Hometown: Carthage, MS

Degree: B.S. in Kinesiology

Tell us about the responsibilities of a physical therapy student:

There are so many. Obviously, the most important is keeping up with your school work and studying. It’s so important that you stay on top of everything no matter what else is going on in life because it is easy to get behind and even harder to catch up when you do. Though this is just our second semester together, we became a family very quickly so we have all taken on the responsibility of helping each other when needed. No matter how smart you are or how hard you study, you will eventually encounter something that you don't get, and it’s so important to have someone that you can go to for help. Community service is also a major part of the role we play while in school. As soon as you are able to call yourself a PT student, the community expects you to be involved and it’s so important that you are because it immediately is your responsibility to educate the public on all that PT is involved in.

What is your favorite aspect about physical therapy school:

There is so much I am enjoying about school. Right now, 95% of our time is spent in the classroom, but this semester we have/are having the opportunity to go to the hospital and observe with the doctors in all the different intensive care units as well as sit in on different surgeries that are being performed. Just in the first week, members of my class were able to observe an amputation as well as total hip and knee replacements. That has been such a learning experience and I am sure there is so much more to come in the next weeks.

How did your education at Mississippi State help prepare you for physical therapy school?

I don't think a short written answer will do this question justice. Within the first week of PT school, we were presented with more information than I think I had ever gotten in a month in undergrad. Had I not had a strong base from having had anatomy and all my kinesiology classes at State, I would have been completely lost. Though Anatomy and cadaver lab required us to look so much more in depth than I had ever had to before, I almost always had heard of the different muscle or some condition that we were covering. That foundation gave me something to build on and thus, allowed me to leave the summer semester with a 4.0. I can't count the number of times that we would leave a test and someone would say, "I don't remember studying that, but I remember it from Dr. Lamberth's class and I got it right!" That’s a good feeling to have! Of course I’m biased, but I feel that those of us that graduated from State are as well if not better prepared than anyone else in our class. Our professors are wonderful and there is no one better qualified to prepare you for this level.

Would you make any recommendations to current or prospective students that would like to pursue a career in physical therapy or a related field?

Yes! My biggest piece of advice is learn the material you are presented with when you are in undergrad. Don't just memorize it. I remember a lot of what we learned, but had I truly learned it and committed it to memory the first time around, these first semesters would have been all that much less difficult. Also, get involved. And by that, I mean in things that will help you learn in the physical therapy world. I worked as a PT tech for a year and a half and also participated in research that involved Hippo Therapy. The things I learned from those opportunities will stay with me for a lifetime and have put me ahead in this part of my education.