New Kid on the Cobber Block

Jake Wiebe ’24, Northfield, Minn.
Major: Business Marketing

My journey to Concordia hasn’t exactly been the traditional one. I am going to be a senior this fall, but I just completed my first year at Concordia.

Being a transfer student hasn’t always been easy, but it has been worth it. The first time I ever heard of Concordia College was during my senior year in high school. My best friend had committed to play football at Concordia, which cemented its name in my head (aided by the unique mascot name). I, however, decided to go another route and chose to attend Augustana University. My first year at Augustana went smoothly. I had many friends and felt very involved. My second year was a bit more difficult. Lots of my friends transferred, which was hard for me to adapt to. I soon felt quite lonely and knew I had to change something. I started thinking about the option of transferring and the thought of the funny corn mascot stood out in my head. I knew I had to join my best friend here at Concordia. I began contacting the transfer admission reps here, and they were incredibly kind and guided me through the whole transfer process. A few weeks later, it was now summer and I was staying at a buddy’s house in town, excited for the school year to start.

Throughout this entire transfer process, one of my main goals was to feel more involved in the school I attended. In order to accomplish this goal, I reached out to the Cobber football program. I asked Coach Horan if there was anything I could do to help and he set me up with a manager position. In this role, I get to travel with the team and mainly film games and practices. I have met some super cool people and I get to be around the sport I love (without actually taking any hits). It’s been awesome to make connections in the football world as the sport has always been a big part of my life.

Academics were also at the forefront of my mind when transferring to Concordia. As a business major, the Offutt School of Business provides a top-notch learning experience with state-of-the-art facilities. I wasn’t always interested in business, however. In high school, I originally wanted to be a biology student. This phase lasted until I joined the DECA business club that met before school. In the DECA club, we competed in business competitions that concluded with a trip to the state conference where 2,000 students got to travel to a fancy hotel in the Twin Cities and duke it out for some serious hardware. I loved how something that I was already interested in (marketing) combined with competition. From here, my love for the business world grew and I knew it was what I wanted to study in college. 

At Concordia, this love for business and marketing has only grown as we are guided by outstanding professors that truly care about us as people. Dr. Streed’s business classes have challenged me in a positive way that has prepared me for my current internship in Concordia’s Communications and Marketing Office. I am confident that this internship will prepare me for the corporate business world that I want to enter once I graduate. Continuing my goal of being more involved on campus, I plan to join the marketing club this upcoming school year.

One thing that surprised me when coming to Concordia is how amazing the campus dining services food is. Concordia does a good job promoting how it is number one in the state for best college food and it really does live up to this ranking. My favorite eats are the delicious pasta options.

If I was to give any advice to students who are considering transferring to Concordia, I would say to just go for it! At first, it was difficult for me to balance the idea of transferring on top of the academic rigor of the school I was at. I was stressed out about the admission process, but many of these fears were relieved through my interactions with the fantastic admission reps here.

I ended up going all in and I don’t regret it for a second.”

As I get closer to my senior year, I can’t help but feel a sense of accomplishment. It has been a long and winding journey to get where I am now, but I feel like I have learned and grown a lot as a person. It feels good knowing that I am at a place like Concordia where I feel involved, connected, and driven academically.

Learn more about transferring to Concordia

^{Published June 2023}