For the final episode in the English series, Cadie interviews transfer student Jonathan Mullins to discuss his journey through community college, pivoting his goals post-COVID, and his experience transitioning to George Mason University. Jonathan also shares valuable advice and actionable insights for high school graduates exploring their next steps.
Sonal: Welcome to CHSS Connection, a podcast where we interview different students and faculty about all things CHSS, from academics to careers to everything in between. If you're wondering who would make a podcast about the game of chess, that's actually not the CHSS we're talking about. We're referring to the College of Humanities and Social Sciences here at Mason. This is a student success podcast for CHSS students, by CHSS students. And even if you aren't a chess student, we're happy to have you here. I'm one of your hosts, Samal Prakash. Zoe: And I'm your other host, Zoe Nix. This episode is once again hosted by Cadie Junker, so we’ll let her take it away. Cadie: In this episode, our guest is an English student and transfer student here to shine a light on his transfer student experience. Please welcome to the show, Jonathan Mullins. Jonathan, thank you so much for joining us. How are you doing today? Jonathan: I'm good, just came from the library. Cadie: Very cool. So we are going to get right into the interview and this first act is going to be a little bit more of a general questions and then the second act is when we're going to get into more deeper reflection. Our very first question for you. I need to stop saying our cause Emma's no longer here. I'd say rest in peace, but she's not dead. She just doesn't work for us anymore. But I miss you anyways, my first question for you is, can you tell us a little bit about your English degree? Do you have a concentration or a minor? Jonathan: Yeah. So I concentrate in literature specifically I focus on like post colonial theory, but that gets more into like grad school territory, which I'm not there yet, but I will be. And I'm actually doing the dynamic publishing minor, which is been a lot more like fun than I thought it would be because it's a mixture of like kind of like writing and rhetoric and art. So I've done like a digital design class typography. I'm currently in a web design class that's being passed for an English class, so. Cadie: Very cool. You know, it is interesting what is constituted as an English class versus something else because I'm currently in writing and rhetorical criticism, which is a major elective of mine for communications, not for English. But it does feel a lot like an English class, which I'm fine with 'cause I love my English classes. I have an associates in English. So of course I, of course I love writing. My next question for you. Can you tell me a little bit about your path at GMU and to GMU as we are here to discuss the transfer student experience? Jonathan: Yeah, so my path to GMU is a little different even from transfer students because I did not go straight into college from high school. I took a year off because I was one of those.. The structure of high school just did not work for me. And COVID also hit and like took away my entire senior year. So there was like a lot of burnout. So I just took a year off to actually think about what I wanted to do with my life. And I started reading a lot like I've always read, but I started reading a lot more during that, like in between period. And then I was like, you know, I hit a certain point where I was like, this is what I want to do. So I went to my local Community College, the Middletown campus of Laurel Ridge, formerly Lord Fairfax. And then I just kind of, I ended up doing well enough. I made the Dean's list multiple times there. I got to join.. I think it's Phi Theta Kappa? Cadie: You're asking the wrong girl, I'm afraid. I am not involved in frat life or honor societies whatsoever. Jonathan: Yeah, so it's the Community College Honor Society. And then after joining that, I got a lot of like, you know, emails and like actual mail from my colleges that like wanted me to apply because having cause having an honor student even just apply makes them look good. But I applied to like 4 different ones. I was originally going to go to school and go to a school in West Virginia, but then in state was more affordable. And so I ended up and I looked at different ones and Mason seemed to have the more general like direction I wanted to take my studies. So I applied here and then I ended up really liking what I found my first semester. I just took like a bunch of it was all literature classes. Well, it was and but like one of them was like a theory class, which is where I discovered postcolonial theory, a term I've never heard before. And that's when I guess my path to when I want to do really open because I found myself really liking like the how was literature uses like both a cultural tool for like oppression and liberation. And so I found that's all my studies, everything I've every class I've taken has been like in that direction of like how are like literary canons legends. How is all that used in like different facets to both declare to declare a people's right to be in a place and also, you know, for other sides to like oppress that people and like those different like, you know, the power literature holds for both good and bad. Cadie: Yeah, no, I think that's really interesting. You had mentioned that you took a gap year and I do not blame you. COVID was so hard for so many reasons. And it's interesting how it how differently it affects us because COVID wiped out my freshman year of high school. I might be, might be not. What's the opposite of aging? Younging myself, but like, I couldn't imagine going through the entire process. Meanwhile the world is shut down. Like I don't even know what that would look like. Jonathan: So my junior year, it looked like it was just like free vacation because that was like, because, you know, high school, you still do like the quarters, right? So like fourth quarter was cut off. So that was like, you know, back half of semester 2 was like gone. And so it was like, oh, fun. I'd also just gotten my driver's license that year. So then it was also like and everything is closed. Cadie: Yeah, and lovely. Jonathan: And then of