Nursing major Sam Hyland used one word to describe how she felt when about her siblings joining her at Waynesburg University this fall: salty.

Freshmen Sam Hyland; Becky Hyland, majoring in psychology; and Thomas Hyland, majoring in criminal justice, are respectively among the small set of siblings who have all chosen to attend Waynesburg University. Sam Hyland, who was born into a set of quadruplets- their brother Alex Hyland is a freshman at Duquesne University- was so used to living with and going to school with her siblings, and wanted to be thought of as her own person when she transitioned into college.

“I wanted to have a place where I could be myself because a lot of times you get grouped in as siblings,” said Sam Hyland. “They’ll just associate you as all one person basically.”

But when Sam Hyland arrived at Waynesburg, she realized that she could have her independence and maintain a close relationship with her siblings, “her people,” as she calls them.

“I don’t think it’s a disadvantage,” said Sam Hyland. “I mean, there are some things that can be thought about as disadvantages, but we’re very used to growing up and doing the same things together. So, we’ve kind of learned to adapt to being our own person together.”

The Hylands didn’t necessarily plan on attending Waynesburg together. Thomas Hyland had his sights set on Juniata College. But, after his mother convinced him to tag along on a visit to Waynesburg, he met Jane Owen, director of the Educational Enrichment Program, Clinical Services and the Counseling Center. After talking with Owen about his major and degree setup, Thomas Hyland decided that Waynesburg would be the right fit for him.

Thomas Hyland has found a balance between talking with his sisters and getting to know people, especially those that live on the second floor in Thayer Hall.

“I don’t see [my sisters] as much in the evenings because I’m over in Thayer,” said Thomas Hyland. “it’s really community filled, so there’s a lot of the people on my floor, we all hang out, so that’s a little different. But for the most part, we eat our meals together, we share classes together.”

Becky Hyland, who rooms with her sister, feels that although the comfort of being around her siblings is important, it is still essential for the three to make themselves known around campus as individuals.

“I think we just kind of have to make ourselves aware that yes we have people that are always going to be there,” said Becky Hyland, “but we also have to expand. I think that was my goal when we first got here was to meet new people and expand myself into other groups.”

Melanie Byler, an athletic training major, and Sara Byler, a pre-law, business management major both were familiar with Waynesburg University well before they had to go through the stress of making a college decision. Being two of 12 siblings, three of their older sisters graduated from Waynesburg. Melanie Byler became the fourth Byler sister to come to Waynesburg when she arrived in 2014, and Sara became the fifth two years later.

Last fall, Melanie tore her ACL and MCL playing soccer. Hampered by crutches, her younger sister- her “best friend,” helped her get through everyday life.

“She was just by my side the entire time,” said Melanie Byler. “Helping me get through the café, doing my laundry and just completely taking care of me because I couldn’t take care of myself. So, I don’t know how I would have survived last year without her taking care of me because of my crutches.”

Just a month earlier, Sara Byler had begun her college journey. Like many freshmen, she was anxious for what was to come. But the fact that her older sister had already been through four semesters helped Sara Byler transition.

“I came in as this scared freshman, didn’t know what I was doing,” Sara Byler said. “And [Melanie] kind of knew the ropes and knew how to communicate to me when I was having a bad day, when people who were just getting to know me didn’t know how to do that.”

Being the third youngest of 12 children- Melanie Byler is the fourth youngest, Sara Byler was used to those comparisons by the time she was making her college choice. While Waynesburg’s campus isn’t massive in size, she still finds personal space when she needs it.

“Coming from a large family, you kind of get used to always being compared to your other siblings,” Sara Byler said. “So, I’m kind of used to it, but it definitely wasn’t a controlling factor [in making a college decision]. While Waynesburg is a small campus, it’s big enough that we can kind of both be in our own territories without it really overlapping since we’re in different departments.”

Like Sara Byler, biochemistry major Harrison Scott came into Waynesburg University in the Fall of 2016 with his older sister, Joanna Scott, a nursing major, already having completed two years of college. During this time, the two siblings were further apart since they were no longer sharing a home or going to the same school.

Now the two are close again according to Joanna Scott, even performing together in “WU’s Got Talent” this past Friday night. But as Joanna prepares to graduate, she is concerned about the distance coming back when that time comes.

“I remember the year before Harrison came, we just weren’t as close as we used to be, because we no longer lived in the same vicinity,” Joanna Scott said. “So now that we’ve kind of become close again in the past two years, that distance will probably come back. I’m sure we’ll still call [each other] and stuff, but just not seeing each other every day is a disadvantage.”

For Harrison Scott, an advantage to siblings going to the same campus, particularly one of Waynesburg’s size, is that having familiarity with the people associated with the campus makes it easier for siblings to communicate with each other about their college lives.

“The fact that you can talk about your professors and your friends… If she or I went to another campus, and I wanted to say ‘awe, this professor is so cool’, she really couldn’t connect with that much,” said Harrison Scott. “Just being able to share those life experiences at Waynesburg and to know what each other is really experiencing, there’s nothing like it.”

For Sam Hyland, or “mother,” as her siblings call her, one of the best things about sharing her college experience with her siblings is having a “support system away from home.”

“When a lot of kids come to school, they’re alone, and they don’t always have people that are familiar with them to be of big support,” said Sam Hyland. “So, I think with having siblings that go to school with you in general, you always have somebody when you need somebody.”