What has been your most meaningful experience at UMD?

I've had so many meaningful memories at UMD. However, my CSD department has created most of them. During my time at UMD, my most meaningful experience was the research I completed with one of my CSD professors, Dr. Hyppa Martin. Researching a topic regarding equity and diversity within the field of Speech-Language Pathology was an experience I will take with me into my future career! 

What are your plans after graduation?

 I will be attending UMD's Communication Sciences and Disorders graduate program to receive my master's in speech-language pathology! The CSD department here is amazing and I couldn't imagine finishing my schooling anywhere else! 

What are your ultimate life and/or career goals?

My ultimate goal is to become a Speech-Language Pathologist within a hospital or private practice setting! With the lack of Speech-language Pathologists, I would love to move back to my hometown and work in our rural hospital serving a wide range of clients! 

What has been your most meaningful experience at UMD?

My most meaningful experience at UMD has been completing a research project through the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program. This program funds the opportunity to partner with a faculty member on research projects. I connected with Dr. Gilbertson through her Neurocognitive and Emotion Lab (NC Lab) and developed a research project focusing on rejection sensitivity in individuals with ADHD. 

Dr. Gilbertson’s mentorship through this project has been invaluable. She not only provided expert guidance on the technical aspects of research but also challenged me to think critically and creatively, pushing me to develop a deeper understanding of my education. Her support and encouragement have been instrumental in my growth as a researcher, and I am grateful for the opportunity to learn from her expertise. 

I would encourage everyone to use the resources that UMD provides and take advantage of the opportunity to connect with faculty. With this project, I was invited to present at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research and at the Midwestern Psychological Association, receiving a Regional Research Award from the International Honor Society in Psychology. I just submitted this research to a peer-reviewed journal. This experience has paved the way to continuing my education and research in brain sciences. 

What was memorable about your college experience? 

The most memorable experience in college was my summer study abroad in England, France, Switzerland, Germany, and the Czech Republic. I spent five weeks studying psychology in museums, clinics, and in prominent neurological hospitals such as the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in London. Exploring the history of psychology and diverse cultures of each country was truly eye-opening. The experience not only deepened my understanding of psychology but also broadened my perspective on the world. However, what was most memorable were the beautiful sights I saw and new lifelong friendships. 

What are your plans after graduation?

After graduation, I plan on continuing to work full-time at Essentia Health Hospital, where I am currently a Behavioral Health Technician on the psychiatric units. I plan to take two gap years and explore careers in research and psychometry before pursuing a PhD in Neuropsychology. 

What are your ultimate life or career goals?

After completing a Ph.D. in Neuropsychology, I want to do work in psychological assessment. Specifically, testing and diagnosing ADHD, learning disabilities, and autism. In our area, there is currently a two-year waitlist to be tested for these disorders, leading to a longer intervention time. Learning interventions are very important to me and I want to make a difference decreasing this wait time. Eventually, I would like to be a professor in psychology/cognition and mentor student research. 

What has been your most meaningful experience at UMD?

My most meaningful experience has been the volunteering I did with the social work program. I spent time at the Loaves and Fishes Dorothy Day House. During this time I built relationships with people from all walks of life and really came to understand their experiences and the Duluth community!

What was memorable about your college experience? 

The people I met. I made so many lifelong friends who I am so grateful for. I cannot imagine my life without them. I’ve been on many adventures with them from climbing up the shore, thru-hiking the superior hiking trail, and even just the many game nights.

What are your plans after graduation?

After graduation, I was hired at Carlton County as their Community and Family Liaison. I will be doing work in the county with youth experiencing homelessness, developing new responses to truancy, and working with the restorative justice program!

What are your ultimate life or career goals?

I would love to work in housing. Duluth has been deemed a city resilient to climate change, and this means we will need to be ready to accept climate refugees of all income levels. To do this, we need to solve the housing crisis and treat our unhoused neighbors with dignity and respect. I would like to take an active role in developing solutions to this problem.

What has been your most meaningful experience at UMD?

My most meaningful experience at UMD has simply been the fact that I’ve been able to receive countless opportunities for both my professional development and personal growth. I have been honored to receive some roles that I never would have thought I would have been able to have beforehand, and they have only served me in the best ways possible. I constantly got pushed out of my comfort zone, and only grew because of it - and I wouldn’t have had it any other way! 