course, you know, you got like that class didn't get to graduate. My class luckily did. But then there's also like the whole, you know, no one wants to say like, oh, my problems are worse than the other. But there is the whole like we still focus a lot on like what the class of 2020 lot lost. And meanwhile, like class of 21, my class like all over the country did not get a senior year at all. So it is very much like, so it is very much like it started out as just thinking, oh, this is going to be a little blip in time. And then it's like, nope, this is a this is going to be a major historical event that's studied like 50 years later. Cadie: My hot take. I think that class of 2021 had it harder than class of 2020. I I think you guys were worse off. Jonathan: Well, yeah, 'cause like it's, we think it's senior and like it also like, so I was already like burnt out from school at this point anyway. Like middle school was like for like everyone else. Middle school was rough. And then like, you know, high school just like never really did anything to like preserve that spark. You also got like when teachers noticed that like, I don't want to say smarter because like, I don't know, labels of intelligence give me to use a, to use a monitor and give me the icks. But like, you know, when teachers notice that, like you appear to be smarter than the work you're turning in, they think it's a problem with you. And so then like, but then, you know, college, it's just like I found with college, if I'm left just to my own devices, I'm able to figure out how to do this stuff and like actually get everything in on time. Like procrastination, still a bit of a problem, but now it's like procrastination, like, Oh no, I'm not going to be able to get this done versus Oh no, it's 3:00 AM and I'm still writing this paper. Cadie: Yeah, for sure. You had talked through kind of your process to GMU, but I'm curious what inspired you to become a transfer student? So specifically saying, you know, I want to go and I want to pursue not just an associates, not just, you know, give this college thing a try for a couple of years, but to get a bachelor's degree. Jonathan: Yeah, So like, originally I want it to be like, I think all English made, like, not all, but like most English majors. Originally I'm going to be like a writer. But then as I went on and I started, like, discovering literary criticism, I was like, oh, wait a second. I like this more than actually writing. And like writing's part of it, like analytical writing, but I find my brain likes to analyze every single piece of media I consume. And like, so I was like, Oh, I want to do something with this. And then looking into it, I was like, oh, I need at least a master's to really fully grasp this. So I was like, so from there it was like, OK, I'm going to go all the way through four year and then I'm going to attempt a master's. And then and now it's like I don't even, I'm not even, I don't even start it my master's degree yet, but I'm actually going to be getting that here at Mason. Cadie: Sidebar, are you doing the BAM program? Jonathan: No. So I'm doing the traditional way. I just got accepted into the program. Cadie: Congratulations. That’s great. Jonathan: Thank you. Yeah, no, a lot of people I've taken class with also got accepted. So it's that's going to be like familiar faces again is going to be fun. But you know, it's also like, I haven't even like got that. And I'm like considering like I might also want to take it all the way through the PhD. But that's also my sisters are also partly inspiration for that. One of them is I don't know if she has her board certification yet. I think as of now she's about to go to Chicago to take the oral part of her exam and get and become like a board certified psychologist. Cadie: Oh, very cool. Jonathan: Yeah, and like she actually went to the school in West Virginia, Marshall University, that I originally wanted to go to because like she went there. And then I have another sister who is right now, she works for the West Virginia State government, but she has a sociologist degree. And she actually, her focus in sociology is what my focus is in literature post colonial studies. I didn't even know that. I just knew she was like, I knew she was like something where it was like something that fed into like Native American studies, but I didn't fully know what it was she was doing. And so it's like I do find that like my sisters are also part of like my college journey where like a lot of my decisions are based on seeing what they did and like thinking, would I want to do that Answer's not always yes, but you know, part a lot of the answers have been yes. Cadie: Yeah, for sure. Can you tell me a little bit about how you founded the program that allowed you to transfer? I know you had mentioned finding your Honor Society. Is that kind of what put the the seed in your mind of like, oh, this is how I actually apply to these schools and transfer and get to that level of higher education? Jonathan: Yeah, sort of. So originally my plan was just in Community College, just like I wasn't trying to like put myself out there really. I was just, I was just kind of trying to like pass all my classes and part of me wanted to transfer from the beginning because like I was like, oh, I'm going to get an English degree. I'm going to be a writer. I might as well do the four year to get like the most out of it I can. I'm realizing how a lot of that was like, you know, self esteem issues and stuff leftover from like high school and the whole being disillusioned with the school system in general. Cadie: It happens, especially after COVID. Jonathan: Yeah, and then, you know, my first semester I got up in Dean's list and that was, I was very happy about that. But well, actually, no, my second semester 'cause I did like a part time summer semester to get back in the swing of school, but that was only like part time so that like I did well on that one too. It's just that one doesn't get like put on list. But after I did got the Dean's list, the I also found out one of the professors I had was the was one of the like Co-chair, not Co-chair, but like one of the Co-leaders of the of Laura Ridges chapter of the human of the humanity side of the honors Community College honors society. And you know, I got