“Great Bay provided the framework I needed to do what I didn’t do with my bachelor degree, which was actually learn how to study and engage with the material.”

Jordan Fusco knows exactly where she wants to go in life and how Great Bay Community College can help her get there.

Fusco, 25, graduated from Great Bay in August with an Associate Degree in Technical Studies and a certificate in massage therapy, and is back this semester to load up on science classes to prepare her for a career as a doctor of Naturopathic Medicine, an alternative approach to healing that crosses pharmacology, nutrition and physical medicine like massage therapy.

She worked closely with Great Bay Academic and Student Support Advisor Jenna Anand to identify the classes she needs based on the admission requirements of the handful of schools in the country that offer degrees in Naturopathic Medicine.

“I talked to Jenna about my goals, and she had it all set up in a day for me,” said Fusco, who lives Nottingham. “She even talked to the admission department at my top-choice school and got a course-track worked out with them so that I would have all the prerequisites I need.”

That’s the kind of personal attention Fusco has come to expect from Great Bay. When she enrolled in August 2019 to study massage therapy, she already had a Bachelor Degree in history from the University of New Hampshire. After spending four years and about $120,000 at UNH, she realized she had chosen the wrong path.

“I love museums and the world of nonprofits, but I was being called toward holistic healing. I knew a lot of people who went through the massage therapy program at Great Bay, and I knew it was a great program,” she said.

After consulting with the advising department at Great Bay, she learned she could turn the certificate in massage therapy into an Associate Degree by taking a single additional math class, which she did. And she enjoyed massage therapy so much, she decided to stick with science.

This fall, she enrolled as biology major and is taking a full slate of biology, chemistry, anatomy, and psychology classes, and will continue her studies in the spring. If all goes well, she will enroll at Bastyr University in Washington State a year from now with a goal of getting both her Master and Doctorate degrees.

Given that she considered herself an average student at UNH, she was nervous about trying again at college and worried about spending more money on a degree she might not use. “But Great Bay gave me confidence in my education. Great Bay provided the framework I needed to do what I didn’t do with my bachelor degree, which was actually learn how to study and engage with the material,” she said.

“The fact that I can take all the classes that I need for a quarter of the price and get to where I want to be is pretty incredible. I am so grateful for Great Bay.”