Rachael Morong is living proof that an education at Great Bay Community College provides tangible returns long after graduation.
Morong enrolled at Great Bay in 2019, graduated in 2021 with an associate degree in psychology, then transferred to the University of New Hampshire where she earned her BA in 2023. She is currently working towards her master’s in K-12 counseling at Plymouth State University and recently returned to Great Bay as part of her coursework.
Morong is job shadowing Career Coach Kathleen Totten in Great Bay’s Career Center, attending events, meetings, and appointments. She will be back on campus for about 20 hours throughout the semester.
Coming back to Great Bay has been both fun and rewarding, Morong said. “It’s super cool to come back,” she said. “One of my classes this semester is career counseling and development, and it requires observation and shadowing. That can be done anywhere. I had such a good experience at Great Bay, it seemed like a perfect place to do this work.”
Her decision to major in psychology at Great Bay led directly to her career choice in K-12 counseling at Plymouth State. “My experience at Great Bay opened my eyes to the many career paths that a psychology degree can lead. As I began to think about my master’s, I was interested in social services, counseling, and those kinds of fields. School counseling seemed like it checked all my boxes. I want to help kids with typical kid problems.”
During her job-shadowing at Great Bay, she hopes to interact with students as they ponder questions about majors and career paths. She is interested in attending internship fairs for technical programs to learn about the many tech options available to students, as well.
She expects to graduate from Plymouth State in 2026 and then begin working in the field.
Among the messages she has for students currently enrolled at Great Bay or contemplating doing so is that the college always puts its students first and is fiercely dedicated toward their success. In addition to providing her educational foundation, Great Bay made it easy to transfer to UNH to continue her education and accomplish her goals.
Morong had a great experience at UNH and is enjoying her time at Plymouth State. But Great Bay stands out because of the personal nature of the education, where small class sizes and professors and an administration invested in student success creates a caring and supportive community.
“You can have a relationship with your professors, and those relationships are really important and had a big impact on my life.”
Her return to Great Bay this semester proves that impact lasts long after graduation.