an e-mail one day that was just like, basically, hey, your grades are really good and you make the school look good. Join her chapter of the Honors Society. And I did, although that one also cost money. Cadie: Yeah. Jonathan: So, you know, that was, I mean, I think, I personally think it was $80 well spent. But and you know, and then getting invited into that, I had like a whole realization of like, wait a second, I might actually click with the stuff like, you know, I might actually be able to do this. And then that, you know, 5 head of CAPA was also what like open my eyes to like, because originally I'm just going to go to like my local college Shenandoah, which is not, it's not like super easy to get in, but like, it's not like the hardest to get in about about like Mason. Not not that it's on Mason, but. Cadie: No, Mason's a great school with great programs. They also boast the fact that they have, what is it, like a 90% acceptance rate. Jonathan: Yeah, Shenandoah has like a 75. So like, it's not hard to get into, but it's like, you know, but it was local. And then it's just like I realized I had options. And so but then, yeah. But then I ended up at Mason because mainly because of a project I did in a British literature class, my, I guess sophomore year technically, and an African American lit class. I talked in sophomore year and I was like, this is the angle I want to attack this at. And then looking at it, Mason, you know, boasting how diverse it is, not only in its student body, but in its programs. And I saw like Mason offered, like so many classes that were not available to my local Community College where I was like, I want to go to Mason. Cadie: You know, it's really interesting to me because I sit down and I talk to people and sometimes, you know, they had excellent high school experiences and other times they didn't. Like they hated high school. But then when they got to college, they actually, like, started enjoying it and that began reflecting in their grades. And it's so interesting to me because even though college is more work to an extent, like I probably spend the same amount of time on school as I did in high school. I definitely have more homework. But also in high school I was doing like 8 hour days every day. And in college, if you have more than like three classes a day, you have a lot of classes a day and classes are only like an hour and 15 minutes here. And so I'm definitely doing like the same amount of work. But I think because we're able to target exactly what we want to study, college is a lot more enjoyable. And I guess the, the point to this tangent is that if there's any high schoolers listening to this, unsure about going to college for reasons other than financial cause college is expensive. I think going to a local Community College, they're often much cheaper. They're often easier to get into. Take a couple classes and things that you're interested about and just see, because college, the way your classes are run so different from high school, you have so much more agency. I don't know, I really like my education here. Jonathan: Yeah, Virginia's Community College system is really good. Like so if you, you know, if you're listening high school student and you live in Virginia, you are very lucky because you do have a lot of community colleges that are going to because another thing with Community College, they are more learning focused than they are then they are like research or profit focused. So, you know, like I would. I'm still amazed at how much textbooks cost at Mason. Cadie: I know. Oh my gosh. Jonathan: But like, you know, a lot of stuff is cheaper, a lot more open access. So if you so, if you really are are unsure, and even if you're not unsure, just Community College first I think is the best way to go. You also get more time to just play around with what you want to study. Cadie: I agree, I did Community College while I was in high school so I was really lucky I didn't take any electives over at my high school. I went over to the Community College instead and that's how I have my associates in English. I highly highly highly recommend any sort of high schooler to do that. Please guys. It's so much easier than AP classes and it genuinely it sets you up better for college because your freshman year, you're going to know exactly what sort of classes you're walking into and AP classes do not give you a good indication of what type of classes you can expect in college. The next question for you, what did the application process to Mason look like as a transfer student? This was something we had talked about in promo before this. Jonathan: Oh, God, it was so expensive. Yeah, that's like it. OK, so like actually applying isn't hard like most colleges. It is really just like an online form and you just like, you know, click the drop down box, select the options. Sometimes you have to submit a personal essay. I submitted I just submitted a personal essay to Mason and you know it. It really is.. It really is just applying to a bunch of different things and spending more money than you think you're going to spend, right. And then like, I think the biggest difficulty was just kind of narrowing it down to like 4 schools because it was like $50 to $80 per school. And I was like, I cannot do this more than three or four times or my like, entire bank or my bank is going to like, freeze my account. So, you know, that was like, so it really is just a lot of looking at different schools, seeing what would fit you, what areas I, you know, I was lucky enough to be in Thi Deta Cappa. So I got schools like hurling themselves at me, like a lot of different varieties, too. Brown sent me an e-mail. Yeah, like, I'm like, you know, I saw Brown was like, I'm not going to an Ivy League, but like. Cadie: It's cool that you guys emailed me. What programs or resources did you utilize while transferring to Mason? Jonathan: So the biggest resource I utilize that I think more Mason students need to utilize is my academic advisor. The one for the English such creative writing program is Laura Scott. So if you are in the program, talk, talk to Professor Scott. She's a great advisor. Success coaches are also great. I never really utilized mine because I kind of, I'm one of those rare people that like because I took time to