Helping future graduates with their upcoming transition out of college was a highlight for one of the Marshall representatives at this year’s Countdown to Commencement, hosted yesterday on Oct. 22 in the Don Morris Room at the Memorial Student Center. 

“I just look forward to everybody getting the opportunity to graduate and go through this process and come through and make sure there’s no holds or anything outstanding on their balance or whatever, so then they have a seamless transition to graduate and be able to move on with their life,” said Terry Anderson, operation director with the Office of the Bursar.

Anderson has participated in Countdown to Commencement for the last 12 years and enjoys it as well as the opportunity it provides to help soon-to-be graduates.

Marshall’s Countdown to Commencement event focused this year on helping winter and summer 2024 graduates by helping prepare them for Winter 2024 Commencement on Dec. 10 and the challenges they face thereafter.

Many members assisted graduates and students through many of the responsibilities they will face after commencement, like whether to pursue graduate education, student loan payment and holds/account balances.

Many of Marshall’s various colleges and organizations set up tables for the event hosted by Student Affairs. 

Post-commencement finances, for example, can limit a lot of choices students can make career-wise, and Anderson described how giving options to alleviate the financial stress college puts on students can make a big difference long term.

“There’s nothing holding them up, so we just try to stay the course, make sure that everything is taken care of, try to offer payment plans – that kind of thing,” he said.

However, organizations did not focus solely on helping out those commencing in the winter, as Career Education focused some effort on providing useful information to the potential future students of Marshall.

Christine Risch, Career Education Assessment and Data analyst, was excited for the opportunities the First Destination Survey would provide future students by letting them know if the degree they attain would uphold a competitive salary.

“This survey allows students to inform the university about whether they are pursuing additional education or if they have a job where they’re going,” Risch said. “If they do, then where that job is – is it local, is it overseas, is it California, are they going on to do something with the military?”

That information helps Marshall know its reach as well as helping students know where viable job opportunities could be as well.

“Prospective students want to know what they might be able to do with the degree that they are considering,” Risch said. “This data allows students to look and see where Marshall is compared to other universities around the country.”

Luke Campbell can be contacted at [email protected].