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During my master's program I felt that I had a great start to my professional development as a clinician and researcher, yet I had a very strong desire to learn more. I decided that I wanted to work in an academic setting where I would be able to participate in teaching, clinical practice, and research. I saw pursuing a PhD as working toward that goal. Why the University of Iowa? After my initial interview with my mentor, Dr. Jerry Moon, I left feeling that while the doctoral program at Iowa would be challenging, it would be in an environment that supported my academic goals and interests. It was one of the best professional decisions I have ever made. My area of study was speech physiology, with special emphasis on cleft lip and palate. At Iowa I had the opportunity to design my doctoral program and select courses that supported my general interest in speech physiology. I was able to take classes in exercise science, voice and speech physiology, instrumentation, and laryngeal neurophysiology. During my coursework I also had the opportunity to do readings with Dr. Bruce Tomblin that led to exploring my additional interest in the genetics of craniofacial disorders, including a project that explored the genetics associated with velocardiofacial syndrome. This experience led to the development of my dissertation project. I also completed a project in Dr. Jeff Murray's lab in which I identified mitochondrial mutations and fiber type differences in levator veli palatini tissue sampled from children with nonsyndromic cleft palate. In addition to my coursework and lab experiences, I was able to complete my Clinical Fellowship year at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics under the supervision of Dr. Michael Karnell. I genuinely feel that all of these experiences supported my choice for my area of study and I often rely on those experiences to enhance what I now do as an instructor, researcher, clinician, and mentor. |
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