figure out what I wanted to do, I kind of already have a path. But even if you already have a path, they help you like get ready to like apply for jobs after college and then, you know, they have like all the mental health resources. I haven't utilized that either because I felt, you know, I never really felt the need to go. And they also just have like, a lot of like events and stuff you can take advantage of to like the performing arts building gets like a lot of like concerts and stuff. And, you know, classical music. I think there are studies that show classical music really does help with mental health and like regenerating. I don't. I haven't done a whole lot of research that and that myself. Cadie: I think it's about helping your brain function. It can improve memory, it can improve focus. I like listening to classical music while I'm studying actually, which I know sounds really pretentious, but that is indeed what I enjoy doing so. Jonathan: Yeah, and Mason students get like discounted and free tickets. So it's like, there was one I wanted to go, but it was literally in the middle of one of my classes. It was like Jeff Goldblum touring with an orchestra. Cadie: Oh my gosh. Jonathan: I didn't even know he was a musician. So like, I was like, so, yeah. So like, you know, and also, you know, kind of kind of little cliche, especially for a Mason student, but also if you ever get the chance go to like a basketball or soccer game, It's I haven't been to myself because again, they're always like scheduled when I'm either in class or at work. Cadie: Yeah, it happens. I went to a handful of basketball games this semester and they were so much fun. I highly recommend it. My next question, what was your degree at your old school? Jonathan: So it was technically general studies, but it was focused on English Lit. Cadie: OK. Jonathan: So it was, it was very much I'm one of those, I'm one of those few that like actually kind of knew what they wanted to do going into college 'cause even, even when I want to be like a writer, I was still studying literature 'cause my whole thing was like, you know, not, not to do some grave writing majors, grave writing, very valid major. I get why you do it. You, you get like writing workshops. It's very fun. But I found when I was like dabbling and wanting to be a writer was reading other people's works helped me like really think about how I wanted to write and then that and then that kind of involved in a like, well, it was writer, but also teacher. I also wanted to be a teacher. So I was like, OK, I can like teach and write while I teach. And then as I and then as I got like as I got going, that's when I was like, no, I'm going to be like a critic, which I would still end up working in like an academic setting. But yeah, so it's so I kind of got it figured out when I was here. But the publishing minor was added on like the my second semester of my first year at Mason. And that was just, that was just because I saw it and I was like, you know, it would be nice to get publishing experience because that's also another option with an English degree. Cadie: I mean, why not? So with that in mind, what is 1 difference between your academics at your old school when comparing it to your classes here at Mason? Jonathan: So my academics in my old school, it was like they were slightly focused on getting you a career, but they were more focused on like you learning like your academic career because ultimately the goal of a Community College is to get you to transfer to a four year. And of course, that's not all the students goal. Community colleges are aware of that, but you know, they're heavily focused on the academia. And if you're not doing like a, if you're not doing like an academic focused school career, if it's like you're going to like the vocational school your Community College may offer, like getting like a certificate, you know, that's still then that's more career, that's a little more career oriented, but it's still focused on your education first. Mason, you know, it's a school. So by definition is education first. But Mason is very much career oriented and it's like it very much, you know, they tout themselves as a research school. They're a career school. Cadie: Yeah, we are #1 for careers for public schools in Virginia, fun fact, or I think it's we're number one in internships in public schools in Virginia. And we've also got like really high post grad employment rates in fields that students wanted to go into. So I definitely agree. Mason has so many career resources. It's part of the reason why we have different type of episode on this podcast. But the careers episode, like I'm here right now podcasting as my job, and that's through the school itself. I don't think I'd be able to do that at other colleges. Jonathan: No. And it's like, yeah. And it's also like all the classes too, they always like have something that connects back to like the real world and I'm like my Community College classes had that too. But at Mason, it is very much like, you see how everything is like, oh, this is meant for me to get a job once I am done. And like, you know, that's also, you know, I've also had like experiences at Mason. I don't think I would be able to have like anywhere else. I don't have like any internships, but it's also speaking of internships. Internships are also great here because you don't necessarily have to be in the major. The internship is for.. Now, you know, they are obviously more likely to take, like if it's an engineering internship, the better candidate is going to be the engineering major. But you can look at the different like internships, the different areas of the college offer and see what skills they're looking for. Because there are some internships where it's just like secretary for project manager and it's like, OK, secretarial skills, very English major. And so, yeah. So Mason is like not only good at being career oriented, but being good at showing how like, just because you studied one thing does not mean you're locked into a career in that area. Cadie: Absolutely. Next question for you. I think one hesitance people have when it comes to transferring is worrying that they'll be behind with their perspective graduation date. Did transferring- I've got a series of questions