Headline: My Transition to a Four-Year College: A First-Year Student’s First Month

Published: September 29, 2025

Author: Lydia Cahill

The night before my pre-registration day, my dad got a call that changed everything. The English major—my major—was paused. The admissions team at Greenville would evaluate whether I had earned enough credits in high school to complete the major, but until then…I would have to wait.

Before this call, my road to Greenville could not have gone more smoothly. I loved the cross-country team, the campus, and the English major offered here. I attended Scholarship Day in February and was grateful to receive the full-tuition scholarship through the McAllaster Honors Program.

Then the call came.

I came to Pre-Panther Day full of anxiety: would I have to transfer if I couldn't finish my major here? How was I going to find another school that had a unique blend of English, cross-country, and faith?

However, while I was a worried hive of buzzing questions, God was working bigger plans behind the scenes. He wanted me here at Greenville, and he placed dedicated people in my life who helped me through every doubt.

Head Cross Country and Track Coach Brian Patton played a vital role in advocating for me at Greenville. Not only did he inform me and my family that the English major was on pause as soon as he knew, but he was also instrumental in trying to ensure that everything possible would be done to keep me at the school.

Victoria Clark, vice president of enrollment at Greenville University, was a massive help in assessing the credits I brought in and placing me in the appropriate classes. She eventually gave me the good news—the school had a plan in place that would allow me to finish as an English major.

The large number of credits I earned in high school would allow me to start at a higher course level in English. Additionally, I would take many English major-specific classes during my undergraduate years to ensure I earned the credits while we were certain the classes would still be offered. Then, I would take several general education courses as an upperclassman to fulfill the remaining degree requirements.

I would not have to transfer.

Relief flooded me upon the news. I could stay! When I was on the call with Victoria, where she shared the news with me, I asked her several times to repeat it to ensure I understood. I could not believe it!

Finally, the day came—move-in day. I stepped onto campus with a schedule, something that seemed impossible the last time I had been on-site in June. I couldn't wait to start classes like Storytelling, Creative Writing, and Historical and Modern Linguistics.

However, the story gets even better. Not only can I be an English major, but Greenville has also turned out to be rife with English significant opportunities. At New Student Orientation, I was invited to become a Teaching Assistant for a section of English 105.

This job provides me with the opportunity to attend classes, grade assignments, and meet with students to discuss ways to improve their writing. As an aspiring author, the critical eye and editing skills this job requires will benefit me greatly in the future.

By the third week, I was offered a second position: a student writer for the Marketing Department. This job has allowed me to practice a new form of writing (journalism) and taught me excellent skills in writing under deadlines.

In June, when I got the call that the English major was put on pause, it seemed that the future I had foreseen at Greenville was no longer attainable.

However, I could not have been more wrong. God has me right where He wants me; I can complete my degree in English, and He has already provided two great job opportunities along the way.

I am so glad Greenville will be my home for the next four years. What once felt impossible became a testimony that God’s plans are greater than mine.