{"id":2310,"date":"2023-06-14T09:00:06","date_gmt":"2023-06-14T16:00:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/?p=2310"},"modified":"2024-07-24T11:44:44","modified_gmt":"2024-07-24T18:44:44","slug":"graduation-feature-2023-josh-misko","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/graduation-feature-2023-josh-misko\/","title":{"rendered":"Record-breaking Oregon State Ecampus graduating class features 1,861 students"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

Touring musician and entrepreneur Josh Misko is among the Class of 2023 adult learners who earned a degree online<\/h2>\n

There\u2019s an upcoming gap between live performances for Josh Misko<\/a> and the musicians he performs with in the world-famous Nashville music scene. His life and career often pull him in many directions, but the absence of live music on his calendar is a result of him heading in one specific direction: the West Coast.<\/p>\n

Misko will be in Corvallis, Oregon, on Saturday, June 17 to be honored as a member of Oregon State University\u2019s graduating Class of 2023. He is one of the record-setting 1,861 students who completed degree requirements online with Oregon State Ecampus.<\/p>\n

Misko\u2019s trip westward to participate in OSU\u2019s 154th commencement ceremony<\/a> will mark the culmination of a winding academic journey. It began with his university application initially being denied, but his OSU career came to be defined by academic excellence as he earned a business administration bachelor\u2019s degree online<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In the process, he strengthened his career as an in-demand musician, producer and talent manager whose studies made him a more skilled music business professional, he says.<\/p>\n

\n

Oregon State Ecampus Class of 2023 quick facts<\/h3>\n

States with the most graduates<\/strong>
\n603 \u2014 Oregon
\n313 \u2014 California
\n173 \u2014 Washington
\n95 \u2014 Texas
\n43 \u2014 Colorado<\/p>\n

Undergraduate programs with the most graduates<\/strong>
\n611 \u2014 Computer science
\n139 \u2014 Psychology
\n118 \u2014 Business administration
\n87 \u2014 Fisheries, wildlife and conservation sciences
\n75 \u2014 Natural resources<\/p>\n

Graduate programs with the most graduates<\/strong>
\n44 \u2014 MBA
\n42 \u2014 Master of Natural Resources
\n42 \u2014 Master of Counseling
\n28 \u2014 M.S. in Data analytics
\n26 \u2014 MHP in Radiation Health Physics<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always had a passion for business, and pursuing my degree formally helped me hone my discipline,\u201d said Misko, who received Oregon State\u2019s Drucilla Shepard Smith Scholastic Award, given annually to students who earn a 4.0 cumulative GPA.<\/p>\n

\u201cOregon State enabled me to train myself in terms of time blocking and time management, and that level of discipline, as well as having great mentors and partners, helped me found and expand my businesses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Oregon State\u2019s Class of 2023 features a record 7,338 students in all, and Ecampus graduates make up more than 25% of that figure. The online learners hail from 48 states and 18 countries including Peru, Bulgaria, Japan and Canada.<\/p>\n

The Ecampus graduates also represent 60 different degree programs, from anthropology and counseling to radiation health physics and zoology. The breadth of knowledge the students gained online aligns with their varied professional backgrounds. They are software engineers, public affairs specialists, military service members, retail professionals, educators, family caretakers and everything in between.<\/p>\n

\u201cOregon State\u2019s online learners are a constant source of inspiration because of the resilience they demonstrate managing life\u2019s responsibilities while earning their degrees online,\u201d said Ecampus Associate Provost Lisa L. Templeton. \u201cWe\u2019re proud to support their efforts and celebrate their successes from day 1 to graduation and beyond.\u201d<\/p>\n

Misko plays guitar and sings backing vocals for various acts in Nashville and the Southeast, including pop-country artist Connor McCutcheon. His demanding schedule as a touring performer means he took his studies on the road with him, sometimes studying for tests and completing assignments backstage before live shows.<\/p>\n

