University Of Missouri-St. Louis: Communication Graduate Michael Graham Set To Be Commissioned As Medical Service Officer

Hazelwood MO

18 May, 2022

4:05 AM

Description

Press release from the University of Missouri-St. Louis: May 14, 2022 Saturday afternoon's commencement ceremony for graduates of the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Missouri–St. Louis will be only the beginning of a week of milestones for Michael Graham. The communication major is set to be commissioned as a medical service officer in the United States Army during a ceremony on Tuesday at Graham Chapel on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis. "They're both really big, but I'm really excited for the commissioning ceremony because I've been working toward this for 10 years," Graham said. "It's going to mean a lot. It's going to be validating and rewarding that I've put in this much work and I've finally reached that next level, and it's going to be really cool to be able to say that I've been on one side of the fence in the Army and I'm going to work on the other." Graham, who grew up in Nevada, enlisted in the Army shortly after finishing high school. At the time, he'd been planning on attending college and studying engineering but changed plans after meeting with a recruiter and learning about the benefits he could receive from the G.I. Bill. "The idea of free college sounded pretty good, and I had a bit of patriotism," Graham said. "I thought, 'You know, I should serve my country.'" After taking the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery – a multiple-aptitude test meant to measure developed abilities and help predict future academic and occupational success – and with encouragement from his mother, Graham began training as a medic. He originally planned on serving a four-year commitment, but military life, with its structure and the sense of purpose it provides, has suited him. "It fits well with my personality," he said. "It gives me the freedom to make decentralized execution. I don't need to always ask my boss to get something done, but there's always an overarching goal that I know that I need to go do." Graham's time in the Army has also taken him around the world, including nine months in Kuwait and four years stationed in Germany. It was two or three years into Graham's service that one of his bosses suggested he work to become an officer. He was initially dismissive of the idea, preferring the hands-on activities with which enlisted medics are tasked. "That's the fun stuff," Graham said. Becoming an officer meant giving that up for managerial work as well as planning and logistics, and he wasn't eager to make that trade. With more time and experience, Graham found himself accepting some of those managerial and logistical responsibilities, and he realized he enjoyed other aspects that came with it, such as the opportunity to teach his fellow men. Carrying out those duties as an officer offered the prospect of increased pay and more opportunities for advancement, but he needed to earn a bachelor's degree. Multiple supervisors at Graham's last assignment had completed the Army's Green to Gold Active Duty Option program, which provides for soldiers interested in pursuing a baccalaureate or graduate degree and earning a commission as an Army officer. They encouraged Graham to apply. He was a strong candidate as he had already taken enough online classes during his time in the military to earn an associate degree in general studies with a 3.8 GPA. He also had performed well on the Army Combat Fitness Test and competing in Army medic competitions, and he came with the highest recommendations from his commanding officers, so he was accepted into the program to begin school in the Fall 2020 semester. Graham spoke to a recruiter as he was trying to figure out where to study, and the recruiter recommended he look at schools in the St. Louis area. The first one he looked at was UMSL. "It was good credit transfer," Graham said. "It looked like a decent program, and I was like, 'You can't go wrong with a state school.' So, I picked it, and I'm pretty happy I did." He didn't know at the time that UMSL had been ranked in the top 50 nationally on Military Times' "Best for Vets: Colleges" list for the past seven years because of its strong support of military-connected students. This press release was produced by the University of Missouri-St. Louis. The views expressed here are the author's own.