Transferring from the Miami Dade Honors College to Princeton University has been one of the best experiences of my life and attending Princeton has been a lifelong dream come true. However, at first, I didn’t know what to expect of  Ivy League coursework. I questioned if my educational background as a community college student was enough to succeed at Princeton. As you prepare to make this transition, you might also have these concerns, but as a senior and after two years at Princeton, I can assure you that you are in great hands. 

As part of Princeton’s second transfer cohort since the program’s relaunching in 2018, I’ve come to appreciate this University’s transfer program because it’s unlike any other in the country. With each cohort amounting to just a handful of students, we all receive personalized advising resources from the program’s director, Dr. Keith Shaw. By taking a transfer-based writing seminar course during our first semester with Dr. Shaw, the program offers opportunities to have regular check-ins with our adviser. Moreover, the program also integrates resources provided by the Scholars Institute Fellows Program (SIFP) , which assists first-generation  and/or lower income students in their transition to Princeton. The transfer program also introduces students to the McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning and Writing Center, which offer tutoring and essay advising sessions.

Taking advantage of these resources has made the transition to a major four-year institution so much easier.  Rather than being thrown into a large transfer cohort, we’re guided each and every step of the way as we take on challenging classes and begin to engage in unique extracurricular opportunities. In a way, the transition is almost seamless. The program equips you with the necessary resources to easily integrate into Princeton’s broader student body, while adapting to the academic rigor.

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 If it were not for the program’s one-on-one guidance and countless resources, I would not have been able to take advantage of Princeton’s many extracurricular opportunities.  A week into my very first semester, I began volunteering for the PACE Center’s ESL El Centro program, in which I taught several weekly English classes to Spanish-speaking members of our community. I felt as though I was able to balance my extracurricular commitments with a challenging set of courses. However, a few weeks into my second semester, the COVID-19 pandemic upended my plans and routine, as it did for countless other people. I struggled to find worthwhile summer internships and fellowships after evacuating campus and self-isolating at home in Miami, Florida. Yet, after having engaged for at least a full semester’s worth of coursework and having built connections with several faculty members, I found myself working for two different professors as a research assistant. Throughout the summer, I helped curate research data and built several coding data frames.

During that time, I also led the founding of the Princeton Transfer Association as the club’s president. Through the group, we have worked to further facilitate incoming transfer students’ transition by offering experienced transfer students’ insights during the orientation process and fostering a sense of community between each transfer cohort with community-building events. Additionally, Princeton's opportunities are available to all of its students, including transfers. At the start of my second year, I was also selected by one of Princeton’s most selective public policy fellowship programs, Scholars in the Nation’s Service Initiative (SINSI). The program offers about six students every year the opportunity to partake in an internship with a federal government agency. SINSI helps students interested in public service and policy find a way to begin engaging with the federal government. 

Princeton’s transfer program offers a unique opportunity for students to not only make a transition from  community college to a four-year university, but it also helps students thrive in the process. The transfer program has created an environment in which students from any academic discipline and background can expect to overcome the academic obstacles within the classrooms of a world-class institution, while also benefiting from unmatched professional development opportunities. 

"Sheesh, it's hot!"

That was my first comment when I stepped foot on Princeton's campus during the summer. I was told multiple times that the winters here were extremely cold. Yet, no one had warned me about the heat or the humidity here. I guess they just assumed that I was used to the hot and humid weather coming from the Caribbean. Truth is, I was not. Or maybe I was. Maybe I used to be. Maybe I forgot how to feel comfortable in 30-degree weather (or should I say 90-degree weather, since we are using Fahrenheit now!) after living abroad for close to two years. In any case, my first day at Princeton, I made the mistake of wearing a large 100% cotton dark blue sweater. It did not take me long to start the mistakometer: mistake number one!

This past summer, I was fortunate enough to be part of a cohort of ten students invited to attend the Freshman Scholars Institute (FSI) on campus. Considering the issues my country, Haiti, was facing, this was the best option to ensure I had access to the resources I needed to take advantage of this opportunity to explore Princeton before the official start of the semester. To get a taste of Princeton before Princeton.

