Rebecca Hall  '03

Rebecca Hall, a former UROP student and Peer Advisor, graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.S. in Microbiology in May 2003.  Currently, she is working towards a Masters of Epidemiology at the Emory School of Public Health in Atlanta, Georgia.  Between classes and studying, Becky is researching with a doctor who has a joint appointment in Epidemiology and International Health at Emory.  Her work is executed in an immunology and virology lab which studies food and water borne viruses, such as Hepatitis A.   Specifically, they are investigating the pathology of these viruses.  She feels that her research is important because everyone is susceptible to food and water borne viruses, and an outbreak of such viruses can have a serious public health impact.

For Becky, there were many benefits from participating in UROP:  She improved her organizational skills, became more outgoing, and being a Peer Advisor allowed her to develop as a mentor.   More importantly, she is now a “better communicator” making her “able to approach faculty easier.”  In terms of where UROP ranked in her undergraduate experience, “Way up there—UROP encompassed 2 years of my life!”

Becky notes: “Because UROP promotes an increased awareness and understanding of social and cultural issues I think being in the program increased my desire to volunteer. In addition to being in the Emory School of Public Health, I have two volunteer positions here in Atlanta.  One is working at a free clinic downtown that serves the city's working poor, and the other is working at a non-profit organization called “Refugee Family Services.”  UROP not only provided me with valuable research skills within public health, but it also increased my awareness of community and public service.”

After graduating from the Emory School of Public Health, Becky plans to attend medical school, but prefers to stay in academia rather than practice medicine.

Chris Wetzel  '95

During his first year at Michigan, Chris Wetzel contemplated leaving the University of Michigan.  He was an out-of-state student frustrated with his undergraduate experience.  Hoping to enrich his experience, he joined UROP because he believed it would allow him to make a large public university feel smaller.  However, Chris could not have imagined the many other benefits his participation in the program would bring him.  He found support from UROP staff and his faculty sponsor, Dorceta Taylor, Associate Professor, School of Natural Resources and Environment.  This support motivated him to stay focused and prompted him to stay at Michigan to obtain his undergraduate degree.  Undoubtedly, Chris’ expectations of UROP were vastly exceeded, contributing to his “incredible” experience in the program!

UROP became such a large part of his university experience that it was at the forefront and background of his life.  He met good friends and even his wife through the program. “UROP was my Michigan experience.  I couldn’t imagine life without UROP.”

Chris received his undergraduate degree in 1995 and spent the next year working for UROP and UIR.  Half of his time was spent helping to lay the groundwork for UIR.  In the remaining time, he researched with Professor John Jonides studying the positive effects that UROP has on the retention rate of undergraduate students.  In Fall 1997, Chris enrolled at University of California, Berkeley to pursue a Ph.D. in Sociology.  During Fall 2002, he was a student intern at the U.S. General Accounting Office where he worked on applied research using skills developed during his UROP experience.

Currently, Chris is focusing on completing his dissertation entitled "One Spirit, One Nation: Potawatomi Politics, Collective Concerns, and Negotiating National Identities, 1830-2004.”  He hopes to complete his Ph.D. in Sociology by Spring 2006.  Chris contributes his professional success to the experiences he had in UROP.  The “ability to take a step back and listen to the experiences of other students,” has helped him with his teaching at Berkeley and with his outlook on life. 

Chris Wetzel’s Advice for UROP students:

Make sure you make the most of all the opportunities available to you through UROP.  You are building a set of real skills that can be practically applied to many fields, careers, and situations.   “Follow up with faculty and build a relationship.”