大胆尝试吧

When Brianna Leon first arrived at the University of Idaho in 2022, 她很难挣脱她的壳. 天生害羞的 动物和兽医科学:兽医预科 student was also intimidated by her fellow students who had grown up on farms or with animals — experience that she didn’t have. Opportunities in the U of I 农学院 and 生命科学 have helped push Leon outside of her comfort zone and given her the confidence to pursue her passion.

探索兽医科学

Leon’s first opportunity to break out of her shell came as a freshman when she learned about the U of I Minorites in Agriculture, Natural 资源 and Related Science (MANRRS)俱乐部. She decided to join and through the support of Sharon Murdock, 社团顾问兼CALS学生服务经理, Leon has taken on leadership responsibilities for the club, 目前担任联席总裁兼财务主管.

“她在我身上看到了我没有看到的潜力, and she really pushed and advocated for me to do those scarier things that she knew would ultimately help me grow,莱昂说.

在manrs区域会议上, Leon learned about the MANRRS Collegiate Animal 健康 and Care Academy. She was told it was a very competitive program but decided to go for it. Leon was selected as one of 12 students across the nation to participate in the 2024 program.

“我觉得, 兽医专业预科, a lot of the time you have to be very grounded in your decision because it’s a lot of school and commitment,”她说。. “I really wanted to solidify the fact that this was something that I wanted to go into.”

The academy’s purpose is to introduce students to career options in the animal health industry while providing mentoring and professional development opportunities. Participants also attended the International Production and Processing Expo and the MANRRS National Conference and Career Expo.

The experience opened Leon’s eyes to the wide variety of careers available in veterinary medicine and helped solidify that she is on the right career path. She hopes to become a wildlife rehabilitation veterinarian with a focus on restoring populations. She was able to connect with a wildlife biologist and wildlife veterinarian during the academy to learn more about career options.

“I’m glad I had the opportunity to learn more about what all is out there because if I hadn’t, 我还在想,”她说。. “It really helped me a lot and solidified my career path.”

冒险

Leon has always known she wanted to work with animals. She was tempted to stay close to her hometown of Rupert for higher education but knew that path was the most comfortable and wouldn’t help her grow. 她申请了U of I并被选为a Chobani365滚球官网, a $20,000 scholarship program for students from the Magic Valley, and she knew she couldn’t turn down the opportunity out of fear.

“这很吓人, 但这是爱达荷州最好的农业学校, 我就跳起来，希望一切都好,”她说。. “第一年很艰难, but I don’t think I’d be where I am personally and professionally if I hadn’t come to U of I. 乔巴尼365滚球官网也是一个巨大的动力. I wouldn’t be where I am if it wasn’t for the scholarship.”

Leon hasn’t let her initial concerns of having a limited background working with animals stop her from exploring opportunities and increasing her knowledge.

“I felt a little out of place because I didn’t have that animal background, but my professors and advisors never saw it as an issue,”她说。. “I was shy because I felt like maybe I didn’t fit into that standard of pre-vet because I didn’t grow up with animals. I decided not to use that as an excuse anymore and put myself out there and became proactive.”

Leon has been able to gain the hands-on experiences she was missing through her classes, which has helped to reinforce that she is on the right path.

“I loved doing lamb watch in AVS 110 then recently I did the beef calving class in Salmon, 我非常喜欢它,”她说。. 我可以诚实地说，这是我想做的事情. That’s something U of I has helped me with because they gave me those opportunities to go out and figure out, oh, 我喜欢这个, 我对它很感兴趣.”

Leon encourages other students who may be shy or unsure of themselves to take chances and explore their options.

“It’s simple but very true, just go for it,”她说。. “If I didn’t just go for it and held myself back, I wouldn’t be here. 我真的很感谢莎伦. 如果不是因为她，我不会有今天的成就.”