English Literature and Philosophy double major Murphy Hastings ’26 plans to hit the road and travel across the country to Oregon after graduating. There, he will work as a wildland firefighter with hopes of attending Officer Candidate School (OCS) to commission as an officer in the U.S. Army in the fall.

The Maple Shade, N.J., native is weighing his seasonal employment options between the US Forest Service in Corvallis, Ore., and the Municipal Fire Department of Sweethome, Ore. Both opportunities include responsibilities in preventative fuels management as well as working on active wildfires using firelines to halt wildfire spread.

“I wanted to do something important and hard to both physically and mentally prepare me [for OCS],” he said. “I think as college students, we get caught up in the comfort of hand-holding and supportive structures that the university affords us; however important and valuable these services are, we get too comfortable. I wanted to know what it’s like to suffer, because stress breeds growth. I have grown so much academically and socially, but grit is a new lesson to be learned.”

Hastings will interview with the OCS on May 5 and await acceptance. Then he will head to Basic Training, followed by a 12-week course focusing on basic soldiering skills, leadership development, and testing on land navigation, rucking, marksmanship, and stress capacity.

At Arcadia, Hastings worked as a legal intern in the Office of General Counsel. He also worked at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, helping asylum seekers represent themselves in Immigration Court. He’s been a resident assistant for three years, co-founded and leads Arcadia’s Hiking Club, is a peer mentor, and is involved in the Pre-Law Society. Last year, he served as vice president of the Student Government Organization, and in his first and second years, he ran cross country and track.

“The college experience is what you make of it–you get exactly what you put in,” he said. “I keep finding these positions of experience and leadership because I asked. Confidence can take you far as long as you’re willing and not afraid to fail along the way. I know I have. Having actionable goals and setting forth to achieve them is the hardest part.” 

Hastings encourages his peers to jump at any opportunity that presents itself, even when the path forward may be unclear.

“You don’t have to know the answer 100 percent of the time, because you won’t, and it’s uncomfortable to not know, but you’re damned if you don’t try,” Hastings said. “Leadership is where confidence meets opportunity, and if Arcadia has granted me anything, it has been opportunity.”