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Yet, I was insecure at first. I doubted that I would be able to succeed with online classes. Until then, my high school experience had been mostly negative. I remember my teachers and classmates being overwhelmed and inaccessible. The material was barely engaging. Perhaps the most disheartening aspect of this dark epoch was the significant lack of interaction which for me represented a major issue. My favorite part about being a student has always been the ability to directly interact with and learn from both my peers and my instructors. Online learning seriously hampered this process. I was apprehensive about going through it all again. Besides, I was now going to Princeton. I anticipated the material to be comparatively more difficult with the teachers to expecting even more from me. 

The first thing I noticed when FSI started was the enthusiasm of the staff. They had this inspiring way of drawing everyone in and keeping us engaged. They were well imbued with the challenges that coordinating this online program entailed and instead of using the circumstances to justify their shortcomings, they were determined to brave all obstacles to make the experience just as enjoyable as if everything was happening in person, although in a distinct and special way.

I had the impression that everyone wanted me to feel at ease. I progressively started to feel more comfortable interacting and asking questions.  My professors made sure that I had access to all the resources and assistance necessary to succeed in their courses. On the one hand, there were office hours, learning consultations, writing center appointments… etc. On the other hand, I received support from departments and offices at Princeton that targeted my individual identities and were able to address the specific challenges that I was likely to face because of them. This included support for international students, ESL and multilingual students, students of color, first-generation and lower-income students. I suddenly felt excited about learning, meeting new people and trying out new things that seemed appealing to me now that I was in this space. 

These six weeks at FSI mainly taught me two things. First, I learned that while things can (and will) be tough at Princeton, I will always find the resources to support me in whatever I am going through and that I can count on the help of passionate people who genuinely care about my success. Second, I learned that it gets very hot here during the summer! 

I look forward to many more mistakes and even more learning opportunities!

When people ask me, “Why Princeton?” I often answer that I liked the size of the school (not too big and not too small), the liberal arts curriculum, or that it offered the specific department that I wanted to concentrate in Slavic Languages & Literatures.  But the real answer is the need-based financial aid that Princeton provides.  

Financial aid was one of the top factors for me when choosing a college, because I didn’t want to graduate with a mountain of student debt and didn’t have any other options for paying.  Princeton’s financial aid package aims to allow students to get the whole “Princeton experience” without needing to borrow money, in a need-based model that estimates how much you and your family can afford to pay.  Prior to coming to Princeton, I was worried that even with such a generous financial aid package, I would have to spend a lot of time working or borrowing money anyway.  But it turns out that I didn’t need to worry at all.

My very first experience with Princeton’s financial aid reassured me that I was making the right decision.  After being offered admission into the Class of 2023, I, along with all other prospective first-year students, were invited to one of two Princeton Preview sessions on campus where we could tour campus, learn about Princeton and even spend a night in the dorms with a “host” student.  I jumped at the chance, as I didn’t know much about the University and hadn’t ever visited campus before.  Because I would be receiving financial aid from the University, Princeton offered to reimburse me for travel costs in getting to campus.  Because of this, I was able to visit Princeton for two days with my mom before committing officially to the University.  

Such an experience is only one example of the ways in which Princeton looks out for its students and is mindful of their financial needs.  There are lots of funded opportunities for all students, not just those receiving financial aid.  For example, residential colleges often offer free or low-cost trips and activities for students, like museum visits, Broadway shows and sporting events.  Princeton also offers many funded summer internship opportunities, so students can gain valuable internship experience with positions that might otherwise be unpaid.  Individual departments have funding for undergraduate independent work, and some classes even involve free travel!  I saw "To Kill a Mockingbird" on Broadway, a Boris Godunov opera at the Met, interned at a nonprofit and traveled to Italy for a freshman seminar to conduct climate research in just two years at Princeton, all things I likely wouldn’t be able to afford at a different school.  

So… why Princeton?  I think the answer would be all of the opportunities I’ve been able to experience because of the way Princeton approaches financial aid.  

The game room in Forbes College is deep varnished wood and just the right amount of dim. On one half stands the pool table of red velvet, scuffed and creaking with memories, a pair of wiry lamps suspended above it. There’s a rack of cue sticks - some missing their tips, and some bent with age. There’s an old jukebox that no one knows how to work, but it doesn’t matter because the place is lively enough without it. 

There are couches arranged around the TV and scattered in every corner of the room, and sometimes you can barely line up a shot at the pool table because there’s a club chair knocking at your leg and asking you to sit.

