Bonjour from Avignon, France!  It’s hard to believe that on Tuesday I hopped on a plane at O’Hare and nine hours later found myself landing in Paris.  About five hours later, a series of trains and shuttles got us into the heart of Avignon, down in the south of France.  And can I just say for just a moment how amazing it all is?  Oh, I can?  Okay.  It’s AMAZING!  As I sit here in my hotel, I can’t get over how great this all is.  

But, as usual, I’m getting ahead of myself.  Let’s talk about our group of world travelers and GLS 177 - A Journey Through the History of France, the class they are taking.  All in all there are 20 of us on this trip: Professor Norval Bard, our fearless leader, me, the intrepid staff assistant, seventeen female students (of which five are transfer students), and one male student.  The class and corresponding trip takes place of the the entire December Term - December 1st  through the 19th.  The first day was a pre-flight meeting, and then on Tuesday we were off!  The first stop in our three city tour is Avignon, which is in Provence deep in the south of France (Google it if you are as bad at geography as I am).  Most of Provence was settled by the Roman empire (that’s OLD, people), and so they area is a vibrant mix between a Mediterranean and French style (if that makes sense).  Clay tiled roofs, shutters, and pastel buildings abound.  Avignon itself though, is stunning:  you may have heard the famous song “Sur la Pont d’Avignon,” and are familiar with the famous bridge.(yes, I went to the brige, yes I danced; however, due to my bad dancing that picture will never see the light of day and has been condemned to the bastille.)  

But my personal favorite in Avignon is the Palais des Papes, or the Palace of the Popes.  For a period of 70 years in the 14th century, Avignon was the home of the Pope, and as a result, the Palais remains a beautiful site and reminder of this time.  Here’s a picture of our lovely group:  I wish I could show you pictures from inside this amazing place, however, my mother always taught me to be respectful of both my elders and of historical monuments, and so I’m sorry to say that I’ll have to keep the memories to myself, and instead invite you to visit this building one day.  

This region is known for lavender, and so it is not surprising to walk into a store and be overcome by the smell of it. I happen to love the smell of lavender, so this is a very good thing.  Also, during the holiday season towns throughout France and Europe set up Christmas Markets, making the city center of Avignon completely unforgettable.  As is the case in Avignon and Tours, we are using the cities as sort of a home based for a lot of our day trips. While in Avignon, we’ve taken day trips to the Pont du Gard, an unbelievable exposed section of an aqueduct from 100 AD (that’s SUPER OLD, people), and taken trips to Arles, one of the first cities to be colonized by the Romans (Just FYI, the arena in Arles is still used today for bullfighting, but in Roman times people would fight other animals, specifically bears.  That’s right, BEARS.  Stephen Colbert would be proud.)  

The students are having so much fun, and our hotel staff is very nice.  I do not speak French, and the front desk guys doesn’t speak much English, but we still managed to have a fun conversation about Jason Mraz and talk about other American musicians too.  

Well, tomorrow we are traveling for a full day to Tours, which is about two and a half hours outside of Paris.  So, on to the trains, and au revoir (for now!) - Megan

 (Please forgive any spelling or grammar errors, by the way.  Remember, I’m in France. Merci.)

Hi there!

Megan Hoinkes here, blogging to you live from Joliet Junior College!  Wahoo!  I’m so sorry it’s been a bit since I last blogged, and it’s hard to believe that it’s already the Monday of the week of the Fall Term.  The Fall Term always seems to sail by, but this term it feels like it was propelled by nuclear energy or something.   That means that next week is already Finals Week.  To quote Inspector Gadget, “Wowzers!” The trimester does seem to go by fast.  But what a fall term this turned out to be!  This fall we welcomed over 270 new transfer students to North Central’s campus.  That’s the biggest incoming transfer class in the history of the school.  The rest of the transfer staff and I have been dancing our way through the fall (well okay, that’s not entirely true, I’m the only one dancing, but we’re all very happy), and we are now working on getting students ready to transfer in for our Winter Term that begins on January 5^th. 

