Filling the Gap: Making the Most of a Gap Year

Careers in health care often require additional study beyond the undergraduate years. Some students enroll in graduate or professional school directly after college graduation, but others take a “gap year” or more before they can begin further study.

Although taking a gap year can be discouraging for students who worry that they’re falling behind, it can also be a great opportunity to enhance your credentials. Some students take additional classes to improve their GPA or complete prerequisites; others gain clinical experience, conduct research or volunteer. A gap year is also a good opportunity to reflect on your values and goals and mature. Two Elmhurst College alums share their stories below.

Jessica Hulesch ’09, student at University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign College of Veterinary Medicine

During my gap year, I worked on strengthening my résumé as a future vet student. I took a few more classes at Elmhurst College, and I gained some experience working with large animals in Wiscon­sin. Mostly, though, I worked on mentally prepar­ing myself to apply again, because I think I simply wasn’t ready the first time around.

The time off also gave me a chance to stop and reflect on my life and my plans for the future. Hav­ing the conviction to reapply made me sure that being a veterinarian is what I want to do with my life. I also took time to hang out with friends and enjoy my time away from school. Looking back, I’m very grateful to have had that year.

 Jessica Hulesch '09 (in red) caring for a rhino in South Africa.

Donald Skenandore ’10, student at Chicago Medical School at Rosalind Franklin University

I prepared for the MCAT the summer after graduat­ing from Elmhurst College while completing my application for medical school. I applied for travel awards to health conferences, where I networked with medical school personnel and recruiters. Fur­thermore, I enrolled in postgraduate classes (includ­ing biochemistry and microbiology) at the Univer­sity of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to increase my GPA.

I received my MCAT score during my first se­mester at UWM. The score was far too low to make me competitive, which was very discouraging after I had sacrificed an entire summer studying for it. I knew I would have to retake the test, so I picked myself back up and started studying again. At the same time, I was working full time as an in-home caregiver. After the semester ended I began work­ing as a janitor at UWM to earn extra cash.

Along with work, I volunteered at South Eastern Oneida Tribal Services (SEOTS) to give back to my American Indian tribe, which has supported me in many ways. To improve my test-taking skills for the MCAT I applied for, and earned, a travel award to an MCAT/GRE workshop. Afterward, I received a full-ride scholarship for a master’s program in applied biology at Elizabeth City State University (ECSU) and went through a government training program with the Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE) through the Department of Homeland Security. After a spring and summer semester at ECSU I decided to change my course of direction toward a more medically focused master’s program at Rosalind Franklin University.

The gap year experience was rewarding in many ways. It helped me educate myself on the health care system and gave me an opportunity to build my confidence. My unique experience with the government training program gave me an edge over my peers. It provided me leadership skills in real-world experiences and solidified my ability to thrive in stressful, fast-changing environments. My upper-level coursework during my gap years helped improve my GPA to make me a more competitive applicant. One of the most important attributes I gained during my gap year was the confidence to successfully and effectively teach myself just about any new subject without the help of a teacher. Overall, the ultimate reward was seeing that hard work and sacrifice can pay off in the end.

 Donald Skenandore '10

Developing Future Leaders in Nursing

Jacquelyne Hulslander, Ph.D., BS ’77, BSN ’81, has had a successful nursing career in the United States and Bolivia. After retiring from the faculty of Triton College, Dr. Hulslander sought out opportunities to reconnect with Elmhurst College and started mentoring students here. Presently, she meets with two nursing students, Katie Boals ’15 and Greta Wischmeyer ’14, to share her insights into the nursing profession and life.

“What I hope to accomplish through the mentoring process is to bring a connection between this alumni and a current student.  I never had this type of connection as a student through my nursing program, bachelor and master’s degrees, and one did not develop until my doctoral studies.  It was at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana (where she completed her Ph.D. in education), that I became more confident, gained more insight and truly did benefit from a mentoring tutelage,” reflected Dr. H.

In Dr. Hulslander, Katie Boals ’15 has found a mentor who supports all her endeavors. “Dr. H and I meet in the Frick Center about once every two weeks or once a month,” Katie said. “We talk about how my classes are going, and she gives me advice on how to study. She is helping me with where I could work this coming summer too since I am a CAN. Dr. H is a fantastic mentor! She genuinely cares about us. She even came to some of my softball games last spring, which really meant a lot to me. I definitely got lucky with having her as my mentor, and I enjoy our time together.” Going the extra mile as Dr. H does has really allowed for this mentoring relationship to flourish

Dr. Hulslander sees maturity in Katie and encourages her to develop all of her interests. “Katie brings a wonderful balance to her college nursing and non-nursing courses, and her love of playing softball for the College. Katie sure makes me proud to have the foresight to enjoy her softball and yet, see how employment as a CNA will build her experiential learning.”

