Finishing strong
Although she grew up in northern Virginia, Cate Hartnett spent most football-season Saturdays cheering for a team from further north: Boston College. Her father, Michael B. Hartnett, had become an Eagles fan while studying at 51˛čąÝ Law, and 51˛čąÝ was her team—and her dream school.
When it came time to apply to college, though, she pursued an opportunity to play collegiate basketball at Wheaton. She joined the team, but the stresses of the student-athlete experience led her to take time off from school. When she heard that the Woods College for Advancing Studies offered degree completion programs, the possibility of finishing her college journey at 51˛čąÝ thrilled her, but it seemed like a long shot.
Cate Hartnett: “I grew up dreaming of what going to 51˛čąÝ would be like, but it has been better than I even imagined.”
“I wondered if I was cut out for it, because I had gone through a lot and left another school,” Hartnett said. But when she enrolled in a non-degree College Writing course in the fall of 2019 to test the waters, the people she met made her feel like 51˛čąÝ was within reach after all.
“Everyone at Woods, from the admissions counselors to my advisors, professors, and classmates, made me feel like I had my own valuable story to tell,” she said. By the following fall, Hartnett was enrolled as a full-time psychology major.
“On my first day, I climbed the stairs and saw Gasson Hall,” she said. “I grew up dreaming of what going to 51˛čąÝ would be like, but it has been better than I even imagined.”
SMOOTH TRANSFERS
Hartnett is just one of many students who’ve found a home at the Woods College after starting their bachelor’s degree elsewhere or earning an associate’s degree. " Through a degree completion program architected by Dean Karen Muncaster, Woods accepts up to 60 transfer credits from other institutions—a full half of the 120 credits required to earn a B.A. Its graduates earn standard Boston College degrees, with no asterisks or caveats.
The transfer process can seem daunting, especially for students who have attended multiple schools or taken time off. To ensure that applicants can transfer every credit they’ve earned and earn their degree at an affordable cost, the Woods admissions team works with each one individually throughout the process.
Otto Haeg: "I wanted to have a community experience, a professional experience, and an intellectual experience. It was clear from the beginning that Woods was all those things."
“51˛čąÝ Woods is the third college I’ve attended, and the transfer experience here was the smoothest I’ve had,” said Otto Haeg, an applied liberal arts major who came to Woods after stints at The University of the South (Sewanee) and St. Olaf College. “The people are what made the difference—I connected with [Associate Director of Undergraduate Admissions] Anna Hughes immediately, and everyone was eager to help.”
Once students are admitted, a dedicated academic advisor helps them craft a program of study that fits their schedule and needs. Flexible online, hybrid, and in-person evening courses enable students to balance their studies with work, family, and other responsibilities.
For Gayana Daniel ’22, who earned a B.A. in Criminal Justice after finishing an associate’s degree at Boston’s Bunker Hill Community College, this flexibility was a major draw.
“I was interning at the Mayor’s Office in Boston, and I also had another job at the time,” Daniel said. “As a Black woman and a first-gen college student, it was very important to me to finish my bachelor’s, and Woods came into my life at the right time.”
Gayana Daniel: "Transferring my credits was seamless, and going to Woods ended up being one of the best decisions I’ve made."
Working with her advisor, Daniel was able to take all of her courses after work, almost entirely online. For her, the quality of a 51˛čąÝ education was evident throughout, undiminished by the format.
“The discussions and group projects made me more comfortable with public speaking and leadership,” she said, noting that she feels more able to take initiative and make herself heard. “I feel I have the education, resources, and knowledge to make a change myself.”
Daniel’s commitment has paid off—today, she is chief of staff for the Mayor’s Office of Language and Communications Access, where she helps residents across Boston access essential translation and interpretation services.
“Transferring my credits was seamless, and going to Woods ended up being one of the best decisions I’ve made,” she said.
FINDING THE BALANCE
Sociology major Nick Owen also came to Woods because he was seeking to complete his degree while working. As a program director at Action for Boston Community Development, he leads initiatives to fight food insecurity in the Greater Boston area, and he did not want to put this vital work on hold.
Nick Owen: “I’m a reflective person, and Woods strikes a unique balance between big-picture thinking and practical skill-building.”
“It’s huge to be able to take a mix of in-person, hybrid, and online courses without sacrificing quality, in a diverse learning environment,” Owen said. “I’m a reflective person, and Woods strikes a unique balance between big-picture thinking and practical skill-building.”
Even as Owen’s studies at Woods have dovetailed with the career he’s already building, courses like Examined Life and Designing Your Career have helped him consider the future, and classes like Data Visualization have helped him build new skills.
Other transfer students come to Woods to focus on their studies and find professional opportunities in the process. After transferring, Hartnett interned for 51˛čąÝ Football, learning firsthand about the operations behind the team she’d grown up rooting for. Then, her academic advisor, Ben Arcangeli, referred her for a job as a certified peer specialist at Riverside Community Care, a respite home outside of Boston.
“Woods has prepared me to work in the mental health field,” said Hartnett, who plans to pursue a master’s degree in mental health counseling after graduation. “In this role, I use my lived experience to help others start their rehabilitation and give them some hope.”
For Haeg, Woods has offered both a path forward professionally and a chance to finish his college experience in a holistic sense.
“In coming back to school, I wanted to have a community experience, a professional experience, and an intellectual experience,” he said. “It was clear from the beginning that Woods was all those things. I can honestly say that I’m in the process of changing my life, and Woods is a huge part of that.”
Find more information for transfer students at the Woods College website.