A Sister Act with Melina

Transcript

Meet Melina, she’s a recent graduate and actually one of the first bio computational engineering graduates ever from the University of Maryland’s highly ranked Clark School of Engineering at USG. It’s safe to say that Melina probably had one of the most trusted recruiters she could ever have as she found her way to the USG campus. Please share your wonderful story, Melina, take it away.

– Thank you, Alex. Hi everyone. I was born and raised in Paris, but things took a turn in 2017 when my family and I moved to Maryland. It was a big change, especially since I didn’t know any English. I went straight to high school while my sister took English classes at our local community college before transferring to the Universities at Shady Grove. After telling me how small the classes were and how much the professors cared about the students, I was convinced to join her. I managed to graduate with my associate’s degree from my community college in just a year, and then joined her at USG where I was part of the first five students to join the University of Maryland’s Bio Computational engineering program, which is a mix of bioengineering and computer science. At USG, you can have a job while you study, which is a game changer. Thanks to everything we learned about leadership at USG, my sister and I open our own social media advertising agency that we ran while being full-time students. We have now each worked with over a thousand different companies like Uber Eats, Bumble, Lululemon, and even Target. A common misconception about small commuter schools is that there are no social events or clubs, but I disagree. There’s so many clubs you can join or even start your own. I started the stock market club and an artificial intelligence club. I still wanted to be more involved, so I became the co-president of the student council and a member of the USG Board of Advisors. Last May, I graduated with a degree in bio computational engineering from the University of Maryland’s Clark School of Engineering, a program that is only offered at USG. I am profoundly grateful for all the knowledge and experience that I gained both from my university program and USG. That’s all for me, back to you, Alex.

– Great job, Melina, and given the way your social media advertising business has already taken off, I should add great job to both you, Melina, and your trailblazing sister Camilla who helped PA the way for you to make the decision to pursue your bachelor’s degree as a student right here on the USG campus. Thank you for sharing that awesome story.