We also had a very successful Transfer Visit Day on November 1^st.  Nearly 50 prospective transfer students came to check out campus, talk with faculty, and get info from our very informative transfer staff.  The students were great, and I think that everyone had a great time.  If you weren’t able to attend the visit day, but would still like to visit campus, I just want to take a minute to remind you of a few options.  First, we do have a mini-Transfer Info Session coming up on Saturday, December 6^th.  The session is about two hours long: for the first hour you get some general information about visiting campus, and the second hour is a tour of campus.  And of course, you can always, always, always come in for an individual visit to campus to meet with a transfer counselor for an unofficial course evaluation, and go on a tour of campus.  For more information on both of these opportunities, you can visit the visit campus portion of the North Central Office of Admission website by going to http://www.northcentralcollege.edu/x5089.xml .

Right now we’re all back on the road, visiting community colleges and college fairs all over the lovely Land of Lincoln (that’s Illinois, ya’ll).  To find out who your counselor is and when they’ll be visiting a school near you, head on over to the “Meet Your Counselor” page at http://www.northcentralcollege.edu/x5100.xml .  

Perhaps the biggest news for me right now is that I will be out of the office for the better part of December. Why?  Well, as I’ve discussed in the past, during the December Term (D-Term) at North Central, we end up sending students on mission trips and study abroad opportunities all over the world.  This year, I’ve been asked to help assist Dr. Norval Bard with a group of students headed to France!  I’m so excited, and am going to do my best to try and post a blog or two during our adventures to Avignon, Tours, and Paris.  This trip is going to be a great way to end a great fall! 

Two more shout outs:  First, check out the greatness of North Central Athletics this fall!  In Football, the Cardinals won the CCIW conference and just finished undefeated in regular season ball.  Good luck in the playoffs!  Our Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Teams had great seasons as well.  For more info on North Central College Athletics, check out the athletics website. http://www.northcentralcollege.edu/x8249.xml

Finally, I want to say howdy and welcome to Ashley Seiple, into the blogosphere.  Ashley will be blogging for the office of admission from the first-year perspective.  Check her blog out at http://blogs.northcentralcollege.edu/aeseiple/ .

I think that’s about it for now.  Have a great rest of the fall!
-M    

Good morning!

I’m sorry it took me a while to put another blog up, but seriously, it’s been one crazy summer in the Office of Admission. But now, summer is giving way to fall, which means it is time for two of my favorite things about fall: the start of a new school year, and the start of football season. Next week, our incoming transfer class will move into their dorm rooms, orientation begins, and I expect that the air on campus will be perfumed by the smell of new textbooks and school supplies.

Before I totally give up summer though, I want to share a couple pictures I took a few weeks back of North Central’s campus. Why was I taking pictures of a campus I work at and see every day? Well, to be honest, I was bored on my lunch break, and my camera was in my purse. Suddenly, I’m an architecture paparazzi. I only took a few pictures, but for some reason looking through the camera made me remember one of the reasons I transferred here. Now, I don’t consider myself a terribly superficial person, but I have to admit that we have one pretty campus. Take a look and see what I mean.

This is Carnegie Hall. It used to be the campus library, and is now home to our Computer Science and IT department. When people ask me how to get to Carnegie Hall, I always say “Practice.” Of course, no one ever gets that joke. Anyway…

Meiley-Swallow Hall is one of the most recent additions to campus. It is the new home to our Art Department, and also houses our Interactive Media Studies major. It also has a stunning 3/4 thrust stage inside (that’s Shakespeare style, ya’ll).

This is Old Main. Old Main is where you can me and the rest of the Office of Admission on the second floor. Oh yeah, and there’s the Financial Aid Office, the Business Office, the Office of the Registrar, the Office of Marketing and Communications, the President’s Office, the Alumni Office, some classrooms, and, of course, the Mailroom. But mostly, the Office of Admission.

****

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. I only need five: How beautiful is our campus? I didn’t even show you pictures of the Wentz Concert Hall and Fine Arts Center, Kiekhofer Hall (newly remodeled and home to two of my favorite departments – English and International Programs), Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium (did someone say football and soccer?), and Pfeiffer Hall. Maybe another time. Or maybe it’s about time you visited campus.

