Transfer of Interest: Why I came to N.C. State.

Author: Jared

For those of you who are contemplating the idea of coming to N.C. State’s MAC program from elsewhere, I wanted to share with you some of the things I went through when deciding to do just that.

I came to Appalachian State University in the fall of 2007 knowing I wanted to get an undergraduate degree in accounting, and “knowing” I wanted to stay a fifth year there to get my master’s degree. I’d be hard-pressed to tell how much I loved my experience in Boone and with the faculty and students in the accounting program there at ASU. It was during my time there that accounting became something real to me, something I could wrap my mind around and sink my teeth into. The professors at ASU were interested first and foremost with making accounting fundamentals accessible to everyone willing to put in some hard work. I put in some hard work, and they did the rest. Somehow they taught me to really, really like accounting.

And yet, here I am in Raleigh, not Boone, and getting my master’s degree from N.C. State University rather than Appalachian State University.

So Why the Change?

So why leave? Why leave the place where I spent four incredible, life-changing years? Maybe those are the questions you’re asking yourself. I know I asked them, and I’m going to try and tell you how I answered them. Hopefully my answers will help you find yours.

Transferring From ASU to NC State

The first time I thought about coming to N.C. State was in September of my senior year at ASU. In a very fortunate string of events, I found myself with a tax internship lined up for the spring semester in Raleigh. Knowing that accounting firms usually hire an overwhelming percentage of their interns full-time, I operated under the hopeful assumption that I would be working in Raleigh after graduate school.

That assumption kick-started the process of my thinking about transferring from ASU to NC State, and as I thought about it, there were three ideas that ended up bringing me to Raleigh.

1. Family. Contrary to what you might believe, the thing I am most proud of is not that I am an accountant. My proudest accomplishment is that I convinced my best friend to marry me. And operating under another hopeful assumption that she doesn’t change her mind between now and December 30, we will be getting hitched. This fact was obviously influential in my decision to come to Raleigh. We both thought that moving from Boone to Raleigh six months after we got married might not be the most desirable or wise of decisions. If we were going to be living in Raleigh, we thought that me getting a “head start” might be helpful.
2. My learning process. Another influence that played into my decision was the way I learn. I am the kind of person that can easily find my way into a comfort zone which is, of all things, very comfortable. But those zones are not always the most conducive to doing things the way they ought to be done. Boone was amazing and I would never trade those four years for four years anywhere else. But I began to realize that one of the reasons I wanted to stay there a fifth year was because it was comfortable. My thought was that in changing environments, going to new professors and a new culture and a new building, I would in effect jump-start my cognitive processes. My mind would be forced to adapt to new teaching styles and grading constructs and classmates.
3. Networking. The third idea that was influential to my transfer was the opportunity to instantly double my network. This morning I wrote an email to a professor at ASU. But I wrote another email to a professor here at NCSU. If I had not transferred, that would not have happened. I probably would never have gotten the chance to meet any of the faculty here, all of whom have incredible backgrounds, just as they did at ASU. In my opinion, professors represent a huge wealth of knowledge and wisdom, not only during school but in the workplace as well. By transferring, I figured I would add about ten professors to my network, and that could never be a bad thing.

So, for what it’s worth, that’s how I came to the MAC Program at N.C. State University. It wasn’t an easy decision, but it was most assuredly the right decision. If you’re facing a difficult decision, I wish you the very best! Keep in mind that sometimes (often, actually) the difficult and the right are directly related, and don’t shy away from a challenge. Please let me know if you have any questions at all, or would like to know more specifics about my story!

Thanks for reading!