Around this time last year, I was going on my final college tours. One of those tours was to Westfield, the place I would later call home.
My family and I drove from our house in Foxboro, MA, a good two-ish hours east, and set our sights on Westfield State University. When we arrived, it was rainy and cold, but that didn’t stop us or the tours. In fact, I remember receiving an umbrella to use by a kind tour-guide. I forget his-or-her name, but I’ll never forget the gesture. From that moment on, I knew that Westfield was going to be good.
Before I went on that tour, I knew even before looking at schools that I wanted somewhere small in size, but not too small. I came from two high schools: a relatively big high school where I often felt out of place and a smaller sized high school where I moved my senior year. In comparison of the two, I felt more at ease in a smaller tight-knit school than a larger one, so I knew that I would excel more in that type of setting for college. Westfield’s small but beautiful campus filled that box. I can successfully say that it takes me only 5 minutes to get to my furthest class in Wilson Hall.
I originally started looking at schools that had a good education program since my first plan was to become a teacher. Even though I ended up changing my major to communications, Westfield still had many great programs to choose from.
Location was a big factor for me as well. My plans changed for school since I moved before my last year of high school. I had planned on going to a state school in Pennsylvania, where I lived before, but since we moved to Massachusetts where I am originally from, I wanted to be closer to my family. I live two hours away, so it’s far, but not too far.
What really enticed me about Westfield was how kind and friendly everyone was. I remember meeting with my major at an open house event and being blown away by the professors’ kindness as well as how genuinely caring everyone on campus was. That was such a big factor for my decision, and I knew that if everyone was as kind as they were there, I would succeed greatly.
I’m so glad that I made the choice to go here. I’m only one month into school, but from what I can tell, I know that the rest of my semester(s) will be fantastic thanks to my classes, my professors, and all of the great friends that I’ve made.
