When Allison Price crossed the stage during Saturday’s commencement ceremony at Missouri Southern, it marked the culmination of the work she had put in to receive bachelor’s degrees in marketing and management.
And it was work she completed in just two and a half years.
Just 19 years old, Price is now considering offers for internships at two local marketing companies and looking ahead to graduate school.
“I took some dual credit classes in high school and (took the College-Level Examination Program for) biology,” she said, noting she began her studies at Missouri Southern with a number of credit hours already in the bank. “I took 18 credit hours during the regular school year, and 9 during the summer.
“My goal was to graduate in three years, but I added on to my summer classes to be able to graduate in December instead.”
Though Price said the majority of her classes were taken online, she still found it important to be involved on campus. In addition to being a member of Phi Eta Sigma, the freshman honor society, she also joined the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority.
“While I was mostly doing everything online, being able to be involved on campus was a bonus for me,” she said.
As she’s looking at potential graduate programs – including the business analytics master’s program at Perdue University – she’s hoping an internship will help bring her interests more into focus.
As for graduating at such a young age, Price said most people she encountered on campus were unaware.
“Most people didn’t ask how old I was,” she said. “If you carry yourself well (people don’t notice). But I did have a few friends here who were shocked when they found out.”