My name is Kayla Gilmore and I participated in a week-long Leadership STEP Project at The Wildlife Society Conference in Louisville, Kentucky. My project took place during the second week of November 2023 and focused on networking and discovering other interests in the field I am studying. Because I am in my final year at Ohio State University studying Forestry and Wildlife Management, looking for graduate research opportunities is at the top of my list. The conference included events specific to networking along with workshops and presentations from professionals in the field of wildlife.

My STEP project had a significant impact on my career as it allowed me to explore what I am interested in and rule out what I am not. This was the first experience I have had outside of programs offered by The Ohio State University that allowed me to network with others in my field. Meeting with such people and hearing about their work allowed me to learn more about and expand upon my interests. While I came in with a focus centered on avian ecology, this conference made me consider broadening my research interests to include the mammalian world.

In addition to learning more about my goals in research, I also learned more about what it is like to study in the field of wildlife. This area has lacked in diversity in the past, but current scientists are working hard to make the field more inclusive. I met people from many different backgrounds which has made me even more determined to continue pursuing my dream as an avian landscape ecologist.

While participating in my signature project, I had the chance to room with a fellow undergraduate from OSU that I have had many classes with. The two of us had only ever seen each other in passing, but essentially living together for a week has made us really close friends. We navigated the conference together and learned even more about each others’ backgrounds and research interests. Learning about his history as a veteran and his continued motivation to study in this field encouraged me to reach out to others who I wished to work with.

Each day, we attended seminars, poster sessions, and workshops that furthered our understanding of current research being done and how to even conduct some of this research ourselves. I gained a lot of experience in R Studio, a data entry program that is widely used throughout wildlife research and had the help of my peers in navigating it. We also had the chance to here about the findings of various research projects conducted my current graduate students and PhD candidates; in listening to these presentations, I was able to network and seek out potential graduate advisors.

After each long day of attending these professional events, we would continue networking into the night. The conference would continue on at a variety of venues hosted by The Galt House (the hotel we stayed in) where you could see the more laid-back and relaxed side of everyone attending the conference. While the presentations and seminars were vital for learning about the research of each person, I made the most meaningful connections while eating and dancing with others afterwards.

All in all, this project was very transformational in broadening my perspective on potential career/research interests and how/who I should pursue them with. I had the chance to secure a few potential positions with graduate advisors across the United States, met many friends in graduate school who I hope to visit in the next year, and expanded my research focus to include a greater variety of biological aspects. In doing so, I am more open minded and have a greater sense of security in my future career. Whether I find my fixed path this year or 10 years from now, I know I will have the support of many with me.

For my STEP project, I chose to become a certified medical assistant. Main activities that were performed in this project were in the lab portion. We learned how to collect and document medical histories and vital signs the old fashioned way (pulse, blood pressure, temperature). We also learned how to administer EKG’s, injections, capillaries, and other laboratory tests. We also spent a lot of time mastering phlebotomy.

Throughout the project, I learned more about my learning style. I realize that I tend to do better when I learn in  smaller groups/classes, and I’m a very visual learner. Seeing the information in pictures/visuals alongside the text helps me understand the bigger picture. Another transformation that took place was that I learned from each and every one of my classmates. Everyone has something to offer you, so take advantage of meeting new people and listen and learn from their experiences of life. As well as that older people are quite wise, you can learn so much from people that are just a few years older than you. They have more life experiences and are willing to help. Lastly, I also learned about the vital role of this position, MA’s have real-time impact on patients. 

My teacher Eric was one of the best teachers I’ve ever had. He taught us so much not just about the material we needed to know, but his real life experiences of the job and his advice on how to deal with certain situations and how to recognize important things to address when meeting with patients. His career switch from sales to MA was really inspiring and remind myself of why I’m doing this. He taught me that this job is really rewarding and we are kind of the 1st responders. We are there to support them and get them connected to the right resources needed. 

The event that led to change was the advice I got from the teacher and from my friend that I made in the class about the importance and how to implement confidence in exams to the clinical skills, and to everything else I do in life. They taught me that confidence is key, especially in this job because if a patient senses a little bit of doubt, they will also get scared. My friend, Jessey, taught me to take a few minutes with myself and do positive self-talk where I replace my negative thoughts with positive affirmations and challenge my self-doubt by focusing on my strengths and reminding myself of my past achievements before I go into the big task ahead of me. 

Relationships that also led to change were the friendships I made with my classmates. Throughout the course, I got to know them pretty well as we all worked together on clinical skills. I learned so much from each one of them, we all were on different paths and journeys to reaching our end goals, but it was just interesting and inspiring how we all came about choosing to pursue the healthcare field. They all had so many vast life experiences which were eye-opening for me. Working with my classmates taught me that I enjoy small group settings and thrive in learning environments like this. 

This transformation is valuable because it affirmed that I truly want to pursue my dream of going into medicine. It helped me further discover more reasons for why I want to pursue this field. This certification is important for me because it will give me ample clinical experience before applying to graduate school. As well as it will give me an edge because the skills I learned in this project will be tested in the first few weeks of graduate school. Participating in this STEP project has deepened my understanding of the healthcare field, fueling my enthusiasm and determination of pursuing this pathway.