“In the Public Health Department the learning environment is very interactive, hands on and team focused”
Emily Ahrens, from Adel Iowa, chose Gustavus because of the small community feel and the opportunities the College has to study abroad.
Ahrens is pursuing a major in Nursing and a minor in Public Health. Her choice of the former stems from her passion for scientific exploration and her desire to delve into the intricacies of the human body. She added a Public Health minor due to her fascination with epidemiology and the study of infectious diseases.
Her favorite class experience , actually came as a surprise. Ahrens was in epidemiology class with only five people. “At first I was nervous and thought it would be weird because I have never been in a class that small, but after working with the people in my class, I love it. You get to know your classmates really well and the class is much more interactive,” she said, adding that she found it easier to ask questions and got a lot more out of the lectures.
Ahrens had Dr. Larson for a couple of her classes and will work with him more in years to come. “I really enjoy his ability to make lectures interesting even when it is not the most interesting of topics. He also just knows so much and is fun to talk to,” Ahrens said.
Throughout Ahrens’ time at Gustavus she feels that the faculty in her Department have helped her prepare for a future career. ”They allow you to work at your own pace and study the way is best for you but make it very clear that it is highly beneficial to come to class,” she said. “This mirrors an actual career, because no one is going to be there to hold your hand and make sure you show up but you need to in order to succeed.”