Meet Marquett Samuels: She has advice for transfer students

Human development and family studies major wants to have a great college experience at BGSU

By Bob Cunningham ’18

Marquett Samuels has some sound advice for incoming transfer students: Be yourself and take advantage of everything Bowling Green State University has to offer; make sure you have the college experience you deserve.

Samuels is a rising senior from Youngstown, Ohio, who practices what she preaches. She transferred from a private institution in Pennsylvania in fall 2018.

“Every student is different,” she said. “Some students go to community college, knowing they are going to transfer here. I didn’t know I was going to transfer. At the other college, I was involved with two athletic programs — tennis and track and field — and also some leadership activities. When I came here, I didn’t have that status anymore. So, that was a really big transition for me, but I was able to get through it.”

Once she arrived in Bowling Green, she did what comes naturally to her. She jumped right in to all things Orange and Brown.

“Wanting to be involved in everything, that’s something I did at my old school and in high school as well,” she said. “That’s part of my personality, not wanting to be bored and always wanting to find new experiences to learn. That’s how you develop and work things through.” 

Samuels said the University’s transfer student advising was invaluable in helping her make the transition to BGSU. 

She is a human development and family studies major. The program is intended to help strengthen individuals and families throughout their lifespans. Through collaborative group work, active learning, community engagement and study abroad opportunities, it prepares students for careers in diverse settings. Among the popular paths are community-based education, prevention, advocacy, case management, program coordination, program development, respite care, recreation, fund development, direct service and social support.

“It’s a very broad major, so you can do just about anything with it,” said Samuels, who attended Austintown Fitch High School. “It just depends on what you want to do.”

Samuels is in the Ronald E. McNair Scholars Program, which is designed as a two-year experience for students starting their junior year in good academic standing and who wish to engage in undergraduate research — especially students with a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) focus.

She also is a campus tour guide.

One of the reasons Samuels chose BGSU is because she didn’t want to be shortchanged when it came to college opportunities.

“I was just looking to have a lot of opportunities and I didn’t want to be limited to anything because I know that college is something not to take lightly and not too many people get the chance,” she said. “I wanted to have the best college experience possible and I feel like I am able to do that here because BGSU has so many opportunities. I can study abroad, I can go volunteering with bGab (BG Alternative Breaks) — I can just do so much; there really is no limit.”

When Samuels transferred, she was a sociology major but wasn’t sure what she wanted to do as a career. 

“Online, I saw human development and family studies and I thought that would be a great thing to look into,” she said. “At the time, I didn’t know what I wanted my major to be and I saw the College of Education and Human Development had a lot of majors I would probably be interested in.

“When I first came here on my tour, I met with my admissions counselor, Ali Tracy, and she helped me set up the whole college experience I wanted and answered my questions about the human development and family studies program. That was very helpful.”

Samuels also said faculty Dr. Margaret Weinberger in sociology and Jean Gerard, her adviser in the McNair Scholars, have helped guide her while she has been on campus. 

“Plus, everyone in the human development and family studies program and my cohort have been awesome because I just joined it and I am trying to graduate in May of 2020,” she said. 

Samuels has plans to be even more involved at BGSU during her senior year.

“I am currently part of UAO (Universities Activities Organization), and we have a lot of events coming up,” said Samuels, noting she is involved with other student organizations as well. “I am going to be the vice president of academic and cultural events. I’m just focusing on being as involved as I can. I like to keep busy.”