Student Outcomes, Diversity and Learning Environment Push UML into Top
06/12/2024
By Jill Gambon
As an undergraduate, business major Angel Molekunnel has already built an impressive résumé: Intern for a state representative. VP of the Student Government Association. Student alumni ambassador. Social media coordinator at a nonprofit.
She even served as an international management consultant, by way of a service-learning trip to Panama, where she advised a chicken farmer on new, more profitable business models.
Molekunnel, who emigrated from Kuwait to Massachusetts when she was 16, says the environment at UMass Lowell has allowed her to flourish.
“UMass Lowell is a great place to be, especially if you put yourself out there and seek opportunity,” says the UML junior. “There’s a very good mix of diversity, and there’s a constant push toward including more people.”
Experiences like Molekunnel’s helped push UMass Lowell to the top of The Wall Street Journal’s rankings of Massachusetts public universities.
In its 2024 Best Colleges in the United States ranking, the Journal named UMass Lowell the No. 1 public university in Massachusetts and No. 10 among all schools in the state. The rankings took into account student outcomes, learning environment and diversity.
A degree from UMass Lowell pays off over the long run, according to The Wall Street Journal: Its findings peg the value of UMass Lowell students’ return on their education investment as more than $35,000 higher than the salary impact of similar universities.
“We provide more than an excellent education in preparing UMass Lowell students for success in their next chapter,” says Chancellor Julie Chen. “We also help them apply that classroom knowledge to a professional setting and make our alumni highly sought by employers.”
The university has made it a priority for students in every major to have career-related experiences—whether internships, co-op jobs or service-learning courses. It recently expanded that effort with The UML Guarantee, an initiative in which every first-time, first-year student has the opportunity to pursue at least one career-connected experience during their undergraduate years, earning pay, course credits or both before graduating.
Molekunnel says her experiences have helped her develop leadership skills and opened the door to new possibilities for careers. She’s considering pursuing a job as a cybersecurity analyst and, eventually, becoming a college professor. Thanks to the breadth of experiences she’s had at UMass Lowell, she knows she will have no shortage of options.
“The quality of education at UMass Lowell is amazing,” she says. “At the end of the day, it’s about what you learn.”
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Word count: 406