The hidden truths to becoming a transfer student from Montgomery College

By: Ashley Neyra

Image of the Bioscience Education Center at Montgomery College, Germantown Campus (Image taken by Ashley Neyra)

Montgomery College (MC) students face adversities when transitioning to the University of Maryland (UMD). 

With the abrupt transition from MC to UMD, students have a hard time transitioning to their new routine. 

In 2024, 887 out of the 911 students who transferred from Montgomery College went to the University of Maryland, College Park.

The change in being a transfer student is seen in every aspect, such as in class size, commute time, organizations, and the people themselves. 

Journalism transfer student Xavier Serrano expresses, “When I first came to UMD, I had a picture-perfect image of what I thought I had to be like when I first got to the campus, but I soon realized that my idea was unrealistic.” 

The difference between campus sizes can be seen instantly, with UMD having over 30 thousand undergraduate students. MC has under 19 thousand students spread through all three campuses, located in Germantown, Rockville, and Silver Spring, MD. 

Having three campuses spread throughout Montgomery County made it easy for students to commute to attend school, saving students thousands of dollars. 

Journalism transfer student Anastasia Merkulova said, “Being a commuter on top of a transfer student makes it harder for me to communicate with UMD students who live on campus and have a different economic background.” 

In comparison to MC, UMD has a large gap in racial diversity and campus culture, one of the biggest shocks for incoming transfer students. MC was voted the most diverse community college in the continental U.S. in 2019. At UMD, Latinos and Black students made up 24% of students in 2024. 

Serrano says, ”The community at Montgomery College, compared to the University of Maryland, was very different in regards to how friendly people were. I like walking around and talking to people, complimenting shirts, socializing; I'm a very fun person! So when that same energy wasn't returned at UMD, I was a little disappointed.” 

Serrano is not the only person with this realization, as computer science transfer student Yerenmy Zelaya shared similar feelings in terms of the sociological difference at UMD. 

“The community at UMD is very different than MC. At MC, it's easier to make friends and join clubs, and the community bond is definitely stronger than at UMD. I see you see the same regular faces every day, which makes friendship bonds stronger due to the large size and variety of activities,” Zelaya said.