The sign-up sheet at the entrance of the room was blank. Other than the nine tables representing each of the graduate school programs and a coffee table in the corner, the room was virtually empty.
The graduate school fair, held on the second floor of Founders Hall on Oct. 19, was an opportunity for many Guilford College students and alumni to explore various local universities after graduation. However, the room seemed to be occupied by no more than five students at a time.
Despite the lackluster attendance, rep- resentatives continued to give out their presentations.
Campbell University’s Divinity School, located in Buies Creek, North Carolina, was on the first table. The university’s graduate program showcase was intended for people seeking an education in reli- gious studies.
A little further on was Elon University, presenting its law program. A partnership between Guilford and Elon allows students to enroll at both institutions so that they can earn a law degree in five and a half years.
In addition, Elon University School of Law teamed up with their Martha and Spencer Love School of Business to offer a J.D./MBA program that allows enrollees to earn their J.D. and MBA degree in only two and a half years and at lower a cost than if taken separately.
Western Carolina University offers a master’s degree and a doctorate degree. There are over 40 different programs, from health sciences to sports management. Soon, Western Carolina will offer six programs for doctorate degrees.
Radford University, located in Virginia, is a regional comprehensive university. Radford originally began as a college of education but now has programs in more area areas, including literacy education, occupational therapy, social psychology and criminal justice. However, according to representative Brad Bizzel, the Radford’s strongest field is business.
Some of the other schools present were Pfeiffer University, Bryan School of Business at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro and Wake Forest School of Law.
The slow flow of graduate fair attendees was not because students were disinterested in postgraduate education, however. In fact, many students wanted to go to graduate schools.
The lack of students could be attributed to the fact that many already had a solid plan for what to do after graduation, and the schools they planned to attend were not part of the fair.
“My plan is to further my studies in medical laboratory science at (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill),” said senior Hailey Han. “I’m still thinking about what to do after graduation.”
There is a variety of different areas of studies students are interested in after graduation.
“I want to go to (Chapel Hill) because I want to be a dentist, and they have one of the only dental schools in the state,” said sophomore Zachary Harris.
Most students plan on staying in North Carolina, but Chapel Hill is not the only school in their mind.
“(I plan on attending) Duke (to study) either computer science or finance,” said senior Yves Dusenge.
The Guilford graduate school fair treated students who attended with quality information about the programs present.
