Academics
Alcorn State University is the oldest public historically Black land-grant institution in the country, and the second-oldest state-supported higher education institution in Mississippi, having sent students of knowledge and character out into the world since 1871. The school seeks to create lifelong learners and leaders through an integrative education that combines study, experience, public service, and culture, spread across its five schools and 46 degree programs. Originally founded as an agricultural college, the School of Agriculture and Applied Sciences remains a pillar of the university, providing research opportunities, experiment stations, and the opportunity to work with small local farms via the Mississippi Small Farm and Agribusiness Center. Alcorn looks to imbue students with a global mindset, and offers multiple study abroad programs and exchange programs to diversify the perspectives of students. All who attend Alcorn can avail themselves of the University College, which is a unit that helps students set and achieve academic goals via programs such as academic advising, workshops, skills instruction, and Summer Development and Upward Bound programs. All students also take part in the First Year Experience upon matriculating at the university, which includes orientation, a First Year Seminar Course to impart learning skills, and personalized academic advising.
Career
The Southwest Mississippi Center for Culture & Learning at Alcorn State University celebrates the region’s cultural landscape via hands-on experiences, forums, and exhibitions, and pays tribute to the university’s origins as a historically Black agricultural college. More than 60 clubs and organizations, ranging from the Brave Boxing Club to the National Association of Black Accountants, let students build on their interests and make friends. The campus Union is the center for all social and recreational activity, including a ballroom that hosts orientation, fashion shows, and various other student programming; the campus fitness center and a guest house for visitors is also housed in the Union. Alcorn State University is home to eight nationally recognized fraternities and sororities that volunteer in the community and host social activities. Homecoming is also a signature event that includes a full week of activities leading up the big parade at this Division I football school, as is the annual Founder’s Day celebration.
Culture
Alcorn State has a long tradition in agriculture and its associated career paths; the School of Nursing has also produced hundreds of nurses who go on to work in a variety of health-care settings. The Office of Career Services & PreProfessional Programs provides services for students looking to enter the working world, including preparation for internships, graduate school, professional school, and job interviews, as well as networking opportunities, career days, on-campus interviews, and résumé referrals. Payscale.com says that Alcorn graduates make an average base salary of $57,000 a year. Notable alumni include civil rights activist Medgar Evers, Roots author Alex Haley, and Jennifer Riley Collins, the executive director of the Mississippi NAACP.
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