Kevin Tierney, who is pursuing the History (BS) - Multidisciplinary degree, calls his study of history a lifelong passion.
“Since I was very young, I read books about people and about nations from antiquity through the modern era,” said Tierney, who was a junior in Fall 2015.
But as a first-year history student at Appalachian, Tierney was often asked what he planned to do with his degree. He was unable to answer that question – until he met with his advisor to discuss his future.
His advisor, Dr. Scott Jessee, “gave me an incredible amount of confidence and an ability to really look forward to my graduate life,” Tierney said.
“I’d love to apply my degree to a job in the conservation of historical areas, ideally pursue my degree further into grad school and one day teach,” he said. “However, in the meantime, I’ve given consideration to other jobs, namely going to law school.&rdqKevin uo;
When you study history at Appalachian, you’re assigned an advisor, and Tierney calls that “one of the most useful services” provided by the Department of History. He urged students of history at Appalachian to take advantage of the advisors’ “wealth of knowledge.”
He added, “The faculty are all so happy to teach what they do, and being so knowledgeable, they will help students with any questions they may have.”
Tierney mentioned several other advantages of studying history at Appalachian – including a trove of historical primary sources of the United Kingdom. He called his professors “highly educated” and he finds his classes, and homework, intellectually stimulating.
“I encourage any prospective student to take a few history classes on topics that fascinate you,” he said.