Morgan Olson is a senior psychology, pre-physical therapy and ACT-In major with a communications minor at William Jewell College. She has recently declared her plans for after graduation this May and will be attending the physical therapy program at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) in Omaha, Neb. for their three-year doctorate program.
“I’ve known I wanted to go into the medical field from going to the doctor when I was younger and absolutely loving it. I wanted to learn about what the doctor was doing so I would ask questions, and when I was really little I pretended to be my dad’s doctor,” said Olson.
She earned her Certified Nurses Assistant certification in high school to receive early experience and help her solidify her path into medicine. Olson’s first major at Jewell was pre-med, but after taking the class “So You Want to be a Doctor?” she decided her interests were in physical therapy. The relational aspect of the field appealed to her.
While at Jewell, Olson utilized the Career Mentor program offered by the Career Development office and connections provided by the College. Physical therapy school typically requires 50-100 hours of job shadowing, and the Career Mentor program provided Olson with the resources to get those hours completed. She was able to begin shadowing her sophomore year of college.
“The Career Mentor program makes the first steps of networking for you so you can get at least one great connection in the area. After that, Jewell connections helped me be more prepared for interviews. My professors gave me the contact information of former Jewell students in physical therapy programs, and they gave me really valuable information about what the emphasize on my applications and in my interviews,” said Olson.
Olson completed her applications in July and had her first interview as early as September. Her final decision came down to Creighton University, Des Moines University, Rockhurt University and finally, UNMC.
“It was such a big decision to make and now that it’s over I can focus on the rest of my senior year,” said Olson.
At UNMC, Olson will be receiving a doctorate degree in three years. The program involves eight-week shifts with clinical instructors, and she can choose to do those anywhere within the United States.