actually. Did 1. Did transferring affect your projected graduation date at all? 2. How many credits from your Community College transferred over to Mason? And then 3. Did you have to repeat any classes 'cause I think those are the three biggest worries that students have when they're talking about transferring. Jonathan: So my my graduation date did not change. I'm still graduating in May 26th like I plan to and. Cadie: Congratulations by the way, we are recording this in April of 2026, so very exciting. Jonathan: Thank you and all of my classes except for one transferred and the one that didn't transfer was a was a class about orienting you for college. Cadie: Gotcha. OK. Jonathan: So I think Mason has like, I think Mason has a couple classes like that, but I don't think it transferred because I think it was like a credit I didn't need. But that also like it didn't affect my amount of credits I had for Mason. It was like actually that was wrong. The credits applied, but what the class was didn't apply. So it was like. Cadie: OK. Jonathan: It was applied as an elective. Cadie: Gotcha. I see. Jonathan: And then, sorry, what was the last? Cadie: And then did you have to repeat any any classes? I would assume the answer is no. Jonathan: There is one note though is Mason does offer the higher level versions of classes I've already taken so I hadn't had to repeat classes, but I have had like taken classes that are like it's a class of already taken but more advanced. Cadie: Yeah, it's like a continuation more so than a repetition. That makes sense. So we're pivoting a little bit as far as questions go, but I do feel like we've already talked about this at length. I still want to ask the question though. Have there been any noticeable differences in things like resources and events here at GMU compared to your old school? Jonathan: Definitely. So like resources, getting resources at a Community College or more focused on getting you into a four year school. And then you know, they do have career focused things. So that's more for like certificates, vocational, you know, the people that are coming in that have already been out in the real world and are like either pivoting or they want to go into a trade. And then I guess trade school is also another thing, because I think that's technically different than the vocational school. Cadie: Yeah, there's like trade school and there's vocational school. I know at my Community College they had several certificates that were things like, like if you wanted to go into cosmetology, there was a certificate for that. And there was a couple more like technical certificates that they offered where you can get that and go straight into the field from there. But for the most part, you're right. Like it's a lot of associate's degrees and the goal is to get you to go to another four year college. In my case, they really tried to support us to go to UNM. I did not go to UNM. I'm here at Mason instead. Jonathan: I'm glad you're at Mason. Cadie: Yes, me too, Me too. I do quite enjoy that. And with that, we are actually going to move into our bulletin board. That last question brings us to the end of Act 1. So yeah, play the music. Zoe: And now it's time for the bulletin board. Sonal: The CHSS Ambassadors will be at Kiosk A in the Johnson Center from 3:00 to 5:00 PM on November 3rd. Ask any questions you might have or explore major related opportunities. Zoe: Don't forget that spooky season is upon us. The Patriot Activity Council is hosting Once Upon a Scream at the Ridge and Fenwick Lawn from 7:00 to 10:00 PM on October 22nd. Get excited for Halloween themed games, food and a haunted house. Sonal: The 2026 Communication Career Forum will be on Tuesday, October 27th. Make sure to pre register for the opportunity to join small group mentoring sessions with a variety of professionals in your field, including public affairs specialists, media producers, journalists, health communicators, marketers and more. Zoe: And now, back to the episode. Cadie: And we are back. Welcome back, listeners, to Act 2. This is going to be our deeper reflection act where we really want to pull from your personal experiences. And so my first question for you is, how did your experience as a transfer student affect your mindset heading into your first year here at GMU? Jonathan: I think how it kind of affected my mindset is, I kind of felt like I had to like find my place at Mason more like more quickly than some of the others. Because it's definitely like if you start a four year school at like just coming straight into it as a freshman, your place in the kind of like student faculty ecosystem kind of naturally develops. And then I feel like as a transfer student, because you're only here for like this back half of your studies, there is that pressure to kind of like immediately try to be like, this is me, put yourself out there. And so it was a little like disheartening when like I found like all the opportunities put myself out there were like in the middle of classes. Love Mason, but Mason loves to do all their cool stuff in the evenings. And I think most of the student body does evening classes. Cadie: Yeah, I feel like either you're at an evening class or you're a commuter student and you live 20 minutes away and your last class gets out at, you know, 4:15 and you don't want to stay until 7 for an event, so. Jonathan: Yeah, I mean, I lived an hour away when I was commuting. Cadie: Yeah, wow, Yeah, wow. Jonathan: But yeah, and then so there is like, so that kind of affects the mindset, but then it's also like, it's also a little intimidating because like community colleges are like so small. My Community College had like 4 buildings and a bunch of trailers in the back. And then you come to Mason and just like everything's big. The architecture is like really weird. The library, I cannot figure out what the design for that is. But you know, and then like, so it is a little intimidating, but when you actually. But the best thing to do to like ease that mindset is just talk to people in your classes, talk to your professors and then like you kind of you kind of naturally just kind of fit in to Mason because like, you know, it's like finding your place in Mason does not actually take that long. It takes like I think the first week or I think, well, it