Bachelor’s Degree Completion Application Success Workshop

During our Bachelor’s Completion Application Success Workshops, you’ll receive personalized, hands-on support to help you take your next steps. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about:

Bachelor’s Degree Completion Application Success Workshop

During our Bachelor’s Completion Application Success Workshops, you’ll receive personalized, hands-on support to help you take your next steps. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about:

Bachelor’s Degree Completion Application Success Workshop

During our Bachelor’s Completion Application Success Workshops, you’ll receive personalized, hands-on support to help you take your next steps. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about:

Bachelor’s Degree Completion Application Success Workshop

During our Bachelor’s Completion Application Success Workshops, you’ll receive personalized, hands-on support to help you take your next steps. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about:

Bachelor’s Degree Completion Application Success Workshop

During our Bachelor’s Completion Application Success Workshops, you’ll receive personalized, hands-on support to help you take your next steps. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about:

Bachelor’s Degree Completion Application Success Workshop

During our Bachelor’s Completion Application Success Workshops, you’ll receive personalized, hands-on support to help you take your next steps. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about:

Bachelor’s Degree Completion Application Success Workshop

During our Bachelor’s Completion Application Success Workshops, you’ll receive personalized, hands-on support to help you take your next steps. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about:

  • Our no-fee application and the review timeline.
  • Instructions for accessing the application portal.
  • What transcripts are needed and how to obtain them.
  • Which credits will transfer and how they are confirmed.
  • All applicants will also be automatically considered for scholarships of up to $10,000 to be awarded within their decision letter.

The Spirit of Giving: From Co-op Student to Donor 

Alumni Spotlight: Jim Nolan, BA Business & Administration ‘71

by Natalie Bowers

Few understand the value of co-op education quite like Jim Nolan.  

As a graduate of the College of Professional Studies, BA Business & Administration ‘71, and lifetime career in commercial real estate, Nolan encourages everyone to embrace the practice of philanthropy. His guiding principle is simple yet profound, “engage in giving back in any capacity possible, no matter how small, because every act contributes to a greater good.”   

Nolan’s formative years were influenced by his parents’ strong family values and his father’s military career, which involved multiple relocations around the globe and exposed him to many different cultures. He graduated high school at a small school in Ankara, Turkey’s capital, which was mostly populated by expat students, children of employees of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the US Embassy and Joint American Military Mission to Aid Turkey (JAMMAT).  

He said, “Coming from the military mindset, I never understood the world of business; I didn’t know there was such a thing as business, and I didn’t know what an entrepreneur was. There is no ‘profit motive’ in the military, there are just missions and objectives. You do whatever it is that needs to be done that day.”  

When it was time to submit college applications, Nolan aspired to pursue a career in teaching, influenced by the positive impact of his high school English teacher, Mrs. Vick. His mother’s best friend in Ankara was the daughter of Herb Gallagher, the Athletic Director at Northeastern University at the time. Both she and her husband were Northeastern graduates and their experience with the university inspired Nolan to apply to the School of Education. Despite never having set foot in Boston before, he was accepted.  

His first visit to Boston coincided with the start of his first semester as an English major in the Northeastern University College of Education. He said, “I boarded a plane from Turkey, arrived at JFK airport with only $50 in my pocket, purchased a bus ticket, and got off at Copley Square.” He then settled into the dorms located at 129 Hemingway Street, Boston. Upon his arrival, he was greeted with two military footlockers containing everything he owned.  

His parents agreed to pay for tuition and board, but Nolan had to earn money for everything else. During his freshman year, he secured a few small jobs, washing dishes at the girl’s dormitory and with Northeastern’s building and grounds when needed. By combining earnings from these jobs, he was able to cover most of his college expenses, graduating with a loan of just $1,200, roughly equivalent to $25,000 in today’s dollars. 

The Co-op Experience 

In his first year at Northeastern, Nolan met with his co-op coordinator to arrange a work experience. The challenge for the coordinator was that the job had to be related to education and provide room and board. Jim was open to opportunities, and the coordinator recommended he look at occupational therapist roles offered at Fairfields Hospital, a psychiatric hospital in Newtown, Connecticut.  

“It was a beautiful campus, no gates, every building was a colonial five story building,” Nolan said, remembering his time there. He recalls arriving at the hospital, heading to the administrative building to get the room key, and settling into an 18×12 wide room with a sink and bathroom down the hall. “I unpacked feeling a little strange and went downstairs to the basement rec room. I saw other people there, they were acting a little rambunctious, and I said, ‘holy moly they put me in with the patients.’ But they were the orderlies!”  

Nolan’s next experiential work opportunity was with the Aetna Life and Casualty Company in Richmond, Virginia. Again, Nolan met with his coordinator and focused his job search on Virginia, as his parents were relocating from Turkey to live there. While with Aetna Life, he received free room and board, as well as laundry service. After two co-op periods with the company, Nolan realized his interest in business and finance and transitioned out of the College of Education to University College, now known as the College of Professional Studies. He switched his major to Business Administration and Management and added two additional years at Northeastern to complete his degree.  

“Giving is a joyful experience. If you are at Northeastern, you have got to be immersed in the programs that are offered and take every advantage that is thrown at you. Then give back.” 

Jim Nolan

While he caught up with his new major, Nolan held other positions with the Employers Commercial Union, the Security Insurance Company, the US Post office and Bradley’s Stop and Shop. As he moved closer to graduation, he again called on the assistance of his co-op coordinator for advice and job recommendations. He was recommended to take the Civil Service Examination and apply with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).  

He spent the next seven years in a variety of positions and responsibilities with the FDIC, the last two years serving as the Assistant Liquidator of American Bank and Trust company in New York. Finally, Nolan decided it might be time to go out on his own. 

Going Out On His Own. 

After his tenure with the FDIC, Nolan spent the next three years as the Head of Real Estate Acquisitions for a Miami-based company, First Capital. He then had a brief stint as President of MDC Equities in Denver, Colorado. It was in Denver that Nolan met his future partner, and together they co-founded United Trust Fund (UTF), a privately owned real estate investment firm headquartered in Miami. His partner had a connection with a large state retirement fund to provide capital for property purchases, while Nolan’s role was to purchase, manage, and sell the investments. His partner famously said, “You buy the properties, and I will find the capital,” and that is exactly what they did for the next six years, building the name and brand of United Trust Fund (UTF).  

Starting essentially from scratch in 1982, Nolan and his partner grew the company to institutional status. To enhance the company’s capital structure, he hired an investment banker in New York. Deloitte and Touche were engaged to conduct a three-year back audit, and an investment offering was prepared. Nolan remarked, “I learned all of this through my Northeastern co-op experience and my time with the FDIC.” A list of 100 institutional prospects was made, and within one-year, Metropolitan Life closed on a 20% interest in UTF.  

Nolan successfully built his business while raising his three young children and volunteering his time as a Northeastern alum, attending local college fairs, and actively engaging in numerous nonprofit organizations. 

Philanthropy 

Nolan’s own family’s value of giving, coupled with his award of the Joseph Mullin Scholarship in his last year at Northeastern, gave him a strong sense of the importance of giving back.

Before he was able to give money, Nolan volunteered his time. He represented the university in the local college admission process, attended college fairs, and met with prospective students to promote Northeastern and its co-op program. He continued in that role for ten years, covering Florida and other parts of the southeastern part of the country.  

Eventually, he established the Nolan Family Scholarship for students with learning challenges, starting with a donation of $25,000 and aiming to increase it to $100,000. He has not only achieved this goal but has been able to contribute even more to the fund. 

At a dinner in Miami, Richard Freeland, then-president of Northeastern, solicited Nolan to serve on the University’s Board of Incorporators which he served on for more than ten years, actively engaged in the Admission Committee, the Student Affairs Committee, the Building Committee and finally, serving five years on the University’s Financial Affairs Committee.  

His breadth of involvement reflects Nolan’s dedication to making a meaningful impact on service and leadership. “When I had time, I gave time; and when I had money, I gave money.”, he said.

“Northeastern co-op provided experience and work ethic for my future and that fueled my desire to give back”

-Jim Nolan

A Mother’s Journey Through College: Catherine Kigiri, BS in Advanced Manufacturing Systems, First Gen

by Natalie Bowers

Originally from Kiambu, Kenya, an agricultural village just eight miles outside of Nairobi, Catherine Kigiri arrived in Boston in 2000 on a visitor visa and was the only member of her family to take the trip. Upon arrival, she stayed with a friend who was from her village and who settled in Quincy a few years earlier.  

After some time, Kigiri decided that she wanted to stay a little longer. She discovered that unlike Kenya’s school system, American schools opened their doors to nontraditional students, and she saw an opportunity for herself to become a first generation college graduate. Kagiri first thought about applying to a nursing program, but she did not have the resources to enroll. Instead, she applied for a student visa and enrolled at Quincy College. 

To support herself, she secured an entry level job as an inspector at GE Aerospace in Lynn, MA, taking the second shift, a shift that typically begins at 3:00 P.M. and ends at 11:00 P.M. This work schedule gave Kigiri the flexibility to attend classes in the daytime. 

