As Washtenaw Community College prepares to celebrate its 60th anniversary, we recognize the thousands of alumni who turned opportunity into achievement. For six decades, WCC has opened doors to education, careers, and brighter futures — and these 60 Stories that will be compiled over the year reflect that enduring mission.
Starting a college journey at Washtenaw Community College is a smart choice for many reasons. With its low tuition, the financial value alone paves the way for students to start their new careers with less or no debt burden.
Smaller class sizes provide easy access to instructors, meaning more one-on-one opportunities for deeper understanding.
WCC students know this value. Nearly 60% of WCC students intend to transfer to a four-year institition across Michigan and beyond, taking the next stepping stone to high-demand, high-wage jobs and dreams fulfilled.
Fedor Dolgachev is one of those students. His interest in robotics was sparked while he was a student at Skyline High School in Ann Arbor. Courses at WCC helped him narrow down his career dreams of becoming a robotics engineer.
After earning a Mechatronics - Robotics and Industrial Systems associate degree in 2021, he transferred to Kettering University to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering.
Dolgachev now works as a continuous improvement engineer, managing the automation processes at Net Shaped Solutions in Canton, an appliance, electrical and electronics manufacturer.
“I got a full-ride scholarship, so WCC was a great way to avoid lots of debt and give me time to save up for Kettering," Dolgachev said. "Because of the Michigan Transfer Agreement, I was able to complete many gen ed classes before I transferred over to Kettering. This saved me a whole bunch of time and money.”
Dolgachev credits WCC for introducing him to the rigors of a college education and says instructors were always willing to help.
Over a five-year period, the majority of former WCC students who transferred -- 51% or 8,573 alumni -- enrolled at one of three institutions: University of Michigan, Michigan State University and Eastern Michigan University.
However, former WCC students have enrolled at 1,147 different institutions in all 50 states, including prestigious universities like Stanford, Yale, Harvard and Columbia.
This story first appeared in the Summer 2024 edition of Launch magazine. See complete issue.
Tags: 60 Stories, 60th Anniversary, Affordability, Mechatronics, Transfer, University Transfer Center