What was memorable about your college experience? 

For me, the most memorable part of my college experience was simply getting to know my cohort. Throughout my two years here, I got to know so many unique, amazing people with their own goals and dreams, and it was one of my favorite things that came out of this graduate experience. 

What are your plans after graduation?

After graduation, I hope to enter the workforce in an organizational development role. Until then, I have many plans to enjoy the time that I have with family and friends. I’ve been rushing through these past few years, and I plan to slow it down and truly enjoy my next steps in life. 

What are your ultimate life or career goals?

Ultimately, I want to help as many people as I can. With my degree, I hope to be able to do that in a unique way through assisting organizations in truly understanding the impact that they have on the lives of their employees, helping create better work-life balances for employees one step at a time. Additionally, I would love to apply my skills in volunteer work, such as life coaching for those who are reentering society after finishing a criminal sentence. There’s so many ways to help others, and I’m looking forward to creating my own little impact on the world. 

What has been your most meaningful experience at UMD?

The opportunities I have been given to serve others as a speech-language pathologist in training. I had the honor of completing two separate three-month internships; one at Cloquet Middle School/High School and one at Essentia Health Duluth, St. Mary’s Medical Center in the acute care setting. Students from UMD truly have a reputation that precedes us, and it has been such a privilege to represent UMD in this community. 

What was memorable about your college experience? 

Although graduate school was only two years, it was packed full of memories. Some of my favorites include presenting my master’s thesis on attitudes toward individuals who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) at the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), getting to live with four other girls in my program, countless trips up the North Shore after class, paddle boarding at Brighton Beach, watching the boats in Canal Park, spending two weeks working in the neurology intensive care unit at Essentia Health- St. Mary’s Medical Center, and forming lasting, meaningful relationships with my professors, supervisors, and instructors.

What are your plans after graduation?

I have been lucky enough to accept a position at a Federal Setting IV intermediate district near the Twin Cities. I get to serve at Quora Secondary School as a speech-language pathologist; primarily working with the transitional program of students aged 18-22. These students are fantastic communicators in which many of them use AAC!

What are your ultimate life or career goals?

I believe that we are here on this earth to make a difference. To love and to be loved with every chance we get. I am so blessed to be in a profession that allows me to serve others on a daily basis. The world seems to expect us to perform big, grandiose actions that affect pupils far and wide. Sometimes, it’s OK to dream “small.” Instead of eliciting big change, I look forward to spending my days reaching the hearts of individuals. To me, it is just as much worth it to inspire hope in just one person; little dreams can still create big change. At this point in my life, I am already living out my dreams. My goal is to never stop learning, and “grow with the flow” of everything life brings my way. 

What has been your most meaningful experience at UMD?

The most meaningful experience I had at UMD was the opportunity to do undergraduate research. This opportunity was presented to me via one of my professors, and it was one of the best things I could have done. I never thought about doing research before the opportunity came about, but I thought why not give it a shot? Being able to formulate my own research study and delve into how a certain process works was very exciting. On top of that, I had so much fun during the whole process and I felt as though I grew my knowledge of exercise science as a whole. I would highly encourage others to think about doing research during your undergraduate career. I learned so much by putting myself out of my comfort zone and trying something new. 

What was memorable about your college experience?

The most memorable thing about my college experience was getting to know my peers and faculty. I have made many great friendships over the past 4 years that have made my college experience memorable in numerous ways. Getting to know my faculty has provided me with several opportunities such as conducting a research study, attending academic conferences, volunteering for different programs, and overall challenging my knowledge and becoming more confident in my abilities as a student.

What are your plans after graduation?

After graduation, I plan on attending the College of St. Scholastica in the fall for my master's degree in Exercise Physiology. 

What are your ultimate life and/or career goals?

Over the past year or so, I have come to realize that I want to pursue a career in academia, specifically, to become a professor of exercise physiology. Through all the opportunities that I have had in my undergraduate career, I learned that not only do I want to study exercise physiology and expand my knowledge in this field, but I also want to teach the material to others. I want to share my passion for this field with others, in hopes that maybe I can spark the same excitement that I experienced during my undergraduate career. Because of this, my long-term career goals are to continue my education in exercise physiology and earn my PhD to become a professor.