Nasrin Musa

Name:  ​Nasrin Y. Musa

Major: ​Liberal arts: psychology, and art & design: photography

Hometown: ​Yucaipa, California

GPA:​ 3.54

High School and Year of Graduation: ​Pentucket Regional High School, 2016

What brought you to NECC? It was an affordable school, close to home, and had the programs I needed.

Why did you choose your major? ​I chose psychology because I’ve always been fascinated with how people’s minds work, and I wanted to become a therapist to help young adults suffering through mental illnesses. As I continued my education at NECC I learned about art therapy, and that became my focus.

What are you planning for fall, 2020? ​For Fall 2020 I’m planning on attending Montserrat College of Art and Design in Beverly.

What did you appreciate most about NECC? ​I really appreciated how much financial aid was available. It made continuing classes much easier.

Was there a faculty or staff member who was especially helpful? If yes, how did they help you? ​There were several staff members who were helpful to me during my years at NECC. One of them was Professor Krista Titone. She was an amazing psychology teacher and mentor. I learned so much in her classes, not just about information from class,  but about people and the world. She made learning exciting… Two other staff members who really helped a lot were Anne Eshbaugh and Steven DiLeo. They gave me the amazing opportunity of working in the mailroom, and made it fun. They were always friendly and helpful and just a pleasure to be around. Anne was always so cheerful and made coming into work a joy. We would talk about photography and have really nice conversations. Another staff member who made my experience at NECC better was Linda in maintenance. Whenever I did my mail runs I would stop in and say hi to her. She’s such a nice and funny person. I’m going to miss seeing her.

Were you involved in any extracurricular activities? ​No, but I did have some poetry published in the 2018-2019 Parnassus (student literary) Magazine.

What surprised you most about NECC? ​The friends and relationships I made along the way. I didn’t think you could really have adventures at a community college, I thought you needed a University for that. But it really just depends on who’s around you. And I met some great people at NECC to have adventures with. What also surprised me was how beautiful campus could be. Whenever I got there really early in the morning I would always admire how the sun hit the trees. During the spring and summer everything was so green. The campus had some really beautiful moments.

What advice would you give an incoming NECC freshman? ​Try not to procrastinate too much; deadlines can really sneak up on you. Be open to trying new things. College is a time for figuring out who you are and you never know what might help you do that. It could be taking an elective that has nothing to do with your major, or reaching out and talking to someone new. There are great opportunities everywhere if you keep looking.

What would people be surprised to know about you? ​People might be surprised to know that I grew up watching the cartoon “Woody Woodpecker” in Arabic, since my dad is from Jordan. And now when I try to watch it in English I just can’t seem to find it as funny.

What were the biggest challenges that you faced in pursuit of your associate degree? ​The biggest challenges I’ve faced were probably balancing school, work, and a personal life. Another challenge would be making sure to stay on top of taking care of my mental health when things would get stressful; that was a learning curve.

What are your long term career/education plans? ​My long-term career plans include: becoming an author and doing something big with photography.