抖阴pro

by Noah Jones on Oct. 31, 2024

Clara Reyes studies music and Spanish with a minor in African American Studies at SLU. During her time, Reyes has exemplified what it means to be an active and involved student.

Reyes is the Community Outreach Associate for SLU鈥檚 Micah Program. The Micah Program is centered around social justice and service, and in her role, she does alumni relations, recruitment and programming. Her time with the Micah Program has also led to other valuable experiences, including her current part-time position at L'Arche St. Louis, experiences at Cardinal Ritter Senior Services' St. Elizabeth's Hall, and experiences at International Institute of St. Louis. At L鈥橝rche, Reyes is a part-time direct support provider where she spends quality time with clients and helps them complete daily tasks. She has been working at L鈥橝rche for a while now, has previously been a volunteer, and completed a summer internship. At St. Elizabeth鈥檚 Hall, Reyes volunteers by doing art, cooking and playing bingo with the residents. Earlier in her college experience, she also volunteered at the International Institute, which inspired her to pursue a degree in Spanish, as she saw the need for bilingual tutors and translators at after-school programs. On top of the professional experiences she has gained, she also spent two semesters studying abroad at SLU-Madrid.

Our department assisted Reyes during her first year by offering guidance in her exploration of opportunities she could pursue. She also met with us to review and help with her resume before she applied to her first internship with L鈥橝rche.

Reyes鈥檚 advice to new SLU students is that they should not only focus on coursework, but they should also seek out experiential learning opportunities. She also recommends that students seek out service opportunities to 鈥漛uild relationships with the communities that [they] are serving.鈥�

Lauren Favell

by Noah Jones on 9/26/24 

Lauren Favell graduated from 抖阴pro with a bachelor鈥檚 in medical sciences. Favell is pursuing a master鈥檚 in biomedical engineering from Southern Illinois University Carbondale, and she recently worked as a biologics analytical research and development intern at Merck. Through this internship, Favell has been offered a full-time position as a scientist after graduation.

At SLU, Favell volunteered and held various roles in her sorority, Kappa Delta, and she was the vice president of the recruitment team for the Panhellenic Executive Board. In this role, she led training sessions for recruitment counselors. This experience helped her grow her organizational leadership skills and provided her with experience in a teamwork setting. At SIUC, she is staying just as involved as a graduate assistant and a volunteer in a neuroengineering research lab that studies mechanosensitive ion channels on cell membranes. This volunteering opportunity led her to acquire the technical lab skills required for her internship. Favell explained that while technical skills are important, employers also want to know that you work well with other people.

Favell鈥檚 interest in biomedical engineering began when she decided to take some engineering courses during her senior year at SLU. She was very interested and had natural talent in these classes. Biomedical engineering, then, seemed like a natural way to combine her medical science background with her newfound interest. She also discussed her experience with Career Services during her time at SLU and explained that they assisted with formatting her resume. She also attended career fairs that allowed her to connect with recruiters and employers in the area.

Favell鈥檚 advice to new SLU students is to seek out research and internship opportunities early in their college journeys, explaining that these opportunities are beneficial no matter what one鈥檚 career goals are. She said this because 鈥渢he job market can be very competitive, and any type of experience can give you a leg up compared to other applicants if you know how to leverage it on your resume and in an interview.鈥�

Brittany Sowards

by Noah Jones on 8/29/24

Brittany Sowards graduated from SLU with a bachelor's, then a master's degree in occupational therapy, and a minor in interprofessional experience. Since 2021, Sowards has been working at Cornerstone Pediatric Therapy, a home health company that provides occupational, physical, and speech therapy across the Dallas鈥揊ort Worth Metroplex.

Sowards is currently a pediatric occupational therapist, lead occupational therapist, graduate school liaison, lead expansion liaison, and is part of the hiring team. Some of her responsibilities include evaluating patients, validating documentation, recruiting and interviewing therapists, assisting with the onboarding of new therapists in her county, organizing fieldwork experiences, and working with students and universities to form relationships with students and alumni in the field.

