You won’t take your journey at PC alone. From the first day of classes to graduation, you’ll have others to help you along the way.

You’ll also have a program called Compass to help you navigate through college. It’s a program that helps you make academic and career decisions so that you can be successful in college and after PC.

Your Very Own Guide

Compass helps you decide on a major and figure out what you want to do after you graduate. As a PC student, you’ll have support from all areas of the College and career services materials right in the classroom.

You also get to learn from experts in your field of interest as soon as you get here through hands-on classes on topics like astronomy, music, religion, math, science, medicine, dance and more. These classes are called first- and second-year exploration courses.

Shoot for the Stars

Adrianna Cody had an idea of the area she wanted to study when she first came to PC. She’s always liked the sciences and has a natural curiosity about the stars. So, she chose astronomy as her first-year exploration course.

She took her second-year course, the Speed of Light, because she enjoyed getting to use telescopes. Through the course, she had a reason to stay up and look at the stars and make observations that you can’t see with the naked eye.

“It’s like a microscope, making something so small relative to us so much larger,” Adrianna said.

“I just find it amazing that there is so much more to the universe than what is here on earth.”

The Speed of Light course is named after one of the projects, where students determine the speed of light and also measure the distance between the earth and moon.

But Adrianna did more than stargazing during her classes. She says she learned efficient time management, problem-solving, teamwork and how to better organize her resume.

“Those classes really tested me because looking up at the stars and finding patterns is much more difficult than a person would think but so rewarding when you get the hang of it,” she said.

“Time management came from having to do some pretty intense research and calculations that would determine if everything was in a viewing position on a certain night and time while still managing to keep up other class requirements.”

Finding Her Way

She also realized she did not want to be a math or physics major, even though she admires those who choose that path. Adrianna instead became a biology major minoring in chemistry and Spanish.

“The courses helped me realize my passion was definitely more toward a biological and chemical aspect hence why I am a biology major and looking to do research and pharmacy in the future,” she said.

Adrianna is planning to go to graduate school and earn a PhD in research. She also plans to enroll in Pharmacy School.

Plus, she says, those skills she learned like teamwork and problem-solving are things she can apply to almost any setting after she graduates from PC.

“I am really glad I took the time and put in the effort to do well in both courses,” she said.

Learn More

Adrianna set her sights on biology, chemistry and Spanish. Learn more about how Compass can help guide you in your academic and career interests.