Caitlin Albano is a graduate student in Marist's Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies program. She received her undergraduate degree from SUNY Geneseo in Biology and worked at Canisius College in New York as a Residence Hall Director and Rochester General Hospital as a patient care technician before coming to Poughkeepsie. 

What are your career goals? 
As of now, I think I would like to work as a pediatric physician assistant, but am open to anything that I find interesting during my clinical rotations. The beauty of becoming a PA is that you are not locked down into a specific specialty, so it’s exciting to think that I could end up doing anything!

Why did you choose to pursue your graduate degree at Marist? 
I was happy to see that Marist was starting a PA program because both of my parents are Marist alumni! They graduated in 1987 and 1988, and always spoke so fondly of their time here. After coming here for the interview, I knew this was where I wanted to go. The facilities are beautiful, and the enthusiasm of the faculty and staff was contagious.

Tell us about a project or course that was particularly meaningful to your professional development: 
Our program is lucky enough to have a brand new Gross Anatomy lab, where we studied with 10 donors. At the end of the semester, we planned a memorial ceremony to honor the donors outside of the Allied Health building. Each lab group wrote a thank you note to the donors they worked with and read them out loud while lighting candles. It was an exercise in empathy, made possible by the unquantifiable generosity of the donors and their families.

What advice would you give to a student considering pursuing a graduate degree at Marist? 
I would tell a student who was considering pursuing a graduate degree at Marist that they should work hard, but try to enjoy it while it’s happening. Our academic year has flown by, and it is amazing to see how much we have accomplished so far. But it is almost equally important to reflect on the experiences, friendships, and personal growth that have come out of it.