G.O.A.L.S.
Global Awareness
In order to make myself a more diverse and culturally aware person, I intend to immerse myself in other cultures with an open mind and see what they have to offer. In terms of course work, I will be taking Music Cultures of the World 2250 for my minor in music. While I am very involved in music, I am primarily educated in Western style music, and I think experiencing, hearing, and analyzing music from other parts of the world will really help me expand my horizons about something I truly love. I also plan on joining the STEP program my second year and doing a study abroad program during the Maymester. I have not yet thoroughly researched all the programs available, but I plan on applying for a trip to a country that offers a culture very unlike my own so I can leave my comfort zone and experience life outside of America.
Original Inquiry
While anyone may learn and repeat materials presented in coursework, it really takes a lot of drive to engage in advanced or original work. I plan on taking advanced courses in addition to the courses that are required for my major. This includes advanced courses in Biochemistry, Physiology, and communication. These courses are not required for my undergraduate and are all upper level courses, but I plan to take them since they are pre-requisites for vet school and the challenge offered by advanced courses will help to show me if veterinary school is a plausible option I wish to pursue. I also plan on getting involved in a research project within molecular genetics. Genetics has always interested me, and if I choose that vet school is not for me, or decide I really enjoy what I did in my research, Genetics is another field that I could easily see myself going into. The research experience will expose me to new things I would never have done before and help me to definitively decide what I wish to do with my future.
Academic enrichment
My academic plan is already geared toward my professional degree and is set up to help me succeed in my major, minor, and complete all necessary pre-requisites to apply to vet school. I chose my major to be in Molecular genetics because it completes most of the pre-requisites for vet school, as well as being a field of study I’m genuinely interested in and could see myself pursuing a career in if vet school turns out not to be the best option for me. I selected a music minor because I have always loved music and it helps me to unwind and relax. I know that school is very difficult, particularly with such a hard major, and I needed something I could enjoy and something to relieve the stress from my day. I am very excited about my British literature course 2202H and my microbiology course on the history of HIV and AIDS microbio 3704. I am excited to read and analyze literature, because I enjoy reading for fun and excelled at literary analysis in high school. I highly anticipate the microbiology course because it seems like a course that the average student wouldn’t take and the content sounds very unique and isn’t your typical general education coursework.
Leadership development
I have several unique experiences for an undergrad that involve me in both Ohio State and further my career plans. I am privileged to be a member of the Ohio State marching band and travel around the country to cheer the buckeyes in, while putting in countless hours during the week to learn drill and music and make halftime as great as it can be. I am also fortunate to have a job in the Veterinary anatomy lab at Ohio State. This job exposes me to different anatomy terms and also shows me what it is like to be in vet school, since I see the vet students at their breaking points and I also see them after their great successes. This job gets me hands on experience with specimens, and the biggest projects involved in my job include setting up the animals for exam days and embalming horses for the educational use of the vet students. As part of this job, I will train my successor my senior year and be able to truly test my leadership skills.
Service engagement
It is important to every community to have members willing to engage in community service. Locally, I plan on volunteering at the Capital Area Humane society the summer of 2017 to gain hands on animal experience and help out with a great cause in the area. This not only gets me exposure to some less-stable and less healthy animals than I am used to, which is excellent for advancing my career path in veterinary science, but also helps out the animals that are most in need. I also plan on picking a study abroad program in my second year that is more geared toward service. I have oftentimes visited other countries from a tourism perspective, but I have never served another country, which I think is a valuable thing for all young people to experience.