Could you tell us a little bit about your educational background?

I graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 2021 with a BS in Human Biology and a certificate in pre-health professions.

What first got you interested in the healthcare field as a career choice? There are a lot of career options in the field -nursing, physician assistant, etc., what made you decide that genetic counseling was the right practice area/career choice for you?

I have known I wanted to work in healthcare ever since my first Biology class in middle school. I also knew I wanted a career that would be social and allow me to help people. Finding that balance was difficult at first, until I discovered genetic counseling. I fell in love with the fact that genetics is a field that is constantly evolving, so I knew I would be able to grow and continue to learn throughout my career. More importantly, genetic counseling would give me the opportunity to make meaningful connections with patients and help them through the best or the worst of times.

What type of obstacles have you had to overcome on the road to getting your education and in particular in pursuing your Genetic Counseling degree?

Coming from a family with no experience working in healthcare, it was hard to find someone to talk to that knew about different types of professions in the field. I discovered genetic counseling just from doing some research and I was immediately drawn in. Not only was it difficult to describe genetic counseling to my family, but it was harder not being able to find someone to share my passion and excitement with. I think for this reason, I felt like I was going into the application process blind. However, after meeting genetic counselors and other students in the field I instantly felt such an amazing sense of community and support.

What are you most looking forward to about beginning your Genetic Counseling studies?

I think I am most looking forward to seeing how genetic counseling studies will evolve with time as new technologies are being developed and our collective knowledge on the topic grows.

What is one fun and interesting fact about you?

I have a passion for glass art! I did stained glass for three years of high school and then got into glassblowing in college.