There’s a framed portrait of four men at a pool table across the room, button-down shirts rolled up to the elbows. The portrait looks out over a foosball table, and on most nights you can hear the clacking of handles on little men and soccer balls, the din of wood sticks striking hard resin and felt.

I first learned how to play pool in this room: how to hold the stick so it would strike the ball just right, without slipping; how to predict collisions and pathways and accept unpredictable motions. I would spend an hour after dinner most days, playing pool with strangers who became teachers who became friends. 

If you’re ever on campus, stop by. Pick up a cue, even if you’ve never played, because someone’s always close by to teach you. Take in the varnished wood and the deep light and - if you look close, you might see some initials, carved in chalk right up near the ceiling, from two freshmen who never expected the white dust to still be there three years later and long after.

I’ve written previously about my experience as a student with a disability at Princeton. While it has its challenges, overall I’ve felt very welcome on this campus. I’m happy to report back, almost two years later, about the ways in which Princeton has become more accessible throughout my time here. It’s taken a good amount of student advocacy to reach this point, but with every student that raises a concern or a hope for the future, the likelihood of positive change increases.

This past August, I became the first person in a wheelchair to enter Nassau Hall without assistance, as documented by The Daily Princetonian. A multi-year project to create a new entrance and install an elevator inside the historic center of campus administration was finally completed. It was incredible to see the inside of the building, including the Faculty Room, where the Board of Trustees meets, and the Memorial Room, which features the names of all alumni who died in every war dating all the way back to the Revolutionary War. Fun fact: Nassau Hall briefly served as the capital of the United States in 1783 when the Continental Congress met inside of it! I’m so glad that this important building is accessible at last, and it shows that Princeton is listening to students with access needs like myself.

I’m hopeful that the Nassau Hall renovation is only the start of changes to campus infrastructure. There are many groups on campus focused on improving access and inclusion. For example, I’m a member of the Disability Collective, a club for students with disabilities, it’s been incredible to bond with other students who have similar experiences in a world built for people without disabilities. I also co-chair the Disability Task Force within the Undergraduate Student Government. We’ve been working on several initiatives, such as adding more information about disability services into first-year orientation and collaborating with the eating clubs on accessibility training. In addition, I’m a student fellow for the AccessAbility Center, where I plan programs like an annual celebration of International Day of People with Disabilities and stress relief around midterms and finals with therapy dogs and massages. In my last year on campus, I plan on continuing all of these efforts to improve accessibility, so that the next generation of students with disabilities can feel even more included and supported.

Princeton is a beautiful place every time of year, but it really comes alive in the fall (you’ll definitely see fall pics on my IG story). But beyond the beauty, there’s also a lot of fun things to do on campus. Fall is honestly my favorite season on campus because there are tons of exciting things happening beyond the start of classes. So here are some of my go-to fall treats and activities at Princeton! 

Get hot chocolate at Small World

This is my FAVORITE hot chocolate on campus. It’s chocolatey, but not too rich and it comes with whipped cream on top. You can order it either at Small World in town or at Frist Campus Center (our student center). 

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Stock up on Reese's pumpkins and ghosts at Wawa

This could be just a me thing, but I’m obsessed with the Reese's shapes. They are limited time only!! The ratio of peanut butter to chocolate is way better...that extra peanut butter definitely hits different. 

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Fill the stands at homecoming 

If you go to any football game in the fall, homecoming is the one to attend! We’re competing against Harvard and it’s going to be SO fun...and I’m not just giving you a biased opinion from a Princeton Cheerleader. Alumni come back, students crowd the stands, and there will be a whole lot of orange, black and school spirit! 

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Cheer on the football team

I’d also recommend (again in my unbiased Princeton Cheer opinion) going to ALL football games in the fall. Even if you just pop in for an hour or two with friends, it’s really fun to cheer on our Tigers and take a study break with friends. There are only about 4 home football games this year, so each one is going to be amazing. 

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Go to Fall Fest by the Princeton Students Events Committee (PSEC) 

As a program chair on PSEC, I’ll be planning Fall Fest this year alongside other program chairs. This is an annual tradition where we have delicious fall treats and food trucks, fall DIY crafts, a pumpkin patch, games and more. It is a campus-wide event, so any student can stop by and join in on the fun. 

