Graduate Stories 2024 (2024)

Admittedly, Ohio State's prominent Buckeye brand football was the first thing to catch my eye before anything else. I went to James Madison University for my undergraduate degree in health science and was excited to hear about incoming coaches who recently transitioned from Ohio State to Madison while I was there as a student-athlete. After earning my bachelor’s degree, I completed a research internship at the National Institutes of Health, which confirmed my decision to attend medical school.

When I was considering where to apply, I learned a lot more about Ohio State. Between the strong academic reputation as a top 40 NIH-funded research institute, the culture and the mission statement that aligned with my personal and professional aspirations, I knew for certain I’d be getting a world-class education coming here. Meeting impressive faculty during a campus visit sealed the deal.

I’ve gratefully embraced opportunities to shape the future of health care and of the university. As a Buckeye, I’ve worked with the Ohio State College of Medicine Admissions Committee, the Medical Leadership Council, Student Council, Black Men in Medicine and served as a student delegate to the Foundation Board. I’m also president of HEADS UP, an acronym for Health, Education, and Developmental Services for Underprivileged Populations, a student-run organization that aims to expose underserved communities and kindergarten through 12th-grade students to careers in medicine. With Athletes in Medicine, I collaborated with the Athletics Department to offer shadowing opportunities and mentoring for student-athletes considering medicine. I’ve been where they are, and I can offer real-world advice.

I’ve had a lot of enriching professional and personal experiences, thanks to my academic work, research, clinical rotations and campus involvement at Ohio State. These are experiences I couldn’t have anywhere else, and they’ll make me a better doctor.

I’m grateful for the scholarship donors who have invested in me and my education — it has been a relief, and I am very fortunate. Scholarship support has allowed me time to apply my knowledge and skills not only to my education but also to my contributions to the Ohio State community.

I’m excited for my next step: an internal medicine residency with Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center! Following my residency, I plan to specialize in cardiology. Thanks to Ohio State, I’ve been positioned to succeed after graduation.

With gratitude,
Evans Osuji ’24 MD

Growing up, I had dreams of becoming a doctor. Through my undergraduate studies, I maintained a pre-med trajectory, pursuing experiences that exposed me to the clinical side of health care. Along the way, I realized my true passion lies in crafting policies to improve the system rather than providing direct patient care.

Once my focus shifted to the regulatory and business side of health care, I decided to attend law school. I began targeting programs with strong public health, policy and health care offerings. My goal was to pair a juris doctorate with a complementary master’s program.

Ohio State stood out during my search because of its highly ranked health sciences and law schools and acclaimed health care law faculty. I was thrilled to be admitted to the Moritz College of Law and even more excited to be offered an opportunity to compete for a Michael E. Moritz Merit Scholarship. After learning I had received this support, I knew Ohio State was the right fit for me.

My scholarship illuminated my path in law school and beyond. It gave me the financial freedom to pursue my goals without incurring debt, enabling me to complete a dual Juris Doctorate / Master of Health Administration program on an accelerated four-year timeline, graduating with top credentials in both law and health administration.

The scholarship also allowed me to undertake two research assistantships focused on health care law and dispute resolution, gaining valuable skills and contributing to meaningful work alongside renowned faculty members. Perhaps most significantly, the Moritz scholarship credentialed me early in my law school career, opening doors to life-changing opportunities. As a Moritz Board Fellow, I have learned about nonprofit governance and philanthropy from accomplished and thoughtful professionals. I am now graduating with a robust resume directly applicable to my policy career aspirations.

I plan to improve health care access by developing funding policies that promote more efficient use of the dollars that flow through the system. I will accomplish this by bringing together diverse stakeholders to develop collaborative, sustainable solutions to our current and future challenges. My drive to tackle complex systemic issues is a testament to Ohio State's development of changemaker attorneys.

My scholarship catalyzed this journey, enabling me to fully devote myself to my studies and pursue transformative practical experiences too often out of reach for students who lack the financial freedom to take on low or unpaid work aligned with their passions. My story demonstrates how scholarship support creates opportunities for students, empowering dreams and cultivating leaders.

With gratitude,
Lydia Kotowski ’24 JD, MHA

Because I had three majors — strategic communications, political science and history — I often joked that my true major was juggling. It was a lot to handle at times!

But thanks to Ohio State’s participation in the College Credit Plus program, I was able to earn 40 college credits before even starting my Buckeye journey. That head start allowed me to explore multiple areas of interest once I was here.

I can’t emphasize enough how important scholarship support was to this exploration. Scholarships empowered me to focus on my studies to the greatest extent possible and to lean into my many interests as they grew from classes to minors to majors. They also enabled my involvement in the campus community and extracurriculars like Law & Society Scholars and The PRactice, Ohio State’s student-run PR firm.

Through The PRactice, I gained hands-on experience in the PR industry and the chance to build my portfolio. From photo shoots to comprehensive audits of social media strategy, I was able to apply my talents as an up-and-coming professional and achieve real results for actual clients.

The PRactice also gave me a solid glimpse into the industry while gaining connections in the field. It was a rewarding experience, enhanced by mentorship from the program’s incredible advisors, professors Mary Sterenberg and Dan Farkas. In my last year, I was especially proud to grow my responsibility within the firm by becoming an account lead!

Through the great juggling act of my college career, I’ve learned time management — one of the best gifts that Ohio State has given me in preparing for my future. So many professors were understanding, respecting my workload and helping me succeed as a triple major. I know this supportive environment is also part of what my mother before me, and her father before her, valued as part of being a Buckeye.

