Marshall University

Date: May 31 2005
Major: Economics (This Major's Salary over time)
It is still rather difficult to evaluate my experience at Marshall. MU was not my first choice in schools by any stretch, and a twist of circumstances landed me in Huntington, WV. However, the rapidity with which the admissions department got me enrolled AND granted me scholarship money was amazing. For that I will always be grateful to Marshall.

I also had several extraordinarily fine instructors, especially in the English Department (John Teel, in particular, possessed a teaching style that made literature come alive, much like Robin Williams' character in "Dead Poet's Society"). I will say the overall quality of my education was competent and challenging. Alas, Marshall was (and really still is) just an average middle American university serving a largely blue collar clientele of students. In the early '80s nearly half of entering freshmen flunked or didn't come back for their second years. I would not say that having "Marshall" on my sheep-skin helped me, but it didn't hurt, either. Most who heard about it wanted to immediately discuss football—both the tragic 1970 plane crash, and the successful run of teams over the past 20 seasons. Here (in N.C.) Marshall's academic quality is largely unknown. Fortunately for me, few around here knew that it was a lower-tier institution that could never hold a candle to the likes of UNC Chapel Hill or even NC State.

I was fortunate enough to find a career directly related to my undergraduate major. However, that was largely providential and cannot fairly be accorded to Marshall. In retrospect, I wish I had chosen a major more attuned to my personal interests and then pursued graduate study. My advice to younger readers is this: take a Myers-Briggs personality type exam, discover your real passions and the best jobs related to those, and go after them with all your heart. Then your chances of ending up in a fulfilling career will be greatly enhanced, regardless of where you attend school.