Binghamton transfer student makes smooth transition thanks to strong campus community

After graduating from Corning Community College, Emma Kephart ‘25 searched for the right university to complete her bachelor’s degree. After touring schools and taking different factors into consideration, she landed on Binghamton.

“The big one for me was the research opportunities,” she said. “Being in the STEM field, there are so many connections and everybody’s doing research here. So, it’s a huge advantage for me to have access to those kinds of resources. Plus, it’s not far from where I live, so it made my family a little more comfortable about my leaving home for the first time.”

Kephart is a math major from Campbell, N.Y., a small town about 20 minutes from Corning and a little over an hour from Binghamton.

She lives on campus in the Hinman College Community and has gotten very familiar with the Office for Student Transition and Success.

“They have been fantastic. That’s where I’ve met most of my friends, honestly,” she said.

“I’ve been talking to a lot of my friends from my campus who transferred to other universities, and they’re like, ‘I’m having a lot of trouble making friends and meeting people just because there’s no community for people who are coming in as juniors.’

It’s just so hard. You’re so late in the game. It’s like moving to a different school in high school in junior year, but even harder. So, just having access to the transfer office along with all of the events they plan is great. They do a really nice job. I love them.”

She has had a great experience so far, both academically and socially. For the former, she spoke about two of her favorite classes.

“I’m thoroughly enjoying Dynamical Systems. It is my favorite math class that I’ve taken,” she said.

“Last spring, I took a class called African Women and Feminism for writing credit. It was very interesting, learning about the way different women are treated around different countries. Watching different movies and reading different articles from their perspective was fascinating.”

Kephart believes her choice to attend Binghamton has been validated. The strong sense of community is what she points to as a key reason.

“A lot of the people, especially the ones that I’ve met in clubs and through classes, and in the transfer community have been great.”

She serves on the board of two clubs. She is the treasurer of the Binghamton Association for Transfer Students and is a member of Sound of Binghamton, a volunteer music group that performs for community members.

The campus beauty is the final aspect Kephart described as an essential part of being a Bearcat.

“I didn’t want to go downstate too far because I love being upstate,” she said. “I actually have a picture of some of the trees by The Union that I took last fall. The leaves were starting to change and the sun was hitting. It was absolutely immaculate. And just getting to feel that access to the trees and the wildlife is something that I think I would miss a lot in the city.”