Stephany Ribeiro - Southern New Hampshire University

My fall semester went well. This year I made the decision to transfer to an online school, Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU). After spending last year’s fall semester in my dorm room at Western New England worrying about covid exposures and my family’s well being on the island, I realized that I could save money by living on the island and taking on-line courses from Western New England. I successfully navigated the spring semester, but Western New England is not meant to be an on-line experience. After much thought and investigation into my options, I decided to make the switch to Southern New Hampshire University. The process of transferring was surprisingly easy. At SNHU I am able to set my own studying schedule, which allows me to work as well. In addition, all the homework is accessible and very engaging.

As I was mulling over my transfer, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to change my major as well. I still love Criminal Justice and hope to combine that with my new major: Psychology. I had taken Intro to Psychology at Western New England University and found it fascinating. I have always had an interest in knowing more about human behaviors. I took that class and felt that I could overlap my criminal justice path with a psychology degree. Therefore, I will be majoring in psychology with a criminal justice minor.

This semester, three courses really stand out for me. The first is Perspectives in the Humanities, which concentrated on helping students to understand individuals as human beings, rational animals. Human beings create different cultures based upon their beliefs. Perspectives in History focused on the various perspectives (economical, political, social, etc.) that can be used to look at historical events and ideas. In addition, I was required to take Statistics, which I discovered plays an important role in psychology. Psychology relies on statistical research to test hypotheses and present data in ways that are easier to understand. I am looking forward to continuing my studies and exploring the career possibilities in Psychology & Criminal Justice.