The Team Behind Your Dream: Student Advisors Find Pride and Gratification Cheering on Maryville Grads

Our student support team discusses the satisfaction of attending the 2025 commencement ceremonies to celebrate the milestones and accomplishments of online and on-campus learners alike.

At Maryville University, we pride ourselves on providing dedicated service and support to our learners — from application through graduation.

And at our spring 2025 commencement ceremony, some of our online student support advisors got the opportunity to live out that mission by showing up to cheer on their graduating students.

“It was a deeply meaningful experience and offered a powerful reminder of the real impact our work has on students’ lives,” says Annie Z., one of our student support advisors. “Seeing our students in person — celebrating, smiling, and in some cases, crying tears of pride — truly put into perspective how much they have sacrificed and overcome to reach this milestone.”

Maryville’s commencement ceremonies took place between April 26 and May 4 and featured more than 1,000 graduates across 18 degree programs — almost half of whom graduated with honors. Highlighting our global student body, graduates and their families in attendance represented at least 36 states and 12 countries.

As with all Maryville commencement events, online learners and their families were encouraged to join the festivities alongside on-campus students, giving them the opportunity to tour our campus, meet colleagues and professors in person, and visit surrounding areas around St. Louis.

For our dedicated support team, this is a moving and momentous event that reminds them of the importance of the connections they forge.

Our student support team is fully invested in learner success, and they work tirelessly to establish connections and build relationships with the learners they serve — to help them celebrate wins, navigate challenges, and accomplish their education goals.

Having the opportunity to see it all pay off at commencement energizes them with a sense of gratification and pride in the impact they’ve made.

Jennea A., a student support manager who also was able to attend this year’s in-person commencement events, recalls speaking with a graduate who overcame personal challenges and moments of doubt thanks to the dedicated support of her advisor, Jazmin.

“There was a moment in the program where she questioned if she belonged and if she should continue doing this,” says Jennea. “She was in a difficult part of the program and had other personal things going on. She called her advisor, Jazmin, and she shared how supportive and encouraging Jazmin was to her in this moment — and many other moments after. And now, here she was today at graduation.”

With her long history of supporting learners throughout their time at Maryville as an advisor and manager, Jennea understands fully the impact strong support can have on a learner’s experience and success. For more than a decade, she’s worked to help students reach this major milestone, and she counts graduation among her highlights each year.

Graduation serves as a wonderful time for learners to reflect on the challenges and accomplishments they’ve experienced while pursuing their education. With Maryville’s focus on empowering graduates not just for their next step but for the rest of their careers, commencement is also a celebration of everything yet to come.

By speaking with graduates at commencement, student support team members like Annie and Jennea are able to share in the celebration of their accomplishments — and to allow graduates’ stories to inspire future learners.

“A standout moment was meeting a student graduating with her MSN-FNP who was selected for a highly competitive fellowship — one of only four people to receive this honor from a large applicant pool,” Annie says. “She felt that her Maryville education played a key role in preparing her for this next step.”

Owing in part to the strong support graduates receive and the success-oriented, real-world education Maryville emphasizes, graduates benefit from a rate of 98% positive career outcomes within six months of graduation.

For many graduates, success is immediate.

At Maryville, we believe in providing a rigorous learning environment within the classroom — but also that everything outside the classroom should be simple and streamlined.

Our dedicated support team is always available to guide and assist learners throughout their education journeys and help ensure success through personalized counseling and advising. But they’re part of a larger network of support.

Online learners and nursing students also get access to resources like nursing preceptor assistance, 24/7 technical support and 24/7 tutoring availability, online library access, instructional webinars and orientation presentations, degree-specific student groups, and career readiness and networking resources.

They also have access to the MyMaryville community website, which allows them to find answers to questions they may have, stay informed on university-related news and events, and connect with other learners, faculty, and staff.

This all serves to establish a culture of support and a sense of belonging for on-campus and online learners alike.

While at the graduation ceremony, Annie spoke with nursing students with whom she had worked who showed how important a close-knit, communal feeling can be. She recalls one graduate who traveled to commencement alone, but who found an immediate bond when she finally met her peers in person.

The learner made time for her education while also fulfilling her role as a mother and nurse, and graduation was a satisfying conclusion for that portion of the journey. But it won’t be the end of her nursing education.

“She shared how much she loved her Maryville experience,” Annie says. “So much so that she’s returning this fall to pursue the MSN-PMHNP program.”

Support team members like Annie and Jennea are honored to work so closely with each learner and share these moments — big and small — with the students they serve and advise. The relationships they build with learners lead to a fuller understanding of each person’s unique circumstances, goals, and challenges — in their education and beyond.

The high level of personalized support and communication they have with each learner makes it that much more satisfying to meet students in person at the ceremony and to celebrate them as they walk across the stage.

“The team is with students often through the most difficult and challenging moments of their lives,” Jennea says. “It really does bring things full circle when they are able to celebrate in the most joyous moments too.”

If you’re ready to take the next step in your nursing education online with full, personalized support from application through graduation, discover how Maryville can help you be brave and pursue your educational and professional goals. Check out our online nursing degrees and certificates, or schedule a call with an advisor to learn more.