takes longer for different people. But for me, it's like the first month I settled in and I was like, OK, this is not that different. There's just more people. I'm also like, I am.. I have the unique experience of being an extrovert but being very socially awkward. Cadie: I I'm an extrovert but I'm very socially anxious. It is a very interesting combo to have because I constantly want to be around people and then the minute I'm no longer around people, I'm like, actually, you're really weird and nobody liked that interaction. Jonathan: Yeah, no, same. And I also like, I love being in the middle of a large crowd. The moment someone in that large crowd gets close to me, I'm like, no, I like try to leave. And then like, you know, there's also like an experience on Mason is when you're in between classes versus like at a Community College or like Community College, most of your classes remain in the same building because there's four buildings and like one of them, one of them is like the student union building and the other two are like science buildings or like, well, I had one science building and then one was like a Community Center. Cadie: Oh. Interesting. Jonathan: I'm not entirely sure what it was, but they had like I met someone that ran for Congress there once so. Cadie: Wow, that's neat. Jonathan: Yeah, one of my professors was like part of their campaign. And then like, you know, there's so many people at Mason, like walking in between classes where it's just like, I am a freakishly fast walker. Like some people have thought I was speed walking before, but that's just my normal walking speed. And so you get a lot of people at Mason and like, I get, we all like talking to our friends, but then there sometimes those groups of people that like, block the sidewalk and then I'm walking through the mud because I'm like, I don't have time to wait for you to open up. I'm like, I have to get it. I have to go all the way from the Global Center to Peterson Hall. So it's like, I like being around people. But also at the same time, I've also picked up like, you know, my dad's tendencies of being like, I hate crowds. So it's like, I love crowds, but also no. Cadie: Pros and cons to everything I think. Next question, Are there any misconceptions about transferring that you would like to shine a light on or debunk? Jonathan: Yeah, I'm not super aware of a lot of misconceptions. I think one misconception is I think there I have seen it. I'm not sure how like widespread it is, but I think there is a misconception that like school will be like harder for transfer students and like that that's just not the case because I think like the expectation is that like a lot of people can get overwhelmed with change, but it's also just like, it's just like you quickly realize this is just school you were at, but big and then you kind of like you're doing the same stuff. And there's like also this is not like specifically transfer students. There's also like the misconception and my parents did this when I transferred of like Community College and real college where like, you know, it's like, it's like, because you know, my dad was like, oh, so proud of you for getting into a real college. And I was like, so I, I guess I just made-up my whole Community College experience in my head. So it's like, you know, there is that like thing of like, you know, I guess people don't treat community colleges with the same respect. And then like I think that puts a little bit of a chip on transfer student soldiers because then you feel like because of that, you feel a little awkward for not going straight to four year. But then like there are some aspects of the Community College I like a little better than I like at Mason. So it's like, you know, I think it's just like just because someone went to a Community College, that doesn't mean they could not hand, that does not mean they could not handle going straight away. That just means there was like they had more complicated factors in their college. Cadie: Absolutely. The whole thing about real college, Oh my gosh, it makes me laugh because this was my Community College graduation, right? And I want listeners and you to understand. I was a high school senior when I graduated from Community College. So to me, I was not a college student yet. I was a high schooler who took college classes. That was like how I viewed myself. So I'm at the, like, little mixer before we walk the stage. I'm in my cap and gown. My mom's with me. We're taking photos. It's grand old time, this professor. So we're, we were allowed to decorate our grad caps and so on my grad cap, I had torn up all of my different like essays and assignments I had done over the two years and glued them on my grad cap. And then I had words on it that said on to the next chapter, 'cause, you know, I was an English major and I thought that was really clever. And it was in Mason colors. And this professor comes up and he walks up to me and he's like, So what is the next chapter? And I look him dead in the face and go, oh, real college. And then quickly try to go wait, no I'm sorry I'm a high schooler. I did a Community College is real college. I just mean like being a full time college student. That's what I meant. I'm sorry. Jonathan: Oh, Oh no, that is. Cadie: Yeah. Jonathan: That's that is bad. I actually I knew someone that also did that, but it was in the middle of a class. They they did drop out. I don't like college was good rhythm, but yeah, no, that feels I I can also. I was laughing not like at you, but no. Cadie: No, no, no, it's a funny story. Please feel free to laugh. Jonathan: But yet because I, like, I could feel the awkwardness of that moment of memory here, 'cause like I have, I haven't like done that exact thing, but I've done some other things where I'm just like, or I'm just like, God, please, please send a lightning bolt down to me now. Cadie: Yes, it's just a foot in mouth moments. Moving on from my embarrassment of my graduation day. It was actually a lovely day, but nobody tells you how exhausting graduation actually is. Oh my gosh. Jonathan: OK, I faced the wrong way for my picture on my Community College graduation day. So like, I really feel it. Cadie: It's OK, it's OK, it happens. What was one lesson that you learned at your old school that