Marissa Simoes '10

I eventually landed in the right places at UNE — the Political Science and English Departments. I set my sights on becoming a journalist and took the steps to get there with a little (ok, a lot) of help from my professors and other faculty members at UNE.

UNE boasts "connections for life." And that is exactly what UNE gave me and what I value the most from the four years I spent there. UNE connected me with people that changed my life, ideas that I'll always live by, and, most importantly for me, UNE connected me with the rest of the world.

What is so amazing, and unique, about UNE is that you can mold your college experience to fit you. I was able to tailor my education to get out of it exactly what I was going to need. I have learned that you get out of college exactly what you put in, and at UNE — the faculty and staff — made it incredibly easy to put in copious amounts of work because the return was so rewarding.

I decided halfway into my freshman year that I wanted to go into journalism. At the time, UNE did not have a journalism program so I was afraid I had made a huge mistake. But, one of my professors convinced me that it was possible to use what UNE did have to my advantage. Luckily for me, he was right. By the end of my four years, I had traveled the world — thanks to the Global Education Program; I was the editor-in-chief and a founding member of the Nor'Easter News, UNE's first successful student newspaper; and I had a job, in my field.

My majors were small enough to allow me the flexibility I needed, and the professors I had in both departments were constantly challenging and engaging. They became more than just professors and are still actively involved in my life today.