By participating in STEM EE Scholars, I have been able to not only further expand already existing skills that I possessed, but also develop new skills that will allow me to succeed on my given career path. Taking part in the many STEM events that have been offered to the group over the course of the year, I have been able to learn about many new and exciting topics that I knew little to nothing about before attending the event. While attending these events, I was forced to learn new material very quickly. Without doing so, I would not have been able to keep up with and understand the information being presented. I have been able to better my critical thinking skills and just quick thinking in general because of this.
Being a part of STEM EE Scholars, I also was required to attend a Scholars Seminar class both first and second semester. By participating in class discussions and attending the lectures, I was able to discover my strengths and how to further develop them. It also allowed me to better both my organizational and study skills, knowing and understanding the most efficient way of learning and retaining information. This has proven useful both inside and outside of the classroom, allowing me to stay on top of tasks and deadlines.
I have also been able to continue on with my passion for helping others. Throughout my entire life, I was taught the importance of giving back, giving your time and effort to something that is important to you. From junior high all the way through my senior year of high school, I dedicated a lot of my time to volunteering both through local charities and my local church. Coming to school, I was afraid that I would somehow lose that, that my busy workload would get in the way of my ability to give back to the community. Through STEM, I have been given the opportunity to give back, while also being able to instill new knowledge in the minds of those who are younger than me. I have been able to do this by tutoring middle schoolers at Columbus Performance Academy and volunteering at COSI. These opportunities to give back have allowed me to further my communication skills, learning how to teach others what I know and how to help them best retain the information taught. This skill is very important for someone pursuing a career in pharmacy, a pharmacist having to be able to explain how the prescription works and why the patient needs to take them, essentially teaching them about the medications they need to take and I feel that I have only been able to further develop it since becoming a part of STEM Scholars.
I feel that being a part of STEM EE Scholars has better prepared me for my future and the goals I have set out for myself. I have been able to develop skills that will be necessary for my success, which will in turn help to provide me with the opportunities to gain that experience that is necessary to succeed in the field of pharmacy. The skills I have learned and developed over the course of this year have only bettered me as both a student and a person and the extent to which they have helped me cannot be summarized in a few bullet points on a resume.