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Attend dance shows 

These typically happen in later fall/early winter, but they are CANNOT MISS events. These Princeton dance groups are simply incredible, and it’s always awesome to be able to see and support your friends on stage. I love watching diSiac, eXpressions and KoKo Pops because I have friends in those dance groups, but I try to go to as many as I can. 

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So there you have it, some of my favorite moments and a glimpse of student life at Princeton during the fall! 

It still doesn’t feel real that I’m a senior. I opted to stay home last spring, so this is my first time being back on campus since my sophomore year. Sure, my classes and activities went on virtually, but after being on campus for a few weeks, I’ve realized how much I’ve missed. It’s the little things that I took for granted before the pandemic: sitting next to someone in class, grabbing a croissant from the Tiger Tea Room, meeting up with friends for dinner etc. So as I head into my senior year, I thought I’d do a quick reflection on some of those little things: the things that make Princeton a special place to be. 

Eats & Treats

When I was home, I’d order food a lot or (attempt to) cook if my parents didn’t that night. But WOW did I forget how much food there is at Princeton. On the first day of classes, there were free bagels for breakfast on my walk to class, free coffee for seniors at Sakrid Coffee Roasters, and an ice cream truck near McCosh Hall that was giving away free ice cream treats! Beyond the abundance of free food on campus, my eating club Cannon also has (in my unbiased opinion) the BEST food on the street. Last night, I had a mashed potato bowl with chicken nuggets, corn, BBQ sauce and fried jalapenos. So eating at home wasn’t terrible, but I definitely took for granted all the amazing food at Princeton. 

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My Own Living Space

Finally, I feel like an adult again! Yes, I have my own room at home, but I don’t feel the same sense of independence that I do when I’m at school. During my first-year I had a triple, my sophomore year a double and now I have a single. I love my family, but it is refreshing to have my own living space again. Curious to see my room decor? I've been working on it since the photo below. Check out my TikTok @mia_salas333! 

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Study Spots 

This is a BIG one, because in one house with my parents and two younger brothers, finding a good study spot isn’t always easy. And studying in the office or kitchen every day starts to feel really repetitive. When I got back on campus, I realized that I took all the many study spots for granted: B floor of Firestone Library, Lewis Center for the Arts seminar rooms, Frist Campus Center and more. I also forgot how inspiring it is to study with friends or even just around people. Studying at home often felt lonely, so I was reminded of just how social studying can be. 

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Friends! All Day, Every Day 

I have a few friends who live near me at home, but I forgot how amazing it is to literally live walking distance away from so many people. I feel way more connected on campus because I can easily meet up with friends at cheer practice, for meals, to attend fun events like the Triangle Show and more. And it’s also a great feeling when I just run into people that I know on my walk to class or at my eating club. It makes me feel like I am a part of this community. 

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So there you have it: a round up of little things that I missed from on-campus life at Princeton! I can’t wait to see what senior year has in store. 

Princetonians have developed many apps and websites to make the student life experience better. Here’s a roundup of some of the best apps all Princetonians should have.

TigerMenus

TigerMenus provides a simplified way to look at the menus at every dining hall. We have six amazing dining halls on campus, five associated with a residential college, as well as the kosher dining hall in the Center for Jewish Life. The dining halls all have unique, rotating menu options that this app allows you to check. I pick my meal destination based on which dining hall has the best menu while still being in a convenient location. Because it’s summer, only one dining hall is open, but here’s a preview of what a traditional menu looks like.

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ReCal

ReCal offers a user-friendly way to plan out your class schedule each semester. You can save different schedules to compare them and figure out which you like best. You can also export your class schedule directly to Google Calendar.

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TigerPath

TigerPath also allows you to plan your schedule for all four years at once instead of just one semester. It also checks how far along you are in fulfilling general education distribution requirements and the requirements specific to your concentration.

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Student Room Guide

Student Room Guide includes floor plans for every dorm building so you can learn about the layout of your room and building. It also allows you to search for a room that might interest you for room draw by filtering by building, number of people, square feet and whether it’s substance-free or not.

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TigerSnatch

TigerSnatch is a brand new app that allows students to get notifications when a spot opens up in a class that used to be full. It’s often hard to get a spot in some of the more popular classes on campus, but hopefully this app will make it easier to check if there’s an opportunity to enroll as other students drop the class.

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The following are some apps made by people other than students that are also super helpful.