A woman of service, Dr. Hulslander found a kindred spirit in her other protégé, Greta Wischmeyer ’14. Greta met Dr. Hulslander in the fall of 2011 at a meeting for the Diocese of Joliet's mission trip to Bolivia. Shortly thereafter, the two were paired up to begin a mentoring relationship and became close friends. They bonded over their shared experience of traveling to Bolivia—even to the same city and hospital as one another!

“Dr. H and I met every other week or so on campus; we would reminisce about mission trips, discuss my classes, go over test taking strategies, and share the highlights of our personal lives,” said Greta. “Dr. H has given me guidance in all that my future career will entail. More importantly, the support she has given me has been immensely beneficial through the ups and downs of the past year. I cannot imagine what I would have done without the relationship I have formed with her.”

“Truly, Greta became ‘mi querida hija’ [my sweet daughter],” said Dr. Hulslander. “What a blessing to know her and watch her grow as she experienced her first clinical rotation this past semester.”

Katie and Greta value their relationship with Dr. Hulslander so much that they sometimes bring their peers to meetings, hoping to share the wealth of information that comes from their mentorships.

In addition to spending time with Dr. Hulslander one-on-one, Katie and Greta have brought fellow students with them to their meetings. They value her expertise, support, and time so much and wanted to provide their peers with a similar opportunity. In turn, Dr. Hulslander also feels blessed by the experience. “One can certainly see how I have been the one who has gained two wonderful nursing students to my life and the pride I have with sharing in their lives,” Dr. Hulslander said.

 

Katie Boals, Dr. Hulslander, and Greta Wischmeyer

Cultivating Passion and Compassion in Medicine

By Peter Rantis ’14

Peter Rantis has wanted to be a physician for a long time. A pre-med student, he recently completed an internship at Elmhurst Memorial Hospital with Michael Cohan, M.D., who specializes in nephrology and internal medicine. The internship, which fulfilled requirements for the medical humanities minor, showed him what it truly means to be a physician and confirmed his desire to pursue a medical career.

My recent clinical experience with Dr. Michael Cohan was an enlightening and fulfilling experience. Dr. Cohan is an excellent role model on both a personal and a professional level. He showed a great deal of inter­est in my development and learning experience. He did everything he could to ensure that my time spent with him at Elmhurst Memorial Hospital was beneficial to the fullest extent possible. Most importantly, I feel fortunate not only to have worked with him, but also to have gotten to know such a wonderful man.

There is no substitute for firsthand experience, and my learning experience ran the entire spectrum. I witnessed an excellent doctor in multiple settings: during hospital rounds, in the clinic and in the diag­nostic lab. I felt so fortunate to have this opportu­nity, because some medical students don’t work at hospitals until medical school.

Working with Dr. Cohan, I learned how much preparation medicine involves. A doctor’s learning process is never ending. Medical professions have a certain glamour attached to them; however, I learned that people must have passion for what they do in order to perform well on a daily basis. I also learned the importance of compassion by watching Dr. Cohan’s interactions with patients. During my time at Elmhurst Memorial Hospital, the focus was not on the electronic device in my hands or in my pocket, but on the people in front of me.

During this internship, I looked forward to going to Elmhurst Memorial Hospital and working side by side with Dr. Cohan. I did not look upon it as an obli­gation, but as an opportunity to expand my horizons. Most importantly, I decided to continue pursuing my goal of becoming a physician because of the sense of achievement and gratification that comes from help­ing someone in need.

Dr. Michael Cohan and Peter Rantis

Earning Your Scrubs

“Earning Your Scrubs” is the new blog sponsored by the Elmhurst College (EC) Patterson Center for the Health Professions (PCHP). As an advising office for EC students and alumni interested in careers in health care, the PCHP serves as a resource and support center for students as they begin their professional journey. By visiting our office, students will be provided advising on health care career options, courses pertaining to these professions, shadowing and internship opportunities, applications to graduate and professional school, interviewing techniques, and so much more. The updates on career preparation, student experiences, and words of wisdom we hope to share through this blog are just a taste of what we offer in the PCHP. We hope those interested in learning more will stop by our center to meet with us!