February Student Spotlight: Patrick MacDonald
Age: 21
Hometown: Bellingham, Ma
Major: Criminal Justice Management
Class: 2014
Patrick MacDonald is a member of the junior class at Nichols College, along with being a part of the United States Army Reserves. Despite being heavily involved with the Army, MacDonald finds time to be involved on campus. He holds one of the most important and time consuming campus positions, a Resident Assistant, a member of the Criminal Justice Club, a sprinter on the track team and a participant at a local affiliate Crossfit. When asked the most difficult part of managing all his activities, MacDonald notes the difference between military life and college life. He stated, “The military is very strict and you’re always on a schedule. In college, you have more freedom and you are responsible for waking yourself up for class in the morning.”
Like many other students, MacDonald fell in love with the small school and tight knit community that Nichols has to offer. He said that at other schools he would have just been a number in a class but at Nichols he has a name. Another reason Pat chose Nichols was because he got the opportunity to meet and speak with Professor Kimberly Charbonneau at “Accepted Students Day.” Charbonneau has been the biggest help to Pat over the past few years at Nichols and has set him on the right track for his career. Her ability to obtain internships for her students is crucial in this.
MacDonald began to envision joining the military in his junior year of high school and then decided to commit during his senior year. He saw this as an opportunity to advance his career and get him started in the right direction. It has given him experience in the work field since his goal is to one day be a Massachusetts State Police Officer. Through the military, where he is in the military police, Pat earns “promotion points” toward his career. During this journey over the past couple of years, his parents have been his biggest support system. They have always supported what he does and his dad encouraged him to choose this route since he is in the Marines as well as being a police officer.
Upon graduating from Nichols in the spring of 2014, MacDonald hopes to continue his education to earn his Master’s degree in Criminal Justice. He plans on taking the State Police exam that is coming up this April. Once he takes the exam and graduates from school, his goal is to be accepted into one of the police academies in Massachusetts.