While she studied part time and worked at GE Aviation, her life progressed. She met a man, married him and had three children. Her two sisters back home in Kiambu graduated high school and needed money to attend college. She volunteered to send money back home to pay for her sisters’ academic pursuits. She raised her children and made a home for them. 

Kigiri graduated Quincy College with her associates degree in liberal arts and sciences. GE offered her the first shift, and when she started her new work schedule, she learned about the partnership between Northeastern College of Professional Studies and GE. Aligned with federal workforce development objectives, Northeastern and GE co-developed the BS in Advanced Manufacturing Systems, which incorporates state-of-the-art manufacturing techniques in use across the industry. In the program, students apply those techniques in a real-world manufacturing environment.

The collaboration was made possible through the Department of Education’s Educational Quality Through Innovative Partnerships (EQUIP) experiment, an initiative aimed at improving students’ access to a high-quality postsecondary education in fast-growing industries. GE employees can complete the program within three years, or in as little as one-and-a-half years for those with prior college experience. The program also offers tuition reimbursement. 

Before Kagiri entered the program in October of 2019, she told her husband that she was planning to enter the program, “to better my family and be an example for our kids”, she said. Her husband told her he would support her, but the marriage broke not long after the first semester started. By December 2019, the couple had separated. 

“That is when I decided to really commit to my educational goal. I knew that if I took one class at a time, I could push myself to do it.”

Catherine Kigiri BS in Advanced Manufacturing Systems, First Gen

Around this time, back home in Kiambu, her father was diagnosed with cancer. Kagiri, a newly single parent, now had to take a second job to support his treatment. Still, Kagiri stayed the academic course.  

The pandemic hit the following year and her courses switched to online. Many of her fellow classmates dropped out of the program but Kagiri did not quit.  She said, “I needed to be an example for my kids to work hard. It was tough to continue going to school, provide financial support to my family in Kenya, and raise three kids without help, but Professor [Krassimir] Marchev encouraged me to continue to push myself. He always said, ‘Just focus on one day at a time’ and that’s exactly what I did.” 

Krassimir Marchev, Professor of the Practice, CPS, credited with spearheading the GE partnership on behalf of CPS, said, “Catherine exemplifies, in many respects, the student population of hard-working, committed, family-oriented professionals.” 

Kagiri describes her children, three boys, Denzel, 16; Edward, 10; and Imara 7, as being extremely supportive. “They all were incredibly helpful. If I was attending an online course in the house, they would occupy themselves by doing the dishes, sweeping the floor and then they’d ask ‘mommy were we quiet enough for you?’ They wanted to know if I passed my exams whenever they came up and they were just so supportive of me.”, she said.   

Despite the program’s tuition reimbursement, Kagiri struggled to cover additional expenses such as books and childcare. The financial burden of using her time to attend classes instead of working was crippling. Professor Marchev advised her to apply for Northeastern scholarships, including the Robert Rosenberg, Lowell, and Paul J. Theriault Memorial scholarships, enabling Kagiri to stay focused on graduating. 

“I am so grateful for all the people who donate money, I would not have been able to afford to go to college otherwise. And now, here I am with three kids, one job, graduating with zero crippling debt.”, she said. 

Her father passed away in May of 2023, and Kagiri’s graduation marked the one-year anniversary of his death. “The [graduation] ceremony was particularly emotional because I had hoped he could witness this great achievement.” she said.

Kagiri attributes her drive for academic achievement to her mother, a teacher who prioritized her children’s education despite being unable to afford college for them. 

“I am not just an example for single parents, but for all parents. Take your time and push yourself. You must push yourself every single day. My children are my number one hero. I do this for them. Go to school, be a better person. I set that example to my kids.”  

Her advice for any other parent, single or otherwise: “Just take one class at a time and say “I am beginning today”. Don’t drop out because it is so hard to get back into the routine. Even if it means taking one class at a time, whatever time it takes to finish; I didn’t worry about finishing. In fact, now I’m worried that I’m finished!” 

When asked what her future brings, Kagiri said, “I want to enjoy and celebrate this milestone before I think of my next move. I still cannot believe this is happening to me.” 

Ted Miller, Professor of Political History at Northeastern CPS, Speaks to WBUR

Edward (Ted) Miller, professor of political history at CPS joined WBUR’s “On Point” to address the vital question: “Is the United States a Republic or a Democracy.” As the nation navigates yet another presidential election year, Miller delves into the historical aspects of this question and shares insights into who we are as a country. The entire conversation is fascinating, but you can find Miller voice his perspective at the 21-minute mark.

Is the U.S. a democracy?
May 03, 2024