you carry with you throughout your time here at Mason? Jonathan: I think like the biggest lesson I learned is that like 'cause I have been like, this is gonna sound like a brag. It's not because I'm still surprised how I managed to do this since my first semester at Community College or I guess technically second one. I have been a Dean's list student and I never went out of my way for like A's and B's. And so the biggest lesson I take away is to do well when Community College, literally, this can sound like very cheesy cliche, but literally all you have to do is try your best and apply yourself to your work. And your professors will see that and give you like the appropriate grade. And I mean, like, that's evolved little now. Like now I do push really hard because it's like stuff I'm excited about. I'm like, you know, currently writing.. I have the privilege if I get to write an undergrad thesis and so like I'm putting my all into that 'cause I'm like, this is something I feel strongly about. And so that's another lesson in your assignments, especially the rent and assignments. And this isn't just for like English or CHSS people. It's for everyone really. Especially if it's research focused, really find something you're passionate about because of that will come through and that will make that will actually make your work better because you're going to care about it. Cadie: Absolutely. I think that is excellent advice. So going into Mason as a transfer student, you didn't really have that traditional freshman experience where community is built. You had already talked about that, like it can be really intimidating. How did you still find that community here even without that traditional first year experience? Jonathan: Really it's just kind of naturally formed as I took classes. Cause like the thing about like not just being an English major, but being within a major in CHSS. And I say this with love, all of us CHSS, all of us CHSSstudents or little weirdos that are very passionate about what we do. So even like when it's outside my major, even like talking to like a psychology student is very much like you see that like, you know, that passion. And also like in humanities and social science, there is an inherent love for humanity, even if what we as humans do can be a little terrifying. But you know, there is that like, so see, not love for humanity. And like, you know, being an English major, being surrounded by other.. being surrounded by other weird nerds, I get over passionate about like a specific book. And it's like, you know, you find in your major, there's more people like you than there are people not like you. And so very much is like, you know, I just came in. I had.. one of my first professors was Professor Kaufman, and, you know, he taught like a continental literature class, which was just like European literature minus England because England gets like so much of what happens in Europe. We were just talking about England. But you know, and so like, you know, I got to hear like a professor who's passionate about it and like, and like, you know, all the professors are also like, are also nerds because like you kind of have to be to be a college professor. But so it's just like, you know, you kind of just find your community just by participating in class because you'll hear things, you'll hear people agree or disagree with you. You get those healthy debates going. And then from that you'll pick out like who, who after class you want to like step aside with and be like, hey, so it is very much just, you know, go to class. Cadie: Yeah, great advice. Go to class. Wrapping up our interview, this isn't our final question, but it's our penultimate one. How do you think your background as a transfer student has set you up for success at Mason? And then going beyond that, how is your time in higher education, both at Mason and your old school prepared you for post grad life? Jonathan: Yeah. So I think my background as a transfer student, it's just made me in general, like I think more adaptable because you kind of have one. You have to be adaptable when going from one school to another because it's not just the people at the school that are different. It's the entire way the school's structure, especially when going from community to four year. Because again, community is more like is more student focused and four years are more research focused, even if it's like a career oriented school like Mason where it's like their main thing is doing research, But you know, it's also adaptability in terms of like community colleges change how they do things like a once a week. So and Mason kind of also does that. So, so, you know, coming into Mason, I was like, I was already used to like the fast-paced, you know, the fast-paced.. Cadie: Ecosystem. Jonathan: Yeah, ecosystem, all the changing. And then I think another thing that helped me was I was already slightly adjusted to college life before coming to Mason because my sisters, they did the traditional go to four year. It was terrifying for like them. Well, it was terrifying for one of them. The other, the other one immediately started doing parties. But like, so like, you know, but I hear them talk about it and it's like very intimidating. But then like Community College, it's just like what helps is 1 in Community College, it's mostly people you went to high school with because it's people that are from that town. No one's no one's coming in from New York to go to Laurel Ridge Community College in Middletown campus. Like love the Community College, but like that doesn't happen. But then like also, it's because it's still in your hometown, it's still use. And because it's smaller scale it it's less like being thrown into the deep end and more like you get you get to start from the kiddie pool and work your way to the deep end. Cadie: Yeah, I think that's a great way to put it. And then the second part of that question, how has your time in higher education, both at Mason and your old school prepared you for post grad life or I guess in your case, grad school? Jonathan: Yeah. So I think one way it's just in general primary for post grad life is when you do college. And like, this is not me trying to demean college or college students, but college feels like the trial run of adult