If you think senior year of college is too late to try something different, you should try talking to Maxine Collins. It was in the Fall of 2022 that Collins – amidst a busy undergraduate schedule of coursework and studying – signed up for club track and field. It’s a good reminder of the countless opportunities that UConn has on offer – opportunities that, in Collins’ case, included valuable experience in Urban Service Track as she pursues her dream of becoming a nurse. That dream will be fulfilled after graduation, when she starts in the intensive care unit at UConn Health, a testament to the value of deciding never to stop running forward in life.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Why did you choose UConn?<\/strong><\/p>\n I chose UConn because of the school spirit and nursing program. My high school did not have a lot of school spirit, and I found the enthusiasm at UConn very welcoming. The nursing program at UConn is highly ranked and provides a variety of nursing experiences for students.<\/p>\n What\u2019s your major\/field of study, and what drew you to it?<\/strong><\/p>\n I am a nursing major! I was drawn to nursing from a young age because my mom is a nurse, and I always enjoyed hearing about her experiences. After volunteering at a hospital throughout high school, I decided that I wanted to be part of a profession with so much opportunity, versatility, and impact.<\/p>\n Did you have a favorite professor or class?<\/strong><\/p>\n Dr. Louise Reagan is my favorite professor I have had at UConn! Although she never taught any of my lecture courses, she has been an amazing mentor for me since I received my acceptance into the nursing program.<\/p>\n What activities were you involved in as a student?<\/strong><\/p>\n While at UConn I was involved in Urban Service Track and more recently, club track and field. Through Urban Service Track, I have been able to work directly with the Hartford community through health clinics, home care visits, and interprofessional learning. This program has helped me enhance the work I do interprofessionally in the hospital as well as in the community. In Fall 2022 (my second to last semester), I decided to join club track and field because I enjoyed track in the past and wanted to find something besides studying to focus on. Although my schedule doesn\u2019t always allow me to attend practice as often as I would like, it is rewarding every time.<\/p>\n What are your plans after graduation\/receiving your degree?<\/strong><\/p>\n After graduation, I will be working at UConn Health as a nurse in the intensive care unit! I hope to continue doing work in the community as well.<\/p>\n How has UConn prepared you for the next chapter in life?<\/strong><\/p>\n Through UConn, I have been able to try different types of nursing. I did cardiovascular research at NYU, vaccinated families in Hartford, completed home visits, and worked in the ICU. All these things will be beneficial as I begin my career. Additionally, friendship is very important to me, and being at UConn has allowed me to make lifelong friends.<\/p>\n What will always make you think of UConn?<\/strong><\/p>\n Rainy Tuesdays and huskies will always remind me of UConn.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Maxine Collins reflects on her time at UConn<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":58,"featured_media":197541,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"quote","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1877],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[117],"class_list":["post-197540","post","type-post","status-publish","format-quote","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nur","post_format-post-format-quote"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-22 11:32:18","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197540","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/58"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=197540"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197540\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":197647,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197540\/revisions\/197647"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/197541"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=197540"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=197540"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=197540"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=197540"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=197540"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}