From Classroom to Career: A Mount Mercy 研究生’s Journey

皇冠体育’s strong sense of community and faculty support had a big impact on Elizabeth Jensen ’22 and her decision to attend school on the Hill, helping to shape her future career in social work.

伊丽莎白爱上了锡达拉皮兹市中心的这个小校园。 它靠近她的家乡爱荷华州马伦戈，这是一个主要因素，但最终是有机会与教授建立有意义的关系，真正吸引了她。

“I came from a small school, so I enjoyed having connections with teachers,” Elizabeth explained. “That was important to me when I looked into colleges.”

在决定主修什么专业时，伊丽莎白总是知道她想帮助别人，对别人的生活产生影响。 最初，她在教育项目中开始了她的大学生涯，她认为成为一名幼儿园教师是留下持久影响的最好方式。 However, after her freshman year, she realized that teaching wasn’t the way she wanted to help people and decided to change her major to social work.

That decision was further solidified by Associate Professor of 社会工作 乔妮霍德兰. 乔尼与伊丽莎白分享了她对社会工作项目的知识和专业知识，帮助她意识到这是一个完美的选择。

“The professors showed great support to me when I changed programs,” Elizabeth said. “他们都非常平易近人，我觉得每当我需要帮助做决定或只是找人聊天时，我都可以去找他们。”

伊丽莎白参与了各种校园活动，包括社会工作俱乐部和国家领导与成功协会（NSLS）。 这些经历使她能够进一步与同龄人接触，并建立领导技能，这对她的职业生涯很有帮助。

她在Mount Mercy建立的联系，包括与同学、教授和社区机构的关系，帮助塑造和指导了她成为今天的自己。 It’s these connections that pushed her to succeed despite any setbacks that she faced. 她特别提到了内特·克莱因、乔尼·霍兰德、艾普丽尔·德克斯和凯勒·麦考利教授在她任职期间对她的影响。

“All of these people talked me through many areas of life and were there to support me," Elizabeth stated. “They all encouraged me to continue on my path and provided a listening ear when needed.”

如今，伊丽莎白在马里恩的里程碑成人日间健康中心担任护理协调员。 在这个职位上，她的任务包括参加会议和安排人员，以及在个人需要帮助时提供帮助。 没有哪两天是完全一样的。 她也很幸运地在milestone完成了一次实地实习，所以她把这个机会归功于Mount Mercy。

“Mount Mercy provided me with the education and skills to work in a professional setting with participants, coworkers, and caregivers,” she explained.

When asked what advice she would give to current students, she had some powerful words to share: “You can do hard things,” she exclaimed. “Never be afraid to ask for help.”

For those currently navigating their college journey, Elizabeth lets it be known that it’s OK to change paths, seek support, and always be open to the opportunities that come your way because they might not come up again.