While Sowards was in school, she received many awards, including the Spirit of The Billiken Award and the Professional 抖阴pro in Leadership Award. She was also part of Alpha Eta Society, Omicron Delta Kappa Leadership Honor Society, Order of Omega Honor Society, and the National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS). She also completed many internships, the vast majority in the field of pediatrics.

Sowards explained that Career Services 鈥渙pened many doors鈥� for her and helped her showcase her experience and skills. She frequently came to Career Services for assistance and even visited for resume revisions after she had graduated.

Sowards' advice to new students at SLU is to 鈥渢ake yourself seriously鈥� because those around will do the same. She also explains that people can find the right position by 鈥渄oing, exploring, and learning.鈥�

Lindsey Debosik

by Noah Jones on 7/31/24

Lindsey Debosik, a 2021 graduate, double majored in public health and health management, with minors in social work and urban poverty studies, during her time at SLU.

Currently, Debosik is a Presidential Management Fellow at the U.S. Department of Justice. pmf.gov describes this opportunity as 鈥渢he Federal Government's premier leadership development program for advanced degree holders across all academic disciplines.鈥� She is also a Financial Consultant at Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, a volunteer at Arlington Food Assistance Center (AFAC), and a hospital accompaniment volunteer at Doorways for those who have experienced sexual assault or domestic violence.

Debosik explained that, as a first-generation student, she relied heavily on Career Services at SLU. Career Services assisted her in deciding her majors and minors, assisted with her resume, and helped her gather job application resources. She also shared that Career Services helped her gain practical tools and confidence to develop professionally.

Debosik鈥檚 best advice for students at SLU is to 鈥渦tilize all of the resources at your disposal. There is always room for improvement; I still, today, ask several peers and mentors to review my resume, assist with mock interviews, and provide information on my professional pursuits.鈥�

M贸nica Bates

by Noah Jones on 7/3/24

M贸nica Bates, a Spring 2024 graduate, received her Master of Public Health - M.P.H., Maternal/Child Health and Global Health, and has recently accepted a position with the City of St. Louis Department of Health. Last month, she joined the communicable disease team as a program representative!

Bates鈥� best piece of advice to new college students is to network early, and she spent much of her time at SLU doing just that.

Bates belonged to the Maternal and Child Health Student Interest Group (MCH SIG), the Student Outbreak Response Team (SORT), and the Student Association for Public Health (SAPH), where she connected with many other Master of Public Health students.

Bates also participated in many research projects, which included several external projects. Two of the organizations she collaborated with were the St. Louis Area Diaper Bank, an organization focused on increasing access to basic hygiene items, and International HELP, an organization with the goal of ending death from preventable diseases.

She described the skills and connections she made through these experiences as invaluable and explained that they allowed her to gain valuable insights and opportunities.

Akash Shah

by Noah Jones on 5/31/24

Akash Shah, M.H.S.A., a newly promoted senior consultant at Deloitte, is a proud alumnus of 抖阴pro, where he earned a degree in health management and policy and minored in public health and biology.

At Deloitte, Shah focuses on large-scale operations and technology transformations, partnering with health care providers and health plans to improve efficiency, reduce cost, and enhance the quality of care given. SLU provided Shah with the foundational knowledge that prepared him for his previous experiences, including his time as a clinical technician, the master's program he pursued after, and his current role. He recounted that one class, Health Management and Policy 1300 with Kevin Syberg, had an especially profound impact on his career trajectory. HMP 1300 introduces students to the challenges faced in health care systems, the inner workings of private and public systems, the operations of hospitals and clinics, and the role professionals play. Learning about all of this opened Shah's eyes to the state of the U.S. healthcare system as a whole, and inspired him to do his part in creating more equity, affordability and accessibility for patients.

Shah was also very involved on campus during his time at SLU. He served as president and VP of finance for Alpha Iota Omicron, and belonged to the SLU Lions Club and the Indian Student Association.

