Faculty members were once students too! Faculty in the School of Sciences & Health held a recent event titled “We Were You”, during which students were able to ask professors questions regarding classes, career paths, and how to find opportunities for research. The professors shared and related their personal experiences from when they were college students, to the current students at Emmanuel. They also provided advice on how they overcame uncertainties and pushed through their struggles as STEM students. The professors that were present for the panel were Dr. Nathan Lau from Chemistry & Physics, Dr. Ben Allen from Mathematics, Dr. Natalie Karagodsky from Biology, and Dr. Xiaowei Zhao from Psychology. Dr. Paul March, Associate Dean of the School of Sciences & Health, was present and led the panel discussion.
One question that was asked was, “If I am struggling or failing a first-year chemistry/biology class, should I drop the class and retake it or stick with it?” Dr. Karagodsky and Dr. Zhao responded and first starting by saying “Never be discouraged! Being a freshman in college is a huge transition and it is difficult to adapt to the college course load and work. If you are struggling a lot though, it may be best to retake the course for a better understanding of the material, because a lot of the science classes build off of each other and old material is always revisited. Resources that are available for help are your professor’s office hours, the tutors in the Academic Resource Center, and the review sessions held before each quiz and exam.”
Another question that was discussed was, “How can a student find internship and research opportunities on or off campus?” Dr. Lau and Dr. Allen answered this question and explained, “You want to make sure you build relationships with your professors who you can potentially do research with, or who can help with networking to find these types of opportunities. Utilize office hours! Professors love helping their students and getting to know them! Another way to find out about internships and research is to create a profile on HireSaints and search around using the advanced toolbar, or you can meet with Emmanuel’s Career Center…”
An important question that was asked was, “If I have questions regarding potential careers, who can I talk to?” Dr. March answered this question and shared, “A great recourse on campus is HPAC, our Health Professional Advisory Committee. They specifically can help with any questions regarding pre-med, pre-vet or pre-dental, but they can also help with questions about other careers in the health field as well.”
At the end of the event students were able to meet the professors and ask any additional questions.
~Written by Amanda Castelluccio, Edited by Aren Gerdon
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