Austin Bailey, Class of 2022, wrote this based on his experience as a transfer student.  It’s actually good advice for any history major or minor.

Thanks, Austin!

Things I wished someone had told me:

  • The best parking for history students is the parking garage across from the basketball stadium, since it’s closest to Harris Hall. However the more affordable option is the parking garage behind the engineering building. While it’s a little farther from Harris, its closer to Smith which is another building history students spend a lot of time in. The lot behind the engineering building will fill up around 10:00 so prepare to fight for a spot if you get in after then.
  • The quietest place to study is in the Morrow Special Collections area. It’s on the second floor of Morrow and there is never anyone there, plus if you’re doing research the head of Special Collections, Lori Thompson, will be indispensable in helping you.
  • Go to the history events around the college throughout the semester. It can be as simple as a bunch of snacks in one of the rooms, or as big as a lecture in the Joan C. Edwards playhouse, but going to these will not only let you meet a ton of other history majors, but it will also help you get established in the department and open the door for other opportunities.
  • There is a thing called degree works in the MyMU online site, it will keep track of exactly how many classes you have taken, what they go towards and what you can take next in order to fulfill certain requirements. It’s incredibly useful to us transfers because it’ll show you what your previous classes counts towards.
  • EZ-Borrow is a tool for the libraries here at Marshall, you can use this to request any book you want as long as at least one college on the Eastern Seaboard has it. You can use this to get textbooks for the semester, research material or just books you want to read. I use it like crazy and you get the books for the whole semester. Marshall has a ton of books in its collection but using EZ-Borrow means you get a ton more.
  • Join Phi-Alpha-Theta! It’s the history Honor Society here at Marshall and opens up a ton of scholarship opportunities as well as putting you in touch with other history majors and conferences to help you network. Professor Holbrook is the faculty advisor so if you have any more questions I suggest contacting him.
  • If you need any help with something history related, or otherwise, and there isn’t a professor available. swing by the GA office in Harris (Harris Hall 115).  It’s where the history Graduate Assistants work and they are some of the smartest and most helpful people in our department and would be glad to help! If you have any other questions you can always email me at bailey614@marshall.edu and I would also be happy to help!
  • Finally, good luck! Marshall is an incredible college and is filled with some of the nicest people I know.  All of the professors are willing to go out of their way to help you so don’t hesitate to ask them for help or if there are any opportunities, like internships, that you’d be able to do. I’m sure if you decide to join our department you won’t regret it!