Written by Tiff Kim, Transfer Jacks Peer Mentor
Hello Transfer Jacks!
It’s been a couple months since our launch of the Transfer Talks Podcast on January 17, 2023! We are proud to announce we currently have 20 episodes available for listeners. Not only do we interview current transfer students but also staff members and some of your favorite mentors too. Please login freely and check them out on Spotify and Apple Podcast! Thank you for your patience as well as we have been gathering interest and scheduling recordings since October 17, 2022. This initiative is a new project our mentoring program has been fine tuning since the start! So far, we are uploading recordings every Wednesday and Sunday! Our lovely team is also working hard to provide transcriptions of every episode to be accessible for all of our audiences.
We wish to share the many experiences of our transfer students whether previous or current. The “traditional” 4-year college path is not the only path that some students take, and we want to normalize the transfer experience. Especially since our team consists of many backgrounds and identities, we hope to represent our community in a positive light. Some of the guests on our podcast had such elaborate journeys that led them all to NAU. I was especially proud to share my story on how I ended up transferring to NAU. The Transfer Jacks Coordinator, Katherine Lawlor, also recorded an episode explaining the terminology related to the transfer experience. Having this outlet to tell stories gives others a perspective on what it’s like to be a transfer student.
If you’re wondering what it’s like to be on our podcast, let us give you the details! First, reach out to your mentor or complete the interest form below. Please keep an eye out for an email to confirm a time to record. This email will also contain a list of questions you can choose from to answer during the interview. There will be a video release form to be completed as well so we have your permission to share your story! Most importantly based on your preference, we have two options for recording which includes audio or video. This is what our behind-the-scenes setup looks like for video recordings!
We use small lapel microphones and an iPad to record for videos. For audio recordings, we use a professional microphone on the table. This production equipment was acquired through hard work from the Transfer and Online Connections staff consisting of Stacey Jean Calvert, Katherine Lawlor, and Taylor Swenson. NAU was first place in the NASPA Virtual Innovation award and received $50,000. There was a chance to apply for funding and the Transfer Jacks program won $4,000 thanks to team efforts. With this funding, the Transfer Talks podcast initiative was started. We are thankful to have this equipment to put our efforts towards growing our social media as well. We have been posting more frequently to our Instagram and TikTok pages so check out our content @nautransferjacks!
As for the production of our podcast recordings, these usually take less than thirty minutes to record. We also have our lovely editor, Jeanine Horio, to revise recordings in case you want something cut out during the interview too. This interview is meant to be like a conversation between friends. Sometimes, we forget that the camera is there and end up giggling our time away. We try to create a warm and welcoming environment for those who choose to participate in this project. However, we are always looking for ways to improve whether it be our script or set up. We appreciate any feedback from you all!
Here are a few transfer student participants with their flags!
As a thank you, the first 40 students who participate in our Transfer Talks Podcast will receive a Transfer Jacks flag! We appreciate the students and staff who have been on the podcast to share their stories. We have more content coming to the podcast featuring our mentors and more! As we grow our project, we hope our efforts to advocate for our transfer student population is recognized!
Interest form to indicate you want to be a part of the podcast: https://bit.ly/TransferTalksInterest