Shah's advice to new students is to make the most of every opportunity, as no two days in college are the same. He also encourages students to enjoy and cherish their free time and moments with friends 鈥渂ecause four years of college will fly by in a blink of an eye.鈥�

Ashlee K. Roberts, Ph.D.

by Noah Jones on 4/18/24

Here is the story of higher-education professional Ashlee K. Roberts, Ph.D., executive director of Student affairs, strategic planning, and initiatives at Stockton University in New Jersey. She leads the division鈥檚 planning, resource-allocation, and communication strategies to demonstrate their impact on student learning and success. Roberts also previously worked at the University of Missouri鈥揝aint Louis (UMSL) as associate director for the Office of Student Involvement, at the University of South Carolina as a graduate assistant, and volunteered as a mentor/personal development coach at Mission: St. Louis for over eight years.

Roberts received her Doctor of Philosophy in Higher Education/Higher Education Administration from 抖阴pro in 2018 and was part of the Alpha Sigma Nu-Jesuit Honor Society.

Roberts explained how mentors and supportive supervisors positively impacted her professional journey. She also mentioned her positive experiences with and deep appreciation for college career service departments, including setting the foundation for her resume in undergrad, doing a practicum with the office during her master's program, and even serving as acting director for Stockton's Office of Career Education and Development. Robert's advice for students pursuing or thinking about pursuing a Ph.D. specifically is to know the journey "is as much of a learning process as any other part of your education. You are not expected to know everything. Be open to and trust the process.鈥�

Theresa Martin

by Noah Jones on 2/1/24

Theresa Martin is a technical accounting manager at Edward Jones. In this position, Theresa establishes controls and defines processes for ESG rules and regulations, communicates accounting guidance to stakeholders, ensures accuracy in the interpretation of the firm's accounting policy, and more.

During Martin's time at SLU, she received her Master of Accounting from the Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business at 抖阴pro. She also interned with CliftonLarsonAllen, a firm where she worked on tax returns and assisted with audit engagements.

Martin provided two pieces of advice that led to her success. Firstly, one must tailor their communication to who they are working with. Martin shared an anecdote explaining that she 鈥渨orked with one principal that preferred phone calls... so if [she] needed something, [she] better pick up the phone.鈥� The second piece of advice is that people should be 鈥渁nticipating questions and coming up with solutions before the questions can be asked.鈥�

Career Services strives to help students find internships, build resumes, and more in hopes of creating similar success, and Martin herself encourages 鈥渟tudents to use any and all resources available!鈥�

Medtronic

by Noah Jones on 3/5/24

Career Services has a strong relationship with Medtronic, a medical device company known for its revolutionary cardiac devices, such as battery-powered and miniature pacemakers. In the photo below, ordered from left to right, are Clinical Specialists Mallory Grote, Kelly Buescher, Jack Bessey, Intern Cati Welby, and Associate Clinical Specialist Michael Nickerson, who are all SLU graduates and Medtronic employees.

This photo was taken when Medtronic's team came to Career Services to interview students in the biomedical engineering (BME) program for their ACE Summer Associate Program. This is a field-based program designed to provide participants with real-world experiences around the delivery of medical technology to clinicians and patients. This program enables students to work alongside professionals who support implant procedures, provide device troubleshooting, launch products, and more. The program is structured so that student participants can gain formal training for the clinical specialist role. Many times, interns become full-time employees through the program, and from these interviews, two students were selected and will begin working with Medtronic in the summer of 2024.

Career Services chatted with Welby, who is doing her internship at Medtronic through the ACE Program, about her experience at SLU and with Career Services. 鈥淢y time here at SLU has taught me more than I could have imagined: how to work hard and persevere, how to use my resources, how to be confident in who I am, how to be a leader, how to set priorities, how to network, and much more.鈥� Also, during her freshman year, she worked with Career Services to create and edit her resume. She uses 鈥渢he exact same resume template" she made with Career Services, to this day.

Medtronic is a strong supporter of SLU Career Services. Tom Puszkar, a district service manager at Medtronic, said 鈥渨e鈥檙e approaching our sixth year of this summer internship and it has naturally blossomed into a symbiotic relationship that has us wondering each year what type of talent our new interns will bring to Medtronic.鈥�

On top of providing the ACE Summer Associate Program, Medtronic also gives presentations to members of SLU's Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) and participates in Biomedical Engineering Day during National Engineers Week.