-Megan

Folks-

Time flies. Well, actually, time is relative (thank YOU, Einstein), but I argue that it does fly as well. It is already the fifth week of our spring term. In the words of the great Jon Bon Jovi, we’re halfway there! It may sound cliché (but who cares? I love clichés), but it feels like it was only yesterday that our students (and myself included) were grumbling about returning to class and being forced to face the cruel January winds. However, now that I’m walking around in a lighter jacket, and we’re five weeks away from summer break, and I’m loving the trimester.

Of the things that make North Central stand out is the awesome-ness of the trimester. (By the way, I cannot be entirely sure “awesome-ness” is an actual word, but let’s go with it) What is the trimester, you ask? Well, instead of two semesters like many colleges and universities, we have three 10-week terms. Our fall term begins in September, and we go straight through ten weeks of classes. By Thanksgiving, we have already completed our first set of finals. When I was going through the process of transferring schools, when it was explained to me that I would be done with my first set of classes by Thanksgiving, let me tell you, “pleased” does not even begin to describe how I felt. “Ecstatic” is more like it.

After fall term, we have an optional 3 week period that we call our “December Term” (or D-Term), which I’ll get to in a minute.

After the New Year, we start our winter term. Ten weeks and a few finals later, we have a week and a half off for spring break, and then we begin our spring term. Ten more weeks and a few more finals later, and our students are done for the summer by the week of June.

The beauty of the trimester lies in this calendar, because we condense semester course work into ten week courses, meaning that though the course work is as challenging as it would be a traditional semester school, (and possibly even more so, since North Central classes must move at a faster pace) you take less classes at a time. Yet, over the course of the academic year, you will complete the same amount of course work as one would complete at a traditional semester school. Each term you will come back to a totally new set of classes, meaning that unless you are doing an independent study or internship or research of some kind, you will never be working on a project or studying for a test during your breaks.

Now, back to that December Term. I’m a huge fan, because when you meet up with your family over the holiday season, the D-Term will be the reason why you have the best story at the dinner table. During this period, there are a variety of opportunities available to students. For one thing, you can take a course at North Central’s campus, only at an accelerated pace (more so than our already fast 10 week terms). The class goes toward your winter coursework, so it is a great way to get a general education class out of the way.

So class is great, but there are other opportunities to learn beyond the traditional classroom experience. That’s where our Verandah Experiences come in. Students and faculty alike look at a Verandah experience as an opportunity to explore topics in a different way. So, a Verandah course may have students interested in education visit Chicago museums while learning about resources for under-funded schools. Or maybe math…and square dancing. How about exploring Christmas-themed theatre by going to theatres and watching holiday classics like The Nutcracker and A Christmas Carol? Verandah experiences are opportunities to enhance your cultural and educational experience. For more info on Verandah experiences, click here: http://www.northcentralcollege.edu/x19231.xml

For people who want to do some good, we have Service and Mission trips that take place during the D-Term. These service opportunities have taken our students to Louisiana, North Carolina, and even as far as Thailand. We also have the Appalachian Service Project (ASP), where students go and help to repair homes in the Appalachian region. Whether it is Habitat for Humanity or Hurricane Katrina relief, our students have used D-Term as an opportunity to aid others. Here’s the link to our Service and Mission Trips page: http://www.northcentralcollege.edu/x15042.xml

And for people itching for a stamp in their passports, we have International Travel Seminars where, according to our International Programs website, our students have “the chance to engage in independent study of two or three cultures on a single three-week study tour, under faculty guidance.” (Yeah, they said it better than I could have.) Some of the December Term seminars in years past sent our students to Greece, France, Cambodia, along with Turkey and Tunisia, and this year there are plans to go to Germany, Ghana, France, Guatemala, and Morocco. It is a great way for students who might not have the ability to study overseas for a full term to have the opportunity to experience another country. For more info, check out the Office of International Programs page: http://www.northcentralcollege.edu/x10813.xml

And there you have it. The North Central College academic calendar. Admit it, you love it. I know I do.