Yesterday, I started my new job at a local PR firm, Slide Nine, where I plan to use my writing skills to advocate for the importance of being a good person and doing good in the world.

With gratitude,
Nigel Becker ’24 BA

When my family and I immigrated to Ohio from Peru 20 years ago, we leaned heavily on our community to understand how we could thrive in our new country. Community support, including from organizations serving young Latinas like me, was incredibly helpful. As I grew, I began noticing issues negatively impacting my community, and I wanted to help in turn.

Today, to do just that, I’m an environmental activist, graduating from the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences School of Environment and Natural Resources with a degree in environmental policy and decision making. At Ohio State, I’ve had so many unique opportunities to advocate for numerous causes, including addressing climate change, social justice and a more sustainable world.

In the Undergraduate Student Government, I advocated for support for farm worker students (especially pertinent at this land-grant university), both here and across Big Ten universities. During my internship with City Councilmember Barroso de Padilla — an opportunity from the Office of Diversity and Inclusion — along with other Latin and immigrant colleagues, I identified ways to support our communities in Columbus. Through the Washington Academic Internship Program, I learned from the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and gained hands-on experience in farm worker-related issues. And while studying abroad in Panama, I explored issues around sustainable agriculture and indigenous rights.

Real-world experiences like these are the kind of opportunities that brought me to Ohio State, and they would not have been possible without scholarships.

Scholarships provided financial peace of mind for my family, but they also let me know that what I’ve been doing at Ohio State matters because I can truly feel the recognition of my hard work as donors and the university confirm: “Yes, we believe in you and want you to succeed.”

Next fall, I plan to continue my studies by attending law school at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and build a career that helps ensure climate legislation is inclusive and just. My community showed up for me all those years ago, and I feel this is the best way that I can show up for them.

With gratitude,
Regina Loayza ’24 BS

My journey to becoming a Buckeye started in high school. I had the opportunity to take classes on the Columbus campus through a College Credit Plus program, earning 60 college credits before starting my first official year at the Newark regional campus. Smaller class sizes and the ability to work closely with professors made the daily commute worthwhile.

These early opportunities helped me seamlessly transition to the Columbus campus as a sophom*ore, but then the pandemic hit. I learned that sometimes things are out of our control, and we have to make the best of it. Looking back, it's like a blip — it was just time — and that experience made me stronger.

My hard work paid off, and I had the option to graduate early with an accounting degree. However, participating in Ohio State’s chapter of Students Consulting for Nonprofit Organizations opened my eyes to new possibilities. I created an interdisciplinary program of study combining business, public policy, psychology, design and philosophy. Navigating the complexities of customizing a major — and pursuing a dual degree — was challenging, but it provided a way for me to align my passions and career goals.

My hope is to develop a foundational understanding of how to strategically solve wicked problems through the lenses of human behavior and business. Wicked problems are ambiguous and nonlinear, involving multiple variables, types of people and cultures. To solve them through a human lens requires business and psychology to come up with an action plan to find a solution.

Two of my most impactful experiences were participating in the Fisher Global Consulting study abroad program in France and securing an internship at a management consulting firm in Chicago, which led to a job offer upon graduation. Both were life-changing opportunities. Having personal interactions in professional settings is how I gained confidence and learned to believe in myself.

Coming from a single-parent household, scholarships and grants played a key role in enabling me to pursue these opportunities without constantly worrying about money. Financial assistance provided me the freedom to explore and tailor my educational experience. I am incredibly grateful for the support I received — and to my mom, who has always been my biggest supporter.

With gratitude,
Spencer Newkirk ’24 BS

When I left China in 2015 to pursue my bachelor's degree at Ohio State, it was the first time I had traveled to America. Though I had a classmate from my high school in China joining me, the transition to a new country and culture was still daunting. Scholarships played a vital role in enabling me to seize this life-changing opportunity.

My dad had a really strong desire for me to study abroad, to open my eyes and see the differences in education between here and China. Ohio State's high rankings drew me to apply, and once accepted, scholarship support helped make my family’s dream of an international education possible.

I began my undergraduate career as a biology major, but after some exploration and growth, I discovered my true passion was in the field of nutrition. I have a family history of Type II diabetes, and because of this, felt a personal drive to understand how dietary choices could help prevent or manage this disease that affects so many. I was fascinated by the practical, applicable knowledge provided by the College of Education and Human Ecology’s Human Nutrition program.

Scholarships continued to enrich my academic experience at Ohio State as I transitioned to my PhD program researching the impacts of bioactive compounds, like those found in black raspberries, on gut microbiome metabolism. I’ve been able to use the award funds that I’ve received to attend conferences I'm really interested in, offering opportunities to present my research findings to larger audiences in the nutrition education community, connect with other researchers and envision future career paths. A department fellowship covered a significant portion of my tuition and living expenses.

My next step is to secure a research and development position with a food company, working to develop enhanced nutritional formulas and products. The skills, knowledge and connections gained through my studies at Ohio State have prepared me to make valuable contributions to the future of nutrition education and research.

Scholarship donors empowered me to expand my horizons, follow my passion and position myself for future career success. Their investment underwrote an educational journey of self-discovery, professional growth and the pursuit of innovations that will improve lives.

With gratitude,
Shiqi Zhang ’24 PhD, ’19 BS

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