“The events helped because we got to hear their stories, not only what they do now and their career, but how they got to where they are and how they chose to do what they do.”

“These events helped me learn about the variety of possible STEM careers. It also helped me realize it’s okay that I don’t need to know exactly what I want to do right now.”

“I’d never really thought of the specifics of working in STEM prior to the fellowship. Being able to hear the stories and careers of professionals in such a wide variety of fields gave lots of insight into possibilities surrounding the future!”

“It inspired me to experiment with various experiences that I may not previously have been open to trying.”

“Heading into the first semester, I already kind of had an idea that I wanted to pursue a STEM career, but now, having gone through the fellowship, I am certain that I want to be involved with STEM in the future. Listening to the speakers and even personally connecting with a couple professionals through the fellowship has solidified my desire to pursue STEM and now I plan to study climate science in college.”

“Before beginning the fellowship, I was almost entirely unsure of what I wanted to do, but now I am certain I would like to go into STEM.”

“I’m not exactly sure what career still but leaning towards engineering. These events helped me realize how many different possibilities there are for engineers.”

“It was especially interesting to see the interdisciplinary applications of STEM.”

“This experience has been very valuable in allowing me to learn about STEM careers that I previously have no knowledge of. I particularly enjoyed hearing the specifics of what the speakers do daily and their impact on the world.”

“Before participating in the SLH fellowship, I did not know careers like a genetic counselor existed. The SLH fellowship has also been helpful in allowing me to ask questions to professionals working in careers I will potentially pursue in the future.”

“The questions by the students were important to help learn more. It was cool to hear other people’s questions that I wouldn’t have asked myself.”

“I have definitely been opened up to careers I would not have considered, and it has been really useful for me to hear about how the speakers got to where they are in their careers and how their education and work has had to change over time.”

“The events helped me to explore different careers in STEM in an accessible manner. This has been very valuable in helping me decide what I want to do in the future, as I can make more informed decisions. I now feel more confident that the careers I am looking into are ones that I will enjoy.”

“I have a better idea on STEM careers than before - I know what careers that I’m interested in thanks to the fellowship events, so it motivated me to explore opportunities in those fields.”

“I knew before I was accepted into the SLH fellowship that I wanted to pursue a career in STEM, so I never needed to be persuaded to go into a STEM career. However, the SLH fellowship has inspired and encouraged me to look into other STEM careers even more so now.”

“The guest speakers gave great advice about how to approach a career in STEM, for example reaching out, saying yes to opportunities, and getting experience and being introduced to a new field from internships, etc.”

“The Sandra Lee Heyman Foundation has been instrumental to me in navigating the world of STEM and figuring out what I want to do with my life.”

“I really enjoyed the caliber of speakers. I have attended many events featuring guest speakers of remarkable professions, and none of them have been as engaging as SLH events. The guests were incredibly accomplished individuals who truly inspired me. ”

“I sincerely believe this program is a 10/10, because it physically exposes you to the people in fields you may be interested in.”

“Thank you for running such a wonderful program.”

“The range of different speakers that we had introduced me to many careers that I did not know existed.”

“I really enjoyed learning more about various careers that I knew little about. I definitely find the professionals to be inspiring, and hearing about their experiences makes me more motivated to pursue a STEM career, despite any challenges that I may encounter.”

“The fellowship was a great opportunity to peer into the lives and experiences
of the professionals we look up to as students passionate about STEM. As
compared to other resources, SLH is a one-of-a-kind program that allows us to grow familiar with STEM careers by conversing with current professionals.”

“This fellowship has been so reassuring and helpful because it showed me all the different pathways and turns that people made to get where they are now.”

“I learned that there is no ‘traditional’ education path. Just because you may have an unconventional way or don’t immediately know what you want to do, does not mean you will be any less successful in the future.”

“I was very interested in hearing about their [the speakers’] paths to the career they are now in, as it helps me understand what I should/could do in high school and in college.”

“Overall, listening to all the guest speakers made me realize that the major or career I chose at 17 does not define what I can and will do with my future. I also learned that trying new things and taking opportunities (internships, workshops, etc.) can help me figure out what I want to do.”

“The best part was having the opportunity to listen to the first-hand experiences of the speakers in their respective fields. Career information is not hard to find but hearing real-life experiences in various STEM careers was really helpful.”

“The fellows asked insightful and thoughtful questions.... I highly recommend the fellowship for both students and speakers as a way for the current generation of scientists to begin interactions with the next generation.”

“Most STEM programs seem to focus on the basic STEM fields such as medicine/clinical science and computer science, but as someone who’s not interested in those fields I thoroughly enjoyed the exploration into other areas as well (such as a behavioral science).”

“This program is certainly unique. I think that the opportunity to hear from so many different leading scientists is incredible. In general, I don’t think there are many programs whose sole focus is to learn about STEM careers.”

“Before this, all I knew was that I wanted to pursue a career that dealt with math and science. The September 2020 and May 2021 events helped me realize which careers would suit my specific interests the best.”

“As someone who is interested in STEM but also in humanities fields, I genuinely found this fellowship to be influential in both areas.”

“Learning about civil engineering helped me understand how different the career possibilities are in the field. The event has inspired me to explore civil engineering and maybe even consider majoring in it.”

“Before, I had been limited to thinking of my career options as just a medical doctor who works on the clinical side, but now I can see that there are many other options and that even as an M.D., I don’t have to necessarily work with patients. There are also a lot more intriguing intersections than I realized.”

“It was a pleasure to speak with the bright fellows of SLH. They engaged with me in a very grounded, mature and thoughtful way, asking insightful questions about medicine, and the journey to and within it.”

“This program is by far superior because it is incredibly intimate. Being able to interact with such fascinating people in such small and engaging environments sets the SLH Foundation miles above all other resources available to me to learn about STEM careers.”

“The most important takeaway from these sessions has been the large range of flexibility that my future entails. Many of these speakers didn’t know what they were going to end up working on, but they stayed positive…and they are now all very successful. I can be very successful in my future without a ‘dream college’ or special internship. Listening to the holistic life lessons that these experts had was a very illuminating and unexpected bonus to the Sandra Lee Heyman Fellowship.”