That’s about it for now. Here’s where you can find a North Central transfer counselor in the coming weeks:

Wednesday, April 23, 2008
College of DuPage 10am-1pm (second floor of the SRC near the library)

Thursday, April 24, 2008
Illinois Valley Community College 10am-1pm

Wednesday, April 30, 2008
College of DuPage 10am-1pm (second floor of the SRC near the library)
Moraine Valley Community College 9:30-12:30pm

Tuesday, May 6, 2008
College of DuPage 10am-1pm (second floor of the SRC near the library)
Elgin Community College 10am-1pm

Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Moraine Valley Community College 4pm-6pm (Transcript Evaluations Only)

Thursday, May 8, 2008
Waubonsee Community College 9:30am-12:30pm (Bodie Hall library)

We are finishing up our traveling and will be taking a well-earned break from the open road, though you’ll still find us on the second floor of Old Main all summer long. Click here to find out how to set up a visit on campus: http://www.northcentralcollege.edu/x4383.xml

And don’t forget about our Transfer Visit Day on Saturday, May 3^rd. It’s gonna be a blast. Here’s the info on how to register: http://www.northcentralcollege.edu/x5089.xml

Happy Spring!
Megan

Hi there –

Megan here.

I have to apologize for being so slow in the posting of this blog. The pace has really started to pick up on the transfer side of things. It’s really one of the more exciting times of the year for me. I’ll leave work one day, thinking I’m all caught up with transfer students, and them come into the office the next day with a whole new crop of students to look at! Joyce, our transfer secretary, is doing a great job keeping all of us on track.

Then there’s the fact that we have just finished our winter term, so, we were on spring break last week, and our students will came back Monday to a whole new set of classes. We even have a few transfer students starting this spring, which is always exciting.

Bottom line: it’s always an adventure in transfer admission.

Now, onward to the reason for my blog-ishness. I am reporting to you live from Illinois Central College in sunny Peoria, IL. However, as I sit here, chilling with my table adorned with North Central brochures and goodies, I’ve been thinking about how great it is for me to visit students at community colleges, but how much better it is for students to come visit North Central.

I kinda started to touch on campus visits in my first blog, but I really want to get into them today, because the weather is starting to get better, and in my opinion, a campus visit is the number one cure for cabin fever. Basically, I just want all you fun transfers out there to know a) how easy it is to visit campus, and b) how to get the most out of your visit.

Let me begin with some advice that will do anybody good when it comes to the college search – VISIT ALL THE SCHOOLS YOU ARE INTERESTED IN. I put that in caps-lock because it is just that important. Think of it this way: have you ever bought a pair of shoes without trying them on? How well did they fit? Would you buy a car without test-driving it? Where you complete your college education should be as important (and hopefully more important) to you as a pair of shoes or a car. You have to check out the schools you are interested in and see if you really like what you’ve seen in the brochures and on the internet.

So, let’s say hypothetically that my talk of shoes and cars has convinced you that you need to visit campus. Well, what is a transfer student to do?

Don’t worry, I’ve got two fabulous options to send your way.

• The Transfer Visit Day – We have three Transfer Visit Days a year, and the day really is all about you, the transfer student. We start off the day with our “Meet the Faculty ” session, where a faculty member from every academic department is there to talk to you and other transfer students about our programs at North Central. This is a great way for students with several interests, say, Music and Education, Biology and Philosophy, or may even Psychology and Computer Science (who knows?) to meet with faculty from a variety of academic disciplines.After some presentations by the transfer admission staff, a faculty speaker, and a panel of current North Central students, we send you off on a campus tour, and then lunch on campus. It’s really a great day, and a great introduction to North Central. Our next visit day is Saturday, May 3, and for more information or to register, click here.

• The Individual Campus Visit – While the Transfer Visit Days are a blast, if you want something a little more in-depth, then this is really the option for you. You can set up an individual visit for any weekday, evenings (Monday-Thursday), and selected Saturdays throughout the year (check out our Visit Us page for more info.) What do we do on these days? Well, think of it like getting a special order at a restaurant. It’s literally all up to you. Because individual visits are, well, individual, you can have an individual appointment with a transfer admission counselor to talk about how your course work will come in to your area of academic interest, and more. Also, you can head out on an individual tour with one of our student ambassadors.But what else? Would you like to talk to a member of our faculty for a one-on-one about your major? OK. Sit in on a class? How about meet with a coach about participating in one of our Division III athletic teams? Sure. Lunch with one of our student ambassadors? If you are hungry, we’ll send you down to the cafeteria.Do you see a theme forming here? It’s all up to you, and if we can set it up, you can do it. I would recommend giving us at least two weeks notice to set up faculty or coach appointments, but other than that, it’s all up to you. To set up a campus visit, you can contact Kathy, our lovely visit coordinator, at (630) 637-5800 or 800-411-1861, or contact your admission counselor.

