Three Students Share their Path to Tufts
A joy of being an admissions officer is sharing so much of Tufts with so many different students. We never know which part of our community will resonate…
Leaving your small town behind
I lived my entire childhood in a southern Maine town with 6,000 people, two stop lights, the occasional moose, and nothing that resembled a downtown. My mom, aunts, uncles, and cousins had all attended the same high school I did. My grandfather was involved in our town’s local government. And, for much of high school, I worked weekends at my family’s diner, where I served eggs and coffee to customers who had known me since Kindergarten. While I always had an eagerness to experience the world outside my town, it was also the place I felt comfortable, safe, and secure. I recognize now how at ease I was, especially during high school, when every person and every place was familiar.
For this reason, making the decision to attend college in “the big city” was a big deal. When I arrived on the very urban campus of the university I attended, there were things I loved, like the quantity of Starbucks (!), and things that intimidated me (to this day, I am overwhelmed by the bus system in Boston). The sheer volume of people, sounds, and smells took some time to get used to, but even more challenging was coping with the homesickness that came with missing out on the traditions and events that had defined life in my small town.
In spite of the nostalgia, making the transition to college ultimately gave me so much: the most important being perspective. By independently exploring the city’s neighborhoods, engaging with the diversity of Boston, and forming relationships with a wide array of classmates, my understanding of identity, privilege, inequality, empathy, inclusion, and resilience was fostered. I gained a broader perspective about the experiences of people very different from me, while discerning deeper insights about my own upbringing and values. Leaving my small town was its own form of education, separate from my college classes, because it changed how I perceived and interpreted the people, institutions, systems, and laws around me. When asked to “let my life speak,” my first instinct is usually to reflect on how my rural community shaped me, but honestly, so much of what I believe in came from experiencing two contrasting environments and engaging in the critical thinking necessary to reach my own opinions.
If you’re a small town kid wondering if leaving home for college is the right choice for you, hopefully my story gives you reassurance that there is much to be gained from stepping outside your comfort zone, and that doesn’t mean you lose your connection to the parts of your community that matter most. And I’m not the only one! In the interest of providing other perspectives on the transition to college from a small town, here are stories from several of my Bendetson colleagues:
"I was born and raised in the small town of Chadron, Nebraska: home to the world's largest fur trade museum and a Wal-Mart where we used to go just for fun. It wasn't common for students from my high school to attend college outside of neighboring states, within driving distance, so my initial journey to Tufts was a solitary one. But I felt that my background was something I carried with me into my life on campus; I bonded with others who'd had rural upbringings. And I got to share that part of me with friends who hadn't ("Fur trade museum?! What does that even look like?"). One of my favorite Tufts memories was taking a road trip across the country with close friends after sophomore year and stopping in Nebraska so they could meet my dad and see the farmhouse where I was raised. I think that's what college should be: a home for all the existing parts of us, but also a space that's big enough for us to grow." – Abigail McFee '17, Admissions Counselor
“I never knew how close together houses could be until I came to Tufts (and you can imagine my even larger surprise the first time I ventured to New York City…), and there was some culture shock leaving my small New Hampshire town for a university with literally double the population of said small town. It took time to find a tight-knit community at Tufts like my one back home (I mean my mom was my principal for eight years and my best friends could describe my awkward fashion choices over a 15-year time period!). At Tufts, I did a pre-orientation program, I joined clubs, I talked to people on my hall…and it still took me until the end of sophomore year to find “my people.” It was worth the time and effort - I currently live with one of my best friends from Tufts and I was in another Jumbo’s wedding this past summer! Moving away from my small town helped teach me the value of cultivating and investing in new friendships and relationships.” – Beky Stiles '12, Associate Director of Admissions
"I was anxious to leave my small town nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I dreamed of friends living next door to me instead of a thirty minute drive away. I thought about getting pizza delivered to my address for the first time and befriending a city kid. However, one of the most unexpected lessons from my college career was to appreciate my small hometown. Being away from my forest taught me to appreciate the whippoorwill waking me up at night, cheap movie tickets at my local theater, and strangers waving as they drive past. I found myself in classes defending the home I eagerly left behind. Over four years, I lost my Southern drawl and mud-caked boots, but grew to love the perspective given to me by my rural community." – Virginia Hart, Admissions Counselor
Photo credit: jaxbot via Flickr
