What happens after graduation?
From Countdown to Launchpad.
Program staff?
Disney on the Yard Innovation Challenge 2026
Bluefield State University
Veronica graduates in 100 days.
For nearly four years, Veronica has followed a clear path: take the classes, complete the assignments, study hard, earn the degree. But now that graduation is getting closer, the path ahead feels much less certain. She is deciding between work and graduate school, thinking about where she may have to move, what that move will cost, and what happens if her plans change altogether.
Veronica is prepared to graduate. What she still needs is a plan for what comes after it.
So what if her final 100 days were designed to help her do exactly that?
Welcome to Beyond Blue!
Some already have jobs. Some are headed to graduate school. Some are still searching. Others are still figuring it out.
Still Deciding
Graduate School
Job Search
Beyond Blue
A personalized 100-day transition experience for life after college.
Beyond Blue is a university-wide 100-day transition experience that helps every graduating senior prepare for life after college through one shared core curriculum, five personalized pathways, real-world assignments, human mentorship, and targeted support.
Source: Inside Higher Ed Student Voice, 2024Find your start & map out your next steps
I already have a job.
Every graduating senior enters Beyond Blue 100 days before graduation and selects the pathway that best reflects where they are headed: Hired, Job Search, Higher Education, Entrepreneurship, or Still Deciding. Every student moves through the same five core areas, while their assignments, mentor matches, resources and next steps adapt to their pathway.
Beyond Blue is not a workshop series. Expert-led sessions introduce essential transition skills, but the real experience happens through action. Students apply what they learn to their own lives by building budgets, reviewing offers, researching housing, preparing applications, connecting with alumni, testing career options, and creating contingency plans.
Progress is measured by what students actually complete, not by attendance alone. Each pathway produces tangible outputs such as a budget, mentor connection, application plan, relocation plan, benefits review, business action plan, or contingency strategy that becomes part of the student's Launch File, giving them proof of preparation before they leave campus.
Career Services, alumni, employers, financial professionals, Student Success, Counseling, and other experts support students at key moments. The Beyond Blue app organizes progress, resources, mentor connections, deadlines and next steps, but the experience itself remains centered on real people and real decisions.
Students can shift pathways when their plans change without starting over. Whether a job offer falls through, graduate school plans change, or a new opportunity emerges, Beyond Blue is designed around the reality that the transition after college is rarely linear, ensuring students always receive the right support for their current goals.
By graduation, every student leaves with a personalized Launch File containing their next-step plan, financial preparation, professional or educational strategy, network, resources, and Detour plan for when life changes.
The Beyond Blue app brings each student's pathway, progress, mentors, resources, and next steps into one place.
Profile screen: Veronica Thompson, Senior, Class of 2027, Computer Science, with her destination role, target city Atlanta and journey tags.
Personalize screen: Build Your Beyond Blue, choose where you're headed from five pathways and pick journey tags, then Create My 100-Day Plan.
Prepare screen: Good morning, Veronica. 87 days to graduation, a progress bar, the current curriculum task and five readiness area cards.
Connect screen: Your Beyond Blue Network with students on your path and alumni you may want to meet, each with a reason for the match and a Connect button.
Beyond Blue extends the HBCU tradition of mentorship, connection, and giving back, turning each graduating class into a resource for the next.
Connects students with alumni based on their unique goals and next steps.
Beyond Blue is designed to continue and grow, ensuring every graduating class has the support they need for what's next.
The same five readiness areas can serve every graduating class. Materials, templates, and resources can be updated, not rebuilt, each year.
Career Services, Student Success, Alumni Relations, Financial Aid, Counseling, faculty, and employer partners already exist. Beyond Blue connects them into one coordinated system.
Each graduating class adds new alumni, industries, cities, employers, and graduate-school experiences. The network becomes stronger and more diverse over time.
Graduate feedback shows Bluefield what worked, what was missing, and what future seniors need. Insights are used to refine the experience each year.
The curriculum, app, mentor network, playbooks, and program materials remain available for future cohorts. New resources can be added as the network expands.
Alumni and external partners can help replenish the fund over time. This allows Beyond Blue to continue removing real barriers for future classes.
Preparation only matters if students can act on the opportunities in front of them. The fund removes small, verified financial barriers that could otherwise stop a student's next step.
By keeping MVP development on campus, Beyond Blue creates a paid applied-learning opportunity for Computer Science students while reducing the need for outside development.
| Budget Area | What It Funds + Expected Impact | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Student-Built App MVPBuilt by Bluefield | Paid stipends for Bluefield State CS students to build, test, and document the MVP, creating applied-learning experience while giving Beyond Blue a campus-owned digital tool. | $2,000 |
| App Infrastructure + Publishing | Hosting, domain, platform, and publishing costs needed to keep the app accessible and usable beyond the pilot year. | $250 |
| Career Test Drives + Transition Experiences | Employer visits, job shadowing, graduate-school exposure, entrepreneurship experiences, and transportation that allows students to test real next-step options before graduation. | $2,000 |
| Last Mile Fund | Verified transition expenses such as certifications, background checks, interview travel fund, deposits, and relocation needs, removing small financial barriers that could block a real opportunity. | $2,500 |
| Five Core Sessions | Materials, logistics, refreshments, guest travel, and limited outside-expert support that make the five readiness areas practical and action-based. | $1,250 |
| Alumni + Mentor Activation | Mentor onboarding, alumni recruitment, matching support, and engagement that expand each student's network and strengthen future cohorts. | $750 |
| Day +100 Assessment + Program Materials | Feedback collection, evaluation, reporting, and updates for the next graduating class. | $500 |
| Pilot Contingency | Reserve for unexpected first-year rollout needs so the pilot can adapt without cutting core student support. | $750 |
| Total | $10,000 | |
Selected Pathway:
Hired
Beyond Blue turns her final 100 days into a personalized transition experience built around five core readiness areas.
Veronica doesn't have every answer.
But now, she's ready for what comes next.
She leaves Bluefield prepared to move forward and connected enough to reach back.
From Countdown to Launchpad.
Beyond Blue transforms the final 100 days from waiting for graduation into preparing for everything that comes after it.
Explore the app as Veronica, no sign-up needed. Or start building your own 100-day plan.
See the staff side: