By Danna Chavez Calvi '16
A Nebraska native who originally came in as a History major and later opted to switch around his major, Scott McGinley, assures prospective students taht they should definitely come to Mason because of the quality professors it offers. He believes his time at Mason has been well spent because of them.
“I came in as a history major, then I took some ECON courses and I really liked them. So I decided I would minor in ECON and major in history, but then I couldn’t stop taking ECON courses so I switched it around,” says McGinley.
So what made him like the economic courses so much? “The professors. It’s ridiculous how good they are, I’ve hardly had any that weren’t awesome,” affirms McGinley. At first McGinley was guided by word of mouth from friends who would encourage him to take particular professors. Later he began relying on sites like ratemyprofessor, but now he has little to no need for that as he has grown to know some of the best faculty within his department and the school.
As far as favorite professors go, McGinley has a hard time picking just one. Nevertheless, he believes Dr. Michael W. Nickens from the School of Music, Tom Rustici and Jay Cochran from the Economics Department, are definitely in his top three spots.
According to McGinley, Dr. Nickens, the Director of the Pep Band (Doc Nix and the Green Machine), has a unique way of describing and translating music to his students. “It’s one of the reasons we’re so good,” McGinley assures.
As far as Tom Rustici and Jay Cochran from the Economics Department go, McGinley believes their passion translates into their work and it is evident they love the school and what they teach. As a result, it makes it easier to engage their students. He even describes Jay Cochran as an adjunct professor who is often “under the radar but he’s really like a hidden jewel.”
One of the classes he has most enjoyed has been one regarding the history of China, taught by Professor Michael Chang, an associate professor at George Mason University. “A lot of professors in the history department are also really good, but Chang would relate it to real life and the modern world so well. He would connect things from the past and sometimes I think he wouldn’t even realize he was doing it,” says McGinley.
While at Mason, McGinley has been an active member of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars and the Green Machine Pep Band. Though unsure yet of where he would like to work in the future, he is certainly giving more school a serious consideration. “Mason is a school I would consider for a master’s in business, economics, or law. I would almost do that just to take more professors because there are a few that only teach graduate courses now.”