Personal Statement
My passion for helping others become the healthiest versions of themselves and my fascination with the science of nutrition drives my pursuit of being a registered dietitian. I have seen the power of nutrition in my life and others around me, and it is my aspiration to pursue a career in dietetics because of the positive impact I can have.
The initial inspiration for studying nutrition came after a close family member was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. She attributed her strong recovery to the nutrition counseling she received at the Bastyr Center for Natural Health. Her story contributed to my desire to help heal others through nutrition.
My current career goal is to become a clinical dietitian and work in a hospital setting. Therefore I am pursuing a dietetic internship with a focus on medical nutrition therapy, so I would be able to spend a larger portion in a hospital or medical center and develop skills related to nutrition assessment..
I have developed professional and personal strengths that well prepare me for the rigors of a dietetic internship. My previous work experiences in hospitals have illuminated my ability to keep a calm demeanor in highly stressful situations. I trust in my capability to act professionally and with clarity when faced with challenging situations. I have demonstrated that I can work diligently and efficiently when under very limited time constraints. The year before I attended graduate school, I worked full-time as well as completed two prerequisite classes every quarter and was able to achieve a very high GPA. My academic and professional experiences have also helped me to develop very strong communication skills. From my customer service background, I know I can work cooperatively with co-workers as well as patrons and have had minimal conflicts in the past. When conflicts do arise, I am able to handle them in a professional and congenial manner.
There are areas where I am striving for improvement because I have not had as many previous opportunities to develop them. I have had limited public speaking experience and therefore this is a skill in which I am not as confident. Thus, I have sought out experiences that involve speaking in front of crowds, such as teaching weekly nutrition classes and leading grocery store tours, which has helped me to improve my public speaking skills. I also have limited experience holding a position of leadership and therefore have been pursuing leadership roles within my community and at work. I have been a mentor to first year nutrition students and the captain of a flag football team. I have enjoyed these positions and feel they have had a positive impact on me.
There have been numerous professional and volunteer experiences that were valuable in preparing me for a dietetic internship as well as a career as a RDN. For ten years, I worked in the food service and restaurant industry and developed exceptional customer service and teamwork skills with a wide variety of people. My first full-time job was as a health coach at Alere Wellbeing. I established strong counseling skills as I spoke to dozens of people every day from all socioeconomic backgrounds helping them reach their health related goals, such as quitting smoking, losing weight, eating healthier and being more physically active. I was selected to coach veterans in the pilot VA TLC for Healthy Living program, which was particularly rewarding. Working alongside dietitians at Alere also solidified my desire to pursue a career in nutrition.
A tremendous experience was volunteering for a 12-week long healthy lifestyles program for overweight adolescents and their parents at the North Shore YMCA. I was able to work alongside a RD to implement nutrition education through leading group discussions and cooking healthful meals. This was an amazing opportunity and I was touched by the progress of the children throughout the program.
Working with an RD in her own practice has been a remarkable experience that has helped to expand my nutrition knowledge and improve my teaching skills. Wendy Caamano is the dietitian for the Seattle Storm professional women’s basketball team and I was given the incredible opportunity to work with them. After meeting with the players, I compiled and developed nutrition education handouts that were distributed to the players over the course of the season. This experience increased my ability to utilize evidence-based research in order to develop educational materials.
The job I have held in the health center at Bayview Retirement Community as a dietary aide has been very challenging, however I have learned a great deal from it. This position has reinforced my ability to work as efficiently as possible in order to have dinner prepared for the residents in a timely manner. It has strengthened my knowledge of medical nutrition therapy and implementing therapeutic diets, particularly for patients with dysphagia, renal disease, and diabetes.
However, the most influential experience thus far has come from being a student clinician at the Bastyr Center for Natural Health. Assessing and educating patients with a wide variety of conditions has been an extremely valuable learning experience that helped to uniquely prepare me for an internship and a career as a RDN.
I have several future goals to pursue in the short and long term. Through dedication to schoolwork, my goal is to graduate with a GPA above a 3.7. In the future, one goal is to obtain a certification in a specialty area, such as diabetes education or sports nutrition. Another long-term goal is to be a preceptor, in order to help future students become dietitians themselves.
I believe I am an ideal candidate for a dietetic internship because of my strong work ethic and my commitment to positively change lives through nutrition. Additionally, I have the character attributes and work experience that would benefit any program. This internship will be challenging, yet I know it will successfully prepare me for the career I desire.