Graduate Programs

Sep 8, 2021

PRTSM Online Master’s Program Sparks a New Business for PJ Ray

Agriculture has always been a part of Patricia Joyce “PJ” Ray’s life. In the Parks, Recreation, Tourism and Sport Management (PRTSM) online master’s program, she found a way to take agriculture to the next level.  “I grew up on a tobacco, corn, soybeans, wheat and livestock farm in Pollocksville, North Carolina. I always knew I… 

Jul 19, 2021

Nettie Baugher Gets Hands-on with Horticulture Research

For Nettie Baugher, NC State’s online Master of Horticultural Science program offered the best of both worlds.  Baugher’s undergraduate degree is in horticulture, and she currently works in horticulture as a commercial horticulture area agent for Gates, Chowan, and Perquimans Counties with NC Cooperative Extension. When it came time to choose a graduate program, she decided… 

Jun 22, 2021

NC State Online Master of Forest Biomaterials Combines Engineering and Sustainability

The NC State Master of Forest Biomaterials online program combines strengths in engineering and sustainability. Apply by Nov. 25 for spring 2022 admission. 

Jun 17, 2021

Max Alff Nurtures a Passion for Plants

When Max Alff graduated high school, he didn’t initially plan to study for much longer. He enrolled in the NC State Agricultural Institute for Ornamentals and Landscape Technology, planning to get his associate degree and get out into the workforce. “I enjoy working in the landscape industry and didn’t want to spend more than two years… 

May 17, 2021

Graduate Returns to His Roots in the Online Master of Animal Science

When Dillon Mellick graduated from Coe College in 2011 with a degree in biology, he was not quite sure where he wanted to take his career. Based in Des Moines, Iowa, he joined Kemin Industries as a quality assurance auditor, but he always felt pulled back to science. Fortunately, Kemin had an open marketing and… 

May 12, 2021

Online Graduate Found a New Career in a Familiar Place

If you ask Kelsey Piper how she started her career in data, you may not expect the answer to be with a graduate degree in Wildlife Science from NC State.  “I worked for a number of years combining my passion for wildlife biology coupled with spatial analysis as a GIS biologist, and loved what I did… 

May 10, 2021

Vicky Weaver: A Growing Family and Career in the Jenkins Online MBA

As the longtime Assistant Director of Technology for GP Strategies, Vicky Weaver considered herself a “triathlete” of the learning and development software world. “I worked in pre-sales and customer engagement, participated in requirements gathering, solution design and business process improvement, and led workstreams for data migrations, integrations and reporting,” she says. But even with this… 

May 5, 2021

Active Duty Animal Science: Olivia Jones Pursues Her Passion

Olivia Jones completed the online Master of Animal Science while working as an active duty Air Force officer. 

Apr 29, 2021

John Fertig: Learning to Lead in the Online Master of Forest Biomaterials

Thirteen years ago, long-time educator John Fertig decided to make a career change. He accepted a position at one of the largest bleached board mills in the world in Covington, Virginia, where massive amounts of specialty paper products are produced.  As a training professional, he soon decided that he wanted to gain a more detailed… 

Apr 8, 2021

How Mindy McDowell Redefined Herself in the Online Master of College Counseling and Student Development

Mindy McDowell, assistant director of counseling and disability services at William Peace University (WPU), wasn’t always on the path that brought her to where she is now. Back in 2015, she faced a major life change, which she says thrust her out of an existence that had defined her for close to 30 years.  “Faced…