The concepts he learned in his online business courses have positively impacted his flourishing career in the music industry. In addition to performing, Misko is the CEO of Incubate Talent Group<\/a>, head talent buyer for Turnipblood Entertainment<\/a>, and he\u2019s the co-creator of a patented guitar accessory called The Switchlock<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll of the business courses were really fulfilling in different ways,\u201d said Misko, who splits his time between Atlanta and Nashville. \u201cIt was fun to take the formula of the class and apply it to what I was already doing as an entrepreneur, then see what worked and what didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A

Josh Misko is a touring musician, producer, talent manager and entrepreneur based in Atlanta and Nashville.<\/p><\/div>\n

Misko\u2019s visit to Corvallis will be a family homecoming of sorts; his father, John Misko, is also an Oregon State alumnus and will attend Saturday\u2019s ceremony. The elder Misko was a punter for the OSU football team in 1978 \u2014 in the same stadium where his son\u2019s commencement will be held \u2014 and played four seasons in the NFL in the 1980s.<\/p>\n

That family connection helped steer Josh Misko to Oregon State in 2018. But he required persistence \u2014 and support from his wife, Kayla \u2014 to push past the initial denial of his OSU application. Unsatisfactory high school grades temporarily impeded Misko\u2019s ambition for a formal business education.<\/p>\n

He successfully appealed the application decision and quickly proved his merits as a student. In addition to earning the Drucilla Shepard Smith Scholastic Award in 2019, he was inducted into OSU\u2019s chapter of the Alpha Sigma Lambda Honor Society<\/a> for adult learners.<\/p>\n

Now Misko is set to take part in commencement alongside thousands of classmates. Some elements will feel familiar to him: being the focus of the audience\u2019s attention, receiving a raucous applause. But he has never been center stage at an event like this, and he has waited \u2014 and worked \u2014 years to bask in the spotlight.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo much has happened during my time at OSU. I mean, my whole life has changed,\u201d he said. \u201cI made a commitment to myself that I’m going to graduate, I’m going to excel. And I did it. Oregon State gave me a second chance to finish my education, and I\u2019ll always be grateful for that.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

<\/span> 4<\/span> minute read<\/span><\/span>There\u2019s an upcoming gap between live performances for Josh Misko and the musicians he performs with in the world-famous Nashville music scene. His career often pulls him in many directions, but the absence of live music on his calendar is due to him heading in one specific direction: the West Coast.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1832,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,6,7,3,2],"tags":[129,639,107,662],"class_list":["post-2310","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all","category-ecampus","category-graduation","category-features","category-in-the-news","tag-business-administration","tag-business-and-communications","tag-college-of-business","tag-division-of-educational-ventures"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/oregon-state-tribal-communities.jpg?fit=800%2C548&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7BNSE-Bg","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2861,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/online-business-degree-josh-misko\/","url_meta":{"origin":2310,"position":0},"title":"On the road, online and on the rise thanks to Oregon State","author":"Josh Misko","date":"September 23, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"When I enrolled online with Oregon State, I wanted to expand my career by combining creativity with entrepreneurship. But what I didn\u2019t realize then was how much the business administration online bachelor\u2019s program would shape my ability to turn ideas into businesses and passions into opportunities.","rel":"","context":"In "All Stories"","block_context":{"text":"All Stories","link":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/category\/all\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Josh Misko, a musician and Oregon State University graduate, plays guitar while leaning against another guitarist on stage at a music festival.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Josh-Misko-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Josh-Misko-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Josh-Misko-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/assets\/Josh-Misko-800x450-1.jpg?fit=800%2C450&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1711,"url":"https:\/\/ecampus.oregonstate.edu\/news\/best-online-business-degrees\/","url_meta":{"origin":2310,"position":1},"title":"Oregon State ranked #4 for best online business bachelor\u2019s degrees","author":"Tyler Hansen","date":"January 31, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Oregon State delivers eight business bachelor\u2019s degree programs online, and according to U.S. News & World Report, they are among the very best in the nation. 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