As a Rowland Junior 研究员 I lead a team of scientists in discovering how bacteria that live in and on animals contribute to the health and fitness of their host.
家庭传统
I had been looking at other colleges but my family were alumni, including my mother, uncle and aunt. Although I did not expect to like it for myself, when I came for a visit I knew right away that it was the school I wanted to go to.
充满激情的连接
Mount Union has a staff and alumni network that is incredibly passionate about the University. It is inspirational to be part of that community.
最喜欢的教授
It is really hard to pick just one. There are three that really stand out, Dr. Brandon Sheafor和Dr. John Scott were great mentors and shaped the way I think about academia. Dr. Kim Risley was important to my long-term career path. I took her first Microbiology class at Mount. We were given the opportunity to design our own experiment, which was my first step towards animal microbiomes.
源自联合山
After Mount I worked at James Madison University as a research technician. I did this for a year before going to graduate school for my PhD. I earned a PhD from Vanderbilt University. I defended in the Spring of 2013.
实习
I had two internships while at Mount. 一个是EnviroSci公司. 做生物修复工作. The second was at James Madison University. The second internship was in part due to an alumnus, 伊丽莎白·戴维森, who had encouraged me to ask members of her research community for summer research programs. It was at my first scientific conference that she introduced me to Dr. Reid Harris of JMU which is where I did a summer Research Experience for Undergrads program working on frog skin microbiomes.
校园的参与
I was involved with the Student Senate, 蓝钥匙荣誉学会, Students for Environmental Awareness, Beta Beta Beta, the concert choir and the theater.
要准备的
Mount Union was a great proving ground for me to gain confidence in my own abilities. 课程作业的多样性, social interactions and encouragement from the faculty made a tremendous impact on the way I approached my career.
保持联系
I’ve visited campus a few times since graduating but it is hard to get back during the semester when faculty and students are around. So I like reading the Mount Union 威尼斯人app下载 magazine and talking with my friends and family.
未来的目标
I would like to have a family and travel the world together.
Mount Union投资
Mount Union set me on my current career path. The courses and professors that I interacted with helped shape my thinking and made me appreciate the value of a good education. I was fortunate to have mentors, advisors, and friends who were genuinely interested in my success.
目前的工作
It is great to be able to manage your own research group. I get to develop my own ideas and test them with a team of scientists and other like-minded individuals. We get to explore the boundaries of what is known about the natural world and what is yet to be discovered.