life, especially undergrad, where it's like, you know, you are an adult, but you're not technically in the real world yet, right? But then you know, when you graduate, but it helps you adjust. You're slowly adjusting. And you know, as you get older in college, as you get your senior year, you're also realizing I had to do more stuff out in the real world. And then so you get that, like you get the adjustment. So you're not like just thrown into adulthood and then, you know, like you just mentioned, I'm going into grad school after this. So I think like how it's prepared me is I'm one of the students that's also had to work a job. So I'm already used to that. Like, you know, so I'm already used to like having to balance like work with my duties as a Mason student. And so whatever my grad school looks like, I feel I'm ready for it because I've already gotten that. And while the classes are harder in grad school, there's less classes. So cuz like you were talking like, like, you know, you just have like four classes. It's a lot of classes a week. I am one of those insane people. I for every semester since I started college, I've done six classes. And then so, you know, I've learned how to balance a job that loves to work in the night, loves to make me work the closing shift with like, you know, doing the work and finding that time. So I feel like, you know, my work life balance, not the best, but I feel like I've already started to figure out how to get like that work life balance settled. Cadie: Absolutely. Well, Jonathan, I can't believe it, but we have come to our last question and here at CHSS Connection, we like to ask all of our listeners this final question and that is do you have any advice for our listeners? Jonathan: Yeah, so I guess I'm not going to say anything profound here, but like my, my main advice is college, the college experience, whether you're focused on social or whether you're focused on academic, is made by the people because, you know, no one lives in a vacuum. We are not like, you know, individuality exists, but we are not shaped by just ourselves. We are shaped by the people around us. And so to get the best out of your academic experience, talk to your classmates form those relations with the professors. Hell, my biggest piece of advice is utilize your professor's office hours and just kind of like, you know, you don't even have to like go there with a problem. Professors are really, your professors are really literally just willing to sit down in their office hours and chat with you about usually about whatever they're doing, but like they are willing to just like get to know you and then like forming those relations. One makes it, one helps you build that like social network of people you can rely on. But also it makes the learning experience easier because not only you have other students that can help you, you have professors that already know you and so they can help you and so they can help you in a more personalized way. Cadie: Absolutely, and I think that is lovely advice. Go talk to your professors. Jonathan, thank you again so much for joining us. Is there anything slash anyone you would like to shout out or promote? What are your post- I'm skipping that part because we already know. Is there anything or anyone that you would like us to Sorry, pause third and third times. Yeah, that's the expression. Third time's the charm. Is there anything or anyone that you would like to shout out or promote? Where can listeners find you, either on social media or within CHSS? Jonathan: Yeah. So I saw that I want to promote is if you have free time and you are very interested in what your fellow Mason students are doing, go to either the CHSS Research Symposium, which you'll get to see like a lot of cool projects. Cadie: I'll be there. Jonathan: I might also be there. I still have to I don't know if the application's closed or not, but I might also be there. But or go to the I forgot what it's called, but the Oscar one. So yeah. So go to go to student research events and on social media, you can.. I don't have anything posted on it, but you can find me on my Instagram, which is I think it's just Jonathan Mullins. Cadie: Perfect. Jonathan: And then in CHSS, you can just kind of like I said, I might also be at the symposium. I'd still have to look at dates. But you can also just kind of generally find me hanging around, like at the library, usually doing like studying or I also spent a lot of time in Peterson Hall because I have two classes there. So you just want to find me on campus, just go to Peterson Hall in the library. Cadie: OK, perfect. Well, Jonathan, thank you so much for joining and being here. Listeners, thank you so much for listening to this episode of CHSS Connection. Sonal: And that brings us to the end of episode 3. And I've noticed you've been real quiet. But don't forget the mic works both ways. We'd love to hear any thoughts or questions you might have for future guests or episodes. Send us your ideas or even request to be in an episode by emailing us at CHSSpod.gmu.edu. Zoe: If you enjoyed the show and would like to express your support, there are a few things you can do. You can leave a review wherever you're listening to this podcast. You can help by word of mouth, either by telling someone directly who might be interested in the show or posting about it on social media tagging at CHSS Pod. All these things help support the show and we appreciate anyone who has done so or will do so in the future. Thank you for listening to this episode of CHSS Connection. This podcast is hosted and written by Sonal Prakash and Zoe Nix. Our audio engineer is Danis Gabitov. Our supervisor is Eleana Velasco. This podcast is produced by George Mason University's College of Humanities and Social Sciences undergraduate academic affairs. Special thanks to the Mason Innovation Exchange for access to the recording studio. This podcast could not happen without them. Sonal: This project was developed in collaboration with Career Services and the On Campus Internship program. If you love the show and want to interact with more of our content, follow us on Instagram at CHSS Pod or check out the CHSS website where there's an ongoing library of our episodes. Zoe: Once again, thanks for tuning in and we hope you'll join us next time.