One more thing. I would like to give a shout-out to Jen McKinney, my fellow bloggette on the Freshman side of things. A fellow NC alum, she is absolutely fabulous, and worth a read:

http://blogs.northcentralcollege.edu/jmmckinney/

Okay, I think I’m all blogged out for now, so I better wrap it up.

Here’s where you can find a Transfer Admission Counselor in your neck of the woods:

Tuesday, April 1
Joliet Junior College 10am-1pm C-Concourse
Morton College 10am-1pm

Wednesday, April 2
Kishwaukee Community College 10am-1pm

Thursday, April 3
College of DuPage 10am-1pm SRC-second floor (near library)
Moraine Valley Community College 9:30am-12:30pm

That’s it for now. Until I blog again,

Megan

Where to begin?  Well, maybe I’ll take a page out of the Sound of Music, and start at the very beginning (it is, after all, a very good place to start). 

I am Megan Hoinkes, a transfer admission counselor in the Office of Admission at North Central College.  I transferred to North Central my sophomore year and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature in 2006. [Note:  If there are any typos in the course of my blogging, please do not blame my education, blame my typing.  Thank you.]  In addition to working with students transferring to North Central, I am also taking graduate classes in the Liberal Studies program.  I love films and books, and I am a little bit of a pop culture fanatic.

And did I mention that I am super-excited to be writing a blog about me and the wonderful world of transfer admission?  I didn’t? Oh, well, remind to tell you that later. Throughout the course of my blogging, in addition to writing about me, I hope to discuss some issues that transfer students face, and show you why I think North Central is the bee’s knees.

So that is a very, very, very, brief look at me.  But let’s get down to the brass tacks, and talk about what I do, which is work with transfer students.  Actually, probably one of the most common questions I get from students/parents/random passerby is “What is a transfer student?” 

Here’s the answer:  If you have attended any community college, college, or university after you have graduated from high school and do not already have a bachelor’s degree, then you are a transfer student.  If you have taken 60 credit hours at a community college and completed your associate of arts or science, you are a transfer student.  If you’ve taken 2 credit hours at a college ten years ago, you are a transfer student too.  If that is you, congratulations! You are a transfer student!

And, I should probably let you know that you are certainly not alone.  Transfer students make up a third of our incoming class each year.  In the year I graduated North Central, 2006, fifty percent of the graduating seniors transferred in from another institution.  Neat, eh?

At North Central, we have five intelligent, extraordinary, and incredibly brilliant admission counselors dedicated working with transfer students.  And don’t think I’m sucking up to my coworkers with all the nice words; believe me when I say that praise is earned.  Over the next few weeks, I’ll introduce them to you, but in the meantime, if you would like to find out who your transfer admission counselor is, I have a whole bunch of fun links at the bottom of my blog that will point you in the right direction.  Just go to the “Meet Your Admission Counselor” page and find your school, and then your counselor.

I think that is enough for now, but I just have two more things.  First, I want to invite you to ask me any questions about North Central or about transferring to North Central.  Just submit a comment to my blog, and if I like it, I’ll answer it in my blog.

The last thing I want to do is let you know that North Central visits community colleges all over the state of Illinois.  Here’s where you can find a transfer admission counselor this coming week:

Monday, February 4, 2008
Oakton Community College: 10:00am-1:00pm (cafeteria)

Tuesday, February 5, 2008
College of DuPage: 10:00am-1:00pm (second floor of SRC near the library)
Joliet Junior College: 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. (C-Concourse)
Waubonsee Community College: 9:30am-12:30pm (Bodie Hall Lobby)

Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Kankakee Community College: 10:00am-1:00pm

If you are around, be sure to drop in. 

Okay, that’s definitely enough for now.  Have a great weekend!
Megan

Fabulous Links:
Community College Course Substitution Guides 
How to Apply to North Central
Majors, Minors, and Programs at North Central
Meet Your Admission Counselor
Transfer Visit Programs