With seniors graduating in just a matter of weeks, a big topic that comes with graduation is college. Due to scholarships and Bright Futures many students choose to stay in Florida, however, the latter choose the out of state option. 

“I have never loved the way Florida works and I’ve always loved the culture and the weather up North,” said senior Jamie Hlister, who will be attending the University of Massachusetts Amherst. 

For many students a major reason for going out of state is for college programs or the subject they want to major in as well. 

“[Purdue] is an engineering dominated school, and out of that, aerospace is the top at Purdue,” said senior Keshav Narayanan. 

On the other hand, senior Emma Elkins chose Auburn because of the original major she wanted to go into. 

“I originally wanted to major in criminology, so I applied to colleges with great criminology programs, out of state,” said Elkins, now majoring in nursing. 

Although these students have always wanted to go out of state, missing home is always a part of going to college, whether students choose to stay in Florida or not. 

“Definitely my family and my friends, and where I’m going they don’t have a lot of the same foods. There’re also a few restaurants here, like sushi, that I’m going to miss dearly,” said Hlister. 

Going out of state can be tough, but it also allows students to take control of what they wish to do, even with life after college. 

“After college I’m planning to become a CEO or the owner of a company in the aerospace industry, but [I’m] open to moving anywhere, maybe even internationally,” said Narayanan. 

Clearly, wanting to go out of state is a well thought out process, but we wish our Warriors the best no matter where they chose to go!