Coming from an extremely small town, I struggled to find the resources necessary to prepare myself for college. Whether it was study habits, time management skills, or even just paying for college. It was all a scary thought, and I didn't realize how important all of that was until I got to school. My first year at the University of Northern Iowa was a struggle. I was working as many hours as I could to help pay for school and on top of that, I was involved with many campus organizations. I wasn't used to having clubs or a lot of extra curriculars being I went to a school with a graduating class of 30 students! I found myself getting extremely overwhelmed and struggled to keep a decent GPA. I was pulling all-nighters, or close enough to be considered an all-nighter. I felt like I couldn't talk to my parents about how I was doing because as a first-generation student, I didn't think they'd understand. I changed my major multiple times and ended up sticking with accounting. I sat down with one of my professors, who later became my boss, and spoke to me about test anxiety and better ways to study for exams. After my first year, I switched my major to finance, moved off campus, and pulled back from a few extra curriculars. I ended up graduating from UNI a year early (thanks Kirkwood Community College and high school dual enrollment!) and moved to the Iowa City area to start a job with the Office of Student Financial Aid here at the University of Iowa! Words can't even express how much supporting first-gen students means to me. I want to help and support students because there was a lot I had to figure out on my own and didn't have the full support I needed. There are so many things I know now that I wish I could go back and tell myself. When I'm not at work, I usually am taking dance classes, reading, or binging something probably on Disney+. I have a dog named Klay that I adopted when he was 6 while I was volunteering at the shelter in Cedar Falls. He's currently 8 and is an Australian cattle dog mixed with pit!