandal), I didn’t have a strong desire to participate in a system rooted in educational exclusivity. As a future educator, I believe affordable and accessible education should be a standard in society.
I would also like to make clear that inclusivity in higher education does not inherently correlate to a lower standard of learning; in fact, at HutchCC, my experience was the exact opposite.
I had the opportunity to interview, among other fascinating people, a felon that started a chess rehabilitation program as a writer for the Collegian; I was able to attend state and national-wide conferences through the journalism and Honors Program; and I had the perfect amount of pressure and freedom, at one point getting to create a podcast for a literature project in which I analyzed the trope of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl throughout classic and contemporary fiction.
Most of my love of the college, however, came not from external opportunities, but from the amazing professors and faculty I had and the relationships I developed with them. Dr. Kelly Clasen, for example, my American Literature II professor, provided me with one of the most stimulating and enjoyable classes of my college experience thus far, and I believe she would fit right in with the amazing community of English professors at K-State.
While my individual experiences at HutchCC, and now K-State, have been overwhelmingly positive, the transfer itself has been the biggest source of stress for me. And, unfortunately, there’s no easy solution. I don’t think it’s possible to have a “perfect” transfer— you’ll lose credits, you’ll have to send lots of emails, and you’ll likely have to take on a heavy course load. My only advice is to be your own advocate, because between two colleges and tens of thousands of students, no one else will be. The connections you make with teachers and faculty will be the single most beneficial aspect of the transfer process.
Just last week, even after having been working on solidifying my credit transfers for months now, I was informed that I would have to retake American Lit II at K-State because my HutchCC credit (of the exact same class) wouldn’t count. I could’ve just accepted what these advisors and department chairs at K-State told me, but instead, I advocated for myself. It took communication with my previous professor, Dr. Clasen, and an established relationship with my current advisor to craft the necessary argument for my credit transfer. Now, after emailing at least four different people and spending time collecting documents, I have been spared from retaking the class, losing the credits, and dropping an unnecessary $1000 on a class because of the money pursuit of universities and stigmatizations around community college classes.
For anyone that is considering transferring to a four-year, or even debating attending community college, I would recommend it. Despite all the stress, if I had the option to go back, I would take the exact same path again. My experiences at HutchCC developed an invaluable foundation for me to succeed at K-State, and I didn’t have to spend a single cent to get my associate degree. But I won’t glamorize the experience either; it is a lot of stress, you’ll have to take on more work than your fellow classmates, and you’ll have to find your voice if you want to ease the transition. Still, I think learning self-advocacy is more valuable than any content within a textbook and, if nothing else, being a transfer student gave me a voice.
— Ainsley Trunkhill (BS ’25, English Secondary Education)
K-State English 