STUDENT EXPERIENCE
An internship during the pandemic brought classroom knowledge to the real world
Lizzie Soucy
Junior, Nutritional Sciences
As many industries stopped operations or drastically reduced services to help mitigate the effects of COVID-19 in the United States, many students’ educational plans were put in jeopardy.
Lizzie Soucy, a junior majoring in Nutritional Sciences, needed to find an opportunity quickly to fulfill requirements for an eventual dietetic internship or graduate school, both possible pathways toward a career as a Registered Dietitian.
Fortunately, she found a position as a dietary aide at the Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of Nittany Valley. Her responsibilities ranged from helping patients fill out their menus, to preparing and delivering meals to patients, to serving in the tray line, to any other dietary care patients may have needed.
Anticipated Graduation: May 2022
“I realized that preparing a tray of food for these patients is so important and, even though it is a small part of their health recovery, all jobs have such a significant importance in their recovery,” said Soucy. “I also learned how to talk with all different types of patients and engage with them in promoting their recovery and health.”
Soucy credits her courses and instructors at Penn State—including NUTR 251: Introductory Principles of Nutrition, NUTR 320: Science and Methods of Food Preparation, and HM 329: Introduction to Food Production and Service—with giving her the knowledge to perform her responsibilities and now, after the experience, the opportunity to share and contextualize what she learned on the job.
“In NUTR 386: Managing Quality in Food and Nutrition Services, we talk a lot about management in nutrition, which connected back to my job a lot. Many of the problems and solutions I faced in the job are stories I bring up a lot in class, which is not only beneficial to me to understand the information, but also to my peers,” she said. “Bringing relatable situations back to the classrooms helps knowledge development for everyone, and it is the thing I loved most about having this experience.”
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The student experience in 2020 was unique in the history of Penn State. Many traditional hallmarks of student life were altered by our inability to gather in large groups. However, our students have shown resilience, tenacity, and the ability to work together. WE ARE…
