With graduation just days away, the University of Mississippi’s class of 2026 is preparing to walk across the stage and step into a new chapter of their lives.
As commencement approaches, many seniors are taking time to reflect on the experiences, relationships and growth that have defined their four years in Oxford.
For many, those years went by quickly but left a lifelong impact.
“I’m most grateful for the home that I feel like I’ve really gotten to experience here in Oxford,” senior biology major Sophie Robinson said. “I feel like I’ll always have a place to come back to.”
Others say their college experience extended far beyond the classroom. Senior pre-nursing student Ryan Augustine has served in the Student Activities Association and also as 2025 Mr. Ole Miss. He believes those experiences are what made his time as a student so special.
“The experience of being a student but also what you do outside of the classroom,” Augustine said. “Having the experience to be a leader and be a part of different organizations, go to five meetings a day and still go hang out with friends after.”
The city of Oxford is known for its small town feel, and one student said that helped him feel at home when he first came to the university. Brady Bucky said he would not be who he is now without the friends and the community he has around him daily.
“I wouldn’t be able to be here and thrive the ways I have without the Oxford community,” Bucky said. “People from all over the state, out of state. The community that I have supporting me is amazing.”
While each student’s journey is unique, a common theme among seniors is growth.
As graduates prepare to gather in The Grove one last time as students before they turn their tassels, these students say it is the people and the memories that will stay with them long after they leave campus.
For students, that feeling is best summed up in a familiar line from the alma mater: “There Ole Miss is calling, calling, to our hearts’ fond memories.”
