September 23, 2022

Ferris chose Great Bay to start his college career because he was confident in Great Bay’s support services for students

Alexander Ferris has a clear idea where he wants to go in life, and his path leads directly through Great Bay Community College. Ferris, 21 of Stratham, is double majoring in analytics and engineering and expects to graduate from Great Bay with associate degrees in both subjects in spring 2023.

After that, he hopes to pursue his bachelor’s degree and then make his career analyzing data in some sort of a sports capacity. “I started with just analytics because I thought it was more black and white — and because I want to become a sports statistician,” said Ferris. “I added engineering because I found there was so much overlap in the class requirements.”

He chose Great Bay to start his college career because he was confident in Great Bay’s support services for students, particularly those offered through the Center for Academic Planning and Support, or CAPS. Offering free support, CAPS is a multi-service center designed to support students in all their academic needs.

“I am able to get the tutoring I need through CAPS, which I really appreciate,” Ferris said. “I also like that Great Bay is a small environment. As someone with social anxieties, I have been able to meet some people more easily.”

Ferris has thrived at Great Bay. During the last academic year, he served as vice president of the Student Government Association and assisted in organizing events popular with students. The college recognized the SGA as the Student Organization of the Year during his time as vice president. He is glad that he got involved because it helped him make friends and become comfortable in the college environment. He’s also enjoyed attending off-campus events with college friends.

“Extra-curricular activities are important because they are a good way to make friends with other students,” he said, urging students to get involved.

Ferris currently works at Planet Fitness as a shift leader. His responsibilities include keeping statistics for the fitness club, including tracking trends in the number of new members, cancelations, and other data that reflect how the club interacts with its members and how it can improve its services.

Even before he graduates, he’s using the skills that he has learned at Great Bay and begun applying them to his working life and the early stages of his budding career.