Speed Queen

Speed Queen allows you to check which washers and dryers are in use at any given time. It can also send notifications when your wash cycle is done.

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TigerSafe

TigerSafe has a lot of helpful features to keep students safe on campus. For the COVID-19 pandemic, the app links to our daily symptom check and the page where we scan our testing kits. It has a feature that allows you to share your location in real-time with a friend if you’re walking somewhere alone. TigerSafe also has information on what to do if you get locked out of your dorm.

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There are of course many more apps made by Princeton students and beyond, this is only a small list. To explore other helpful apps by Princetonians, check out TigerApps, a student-run organization that maintains and supports student-developed web applications.

After ten long and difficult months away from the Orange Bubble, I was so fortunate to be able to return to campus for the spring semester of my junior year. It was an unprecedented semester with plenty of challenges, but amidst the difficulties of an in-person yet socially distanced experience, I’m grateful for the moments of hope, laughter and joy that made me fall in love with Princeton all over again.

My classes last semester were Law, Institutions, and Public Policy; Global Feminisms: Feminist Movements in the Middle East and Beyond; Microeconomics for Public Policy; and Women, Gender, and Public Policy. Though it was another semester of Zoom classes, I thought my professors did a good job using the online platform for the most part. I was able to take away something new from each class.

• Law, Institutions, and Public Policy: I had never really engaged with law before, so that class gave me a bit of a hard time, but I know it’s important to think critically about the institutional structures of our legal system. 
• Global Feminisms: This seminar showed me the diversity in the movement for women’s rights around the world. 
• Microeconomics for Public Policy: I appreciated how this class was reflective of current events as we used what we learned to understand policy issues like the impact of the child tax credit and the effect of school closures due to COVID-19. 
• Women, Gender, and Public Policy: This was a required class for my second junior paper. I interviewed female classmates at Princeton about how Donald Trump inspired them to become more politically involved during the 2020 election.

I look back fondly at the many memories I made this past semester. I attended lots of outdoors socially distanced group hangouts, like a picnic dinner in front of Nassau Hall on the last day of class, a karaoke night on Poe Field and a listening party with my friends from The Daily Princetonian for the release of Taylor Swift’s re-recorded version of her album Fearless. Moments of spontaneous interactions with friends were possible once again, instead of having to put so much effort into planning time together like was necessary for the fully online semester. I got to return to my favorite places on campus, like the comfiest chair ever in Chancellor Green, the beautiful study spaces in Firestone Library, and the Hogwarts-like Rocky/Mathey College dining hall. I finished my finals early and had three glorious days of total freedom, so I spent those days making some last memories with my friends for the year. I prioritized seeing my senior friends, who I will miss dearly. Those days of pure joy reminded me of the beauty of Princeton and reinforced how lucky I am to have met such incredible people. Overall, I’m so grateful I was able to make the most of the semester while also staying safe and healthy.

My experience at Princeton has definitely been shaped by faculty and staff in and out of the classroom. They are great leaders and role models. A good amount of my time is spent in libraries, cultural centers and dining halls, places where I find people who also inspire me to be the best version of myself, who look out for my well being, and who are invested in my personal growth, even though they don't necessarily have to be. Guidance through academic advisers and professors were things that I expected to receive in college, but some things I've learned and hold close to my heart were also inspired by the staff at Princeton. Some of my experiences include: 

• Going to late meal after class and having Charlie on the soul food station know my order as we chat about the little things; 
• Spending long hours studying at the Carl A. Fields Center as Assistant Dean Tennille and Program Coordinator Jes send me love and encouragement;
• Talking with my Director of Studies, Dr. Rashidah Andrew, who makes me feel immediately at home in her office; 
• Having Dean Buck give me encouragement to lean into uncertainty and take time to discover my passions when I was undecided in my first year.

Some of the best lessons I've learned about personal development and academic growth have been through these spontaneous conversations. These experiences have led me to reflect on the following:

• It's okay to still be undecided. You're not supposed to know it all at 18.
• Don't just go to school. Experience it. Allow yourself time and space for adventure and surprise encounters. 
• You don’t have to do it all. Just because you can doesn't mean you must. It’s important to manage your time when it comes to your academics and extracurriculars.
• Take time to listen to others.  

I encourage everyone to take time and speak to the people around you, faculty and staff alike.  They are a part of my Princeton story and I encourage you to open your heart to include them in yours.