Alison Flores
Major: Biology with a minor in anthropology
Campus Activities and Achievements: College of Arts and Sciences Office Work Study, Volunteer McCullough Hall Nursing Center, Sisters of Divine Providence, Basketball Embassy, Snack Pak 4 Kids, Alamo Area Resource Center, and Inner City Development 

Impact of OLLU: My experience at OLLU has been incredible. I’ve met and became friends with some amazing people and have lots of fond memories from living and working on campus and being in the honors program as well as Sigma Zeta. I definitely have grown more confident in my leadership and public speaking skills which I used to struggle with and no longer doubt my abilities in those areas. Overall, I think that OLLU provided me a support system (outside of my family) with professors who genuinely care about your future and provide guidance not only in class but in research and applying to graduate school. Everyone here supports everyone and I think that is really important in pushing yourself to pursue opportunities that you might be too scared to try because you know that you have people to fall back on and cheer you on.

An important life lesson: The biggest life lesson I’ve learned is to be okay with making mistakes, use them as motivation and think of them as bumps in your road from which you can learn and grow. As someone who used to be a perfectionist with the need to get As on every exam and assignment, one B or C on exam will not ruin your grade. Don’t doubt your ability and how smart you are because of one grade, instead adapt your studying habits and use it to motivate you to do better on your next exam. 

Plans for the future: Using all of the knowledge I’ve gained from all of my biology courses, I plan to go to optometry school next fall. Courses such as organ physiology, comparative anatomy, microbiology, and organic chemistry, just to name a few, have made me feel confident in my abilities to do research and memorize extensive material and apply it to real life applications. Taking multiple advanced biology courses and being in labs that, on occasion, had me leaving well into the evening and staying up studying for exams until 2 or 3 a.m. has me assured that I will be able to handle any postgraduate school. Currently, I am studying for my OAT exam and preparing my application for UIW’s Rosenburg School of Optometry. Next spring, I am planning to shadow an optometrist and take my OAT so that I can send in my application by next summer for fall of 2024.