How Adanze Chukwuocha Chose a New Path for Her Master’s

When Adanze Chukwuocha '23G finished her bachelor’s degree, her journey was really just getting started.

After graduation, she switched programs and started working to earn her master's in English and creative writing from Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU). It took a lot of hard work, but she crossed that second finish line, too, and traveled from Maryland to Manchester, New Hampshire, to celebrate at Commencement.

"This degree actually has been a long time coming. There have been some obstacles," she said. "I've been working, I've been stressing."

But she made it to the end. And this time, her graduation was commemorating something she was truly excited about. "I wanted to get a better job. I wanted to better myself, and I wanted to do something that I'm passionate about, which is why I chose English and creative writing," she said.

Chukwuocha said her bachelor’s was in a subject that she wasn't very passionate about. When she decided to earn a master’s degree, she knew she wanted to do something that would be more personally fulfilling. “I was very upset. I wasn’t doing what I loved. I wasn’t the person who I thought I was going to be,” she said.

Now, things have changed. “With the experience I’ve gained, I’m just a better person, and I'm very, very thankful for that,” she said. "I want to write professionally. I want to perform. There are a lot of things I want to do, and I think this degree is a great next step on my journey."

The degree helped Chukwuocha improve her writing skills and move closer to her goals. "I finished a story that I worked on for years and years, and I finally got the support from my professors, my classmates,” she said.

She noted her academic advisor was a huge help throughout her program, frequently calling to check in. Her instructors provided her with a lot of guidance along the way, too.

"My professors really cared about me and my success," she said. "There have been resources that have been given to me by my professors, and I definitely know what to do next after I leave."

With this accomplishment, Chukwuocha became the first person in her family to earn a master’s degree. "Also my mom is getting her master's degree this year,” she said. "I'm very thankful for being the first, but I'm not the last.”

Mars Girolimon '21 '23G is a staff writer at Southern New Hampshire University where they earned their bachelor's and master's, both in English and creative writing. In addition to their work in higher education, Girolimon's short fiction is published in the North American Review, So It Goes by The Kurt Vonnegut Museum & Library, X-R-A-Y and more. Connect with them on LinkedIn.