Bachelor of Science in Liberal Arts and Sciences, major in chemistry
How does it feel to be an Illinois alum? It feels amazing! I’m proud of everything I’ve accomplished during my time here, and I feel ready to take on the next chapter of my life. At the same time, I don’t think it’s fully hit me yet that I’m officially becoming an Illinois alum and no longer a student. It’s a big transition, but I’m excited for what’s ahead.
Major highlight as a student? When I changed my major to chemistry. It marked a point in my undergraduate career where I was sure of what I wanted to do and excited to accomplish my new goals.
Undergraduate research? I conducted research on Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis in the (Liviu) Mirica Group. This experience was invaluable, as it was my first time conducting chemistry research outside of the classroom. It was exciting to see concepts I had learned in class applied to real-world problems and to actively practice my problem-solving skills. Overall, the experience helped me gain confidence as a researcher.
Awards: LAS James Scholar, Dean’s List, and 5th Place Rural and Health Innovation prize at Cozad New Venture Challenge
Future plans? I plan to take a gap year and apply to medical school.
Activities and organizations? I was involved in DRES Student Advisory Committee, NeuroTech Magazine, Community-Academic Scholars, and was a CHEM 150 Peer Mentor. Being a CHEM 150 Peer Mentor had a major impact on me because it felt like the perfect way to wrap up my time at Illinois by passing on the knowledge and experiences that I had gained to help freshmen navigate college successfully. It was incredibly rewarding to support new students, and through this role, I also gained confidence in my presentation and organizational skills.
Who had a profound influence on you as an undergraduate? Professor Liviu Mirica and my lab mentor, Glenn Blade, were instrumental in shaping my undergraduate experience by introducing me to the world of chemistry research. I had just changed my major to chemistry when I joined the Mirica Group, and I quickly became confident that I had made the right choice after seeing how passionate they were about the subject. Their enthusiasm rubbed off on me and sparked my own excitement for chemistry. Beyond teaching me valuable technical skills, they also imparted life skills that I’ll carry with me well beyond the lab.