Chase Walter ’22
Exceptional Teaching and Learning
I’ve met some really amazing people through the Med Bio program at UNE. So many of my peers are vastly intelligent and are more than willing to study together. I had some excellent professors, particularly ones that would stay well after class with me to go over questions about what we were discussing. [My professors] were very excited to further my education in ways beyond the scope of what is typically required.
Hands-On Learning
[This past summer], I’ve been an intern at the Portland Spurwink Crisis Center. The idea of the office is that if someone’s in a mental health crisis, they can come into our facility.
Primarily I am involved with shadowing psychiatric Nurse Practitioners (NP) that work in the crisis center. With them, I ask questions directly to clients to develop trust, and hopefully, get them the necessary medications and resources. Additionally, the psych NP and I will discuss appropriate medication applications, distinctions in psychiatric diagnoses, and whatever questions I might have.
I started doing independent psychiatric evaluations as my internship progressed. That was a big step for both my confidence in the field and for expanding my knowledge. I think that's been really big for my own personal development as someone who is thinking about going into psychiatry potentially.
I really appreciate the opportunities that 51Æ·²èallows for students to participate in internships. I'm getting a lot out of this. It's an amazing opportunity for me and I'm learning so much, it's been amazing.
Welcoming Community
I actually transferred to 51Æ·²èmy junior year and that was one of the smartest decisions I’ve ever made. 51Æ·²èhas allowed me to grow much more as a person. As much as I would love to give myself all that credit, it’s definitely my peers and my professors that helped foster my growth at UNE.
As a transfer student and being the new kid, it’s always kind of intimidating. But I didn’t experience anything like that. I just immediately meshed into everything with UNE’s great community and environment.