Why I chose the College of Allied Health Sciences at UC

As a prospective student the unique campus draws you in at first, but as you take a deeper look you realize it's much more than the buildings that make your college experience. Instead, it is the relationships you make in your Learning Community, going to work out classes with new friends, and the late-night walks to Center Court for grilled cheese. College freshmen wish for a home away from home when they are looking for a college and I can tell you from my experience, you too can find your home away from home, here at UC.

After my first day on campus, I had met some of my best friends. I was involved with the H.O.T (Hall Opening Team) and helped freshman move into their dorms. Joining this club before even stepping on campus shaped my college experience, and I will forever be grateful for that opportunity and meeting my best friends. I met so many wonderful individuals while living in my dorm, classes, just walking around campus. I soon learned it was important to just go and try new things because you never knew what may come out of an experience. UC has incredible organizations to find exactly what you want out of your college experience.

In your first year as an allied health student, you are immersed in hands-on experience, but also giving back to your community. You are enrolled in service learning where you get to pick a community and location to work with and volunteer. It gives you an opportunity to work with a population you may want to work with in the future and allows you to learn more about your future profession. 

Getting involved on campus helps students learn beyond the classroom. As an allied health student, I learned a lot in the classroom my first year, but my extracurriculars taught me a lot too. Joining the National Student Speech Language Hearing Association (NSSLHA) allowed me to learn so much beyond the classroom. NSSLHA allows me to network among older students as well as professionals within our field. This organization has given me many opportunities within the SLP field and even being able to attend the National ASHA conference that not many undergraduates get to attend. 

During my spring semester of my first year, I decided to apply to be a CAHS Ambassador. I was super excited when I got the position to be able to talk about my experiences here at UC. CAHS Ambassadors was my organization that was outside my comfort zone, and I was able to work on so many weaknesses. I personally never really enjoyed public speaking and having practice through CAHS Ambassadors helped me grow into being able to be comfortable in front of prospective students and their families but also in the classroom. Through this organization, I can work with other students not in my major and learn so much about our college. Some advice for when joining organizations is find something you want to give your time to and be involved as much as you can because you never know what may come from it. Look for an organization you think you can grow in between your freshman and senior year. College life is a lot more enjoyable when you love every part of it so if you are not enjoying something move on and find something you love, it is your experience!

My first semester of my first year I got involved within the Panhellenic community. One of my friends sent me a post for sorority recruitment and I was never interested in being a sorority, but I was interested. I kept looking at their Instagram page and all the different sororities and decided to try it out. I have now been a part of Chi Omega for 4 years now and I wouldn’t change a thing. I was able to meet my roommates and so many other people at UC. Chi Omega brought me an amazing group of women who I get to explore Cincinnati and Clifton with. While it is nice to have connections within your major, it is also important to have connections outside of your major. Chi Omega gave me like minded individuals but also allows me to take a “break” from schoolwork and do something for myself. Organizations shouldn’t feel like a chore! Find an organization through social media that looks like fun and something you would enjoy and try it out!

As I reflect on the last four years and as I am applying for graduate school, it just shows how CAHS really prepared me for my future. Throughout the four years you work closely with professors and get so many opportunities to keep preparing you for future endeavors. During your last year, you participate in a capstone where you get to be a part of active therapy or research in a specific population or field you may want to work with in the future. You get to learn so much about your specific field and work under some of the best professionals. Opportunities like these are so important to prepare you for clinicals in graduate school and so grateful for being able to be a head above other students from different colleges.