Gems

My name is Amnie Ashour and I am a Biomedical Sciences major. This coming fall will be the start of my fourth and FINAL year at UCF! I hope to be able to give you guys the best first year possible from my end ‐ being its my last! Next stop medical school (fingers crossed!).…

Hi my name is Anabelle Manriquez‐Mendoza and my current major is Civil Engineering. I will be a sophomore this 2016‐2017‐school year. I graduated from Tampa Bay Technical High School within the Architecture program. One of my favorite classes I took at UCF was, shockingly, American History. I have never been a huge fan of history…

Hi! My name is Alexa Frost and I am a sophomore majoring in Industrial Engineering. I graduated from J.R. Arnold High School in Panama City Beach, Florida in 2015. My favorite class from my first year at UCF was Honors Psychology. It's one of those general education classes you need to take, and I had…

Hi! My name is Adeolu Orogade and I am a senior majoring in Biology. I attended Zamani College(a high school). A class I really enjoyed at UCF was philosophy. It required a lot of reasoning and I found the discussions about the topics covered quite interesting. Although I have different positive experiences with the professors…

I am a Sophomore majoring in Biomedical Science with the aim to specialize in military critical care (trauma). I love UCF and the opportunities to grow as a part of the community and how I have felt so at home since my first days in 2015. With so many chances to become a Knight with…

My name is Vi “”Vivi”” Pham and I am a Pre‐Professional Biomedical Science major in my senior year at UCF. I have lived in Orlando all my life! I attended elementary, middle, and high school all in the Orlando area. What can I say? I just love my hometown! In 2014, I graduated from Winter…

Hello! My name is Abby Nunez and I am a senior studying Mechanical Engineering. I graduated from Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy in Melbourne, Florida in 2013. My favorite class at UCF so far has been Heat Transfer with Dr. Tian. It was a class that challenged me to solve real world problems with an engineering…

Victoria is my name, Biomedical Sciences is my game, Senior year is upon me, I feel it come strongly, Things just don't feel the same. From Warwick High in P.A., To my favorite class (called Cinema Survey), It has been a long journey, but don't you all worry, I know all you girls will SLAY.…

Hi! My name is Truc (Truec) Phan. I am a Junior majoring in Biomedical Sciences hoping to become an Optometrist. I went to William R. Boone High School and came to America when I was only two. My favorite class here at UCF is Chemistry 1a and 1b with Dr. Dixon. He is someone that…

Hi, my name is Stephanie McDonald! I am currently in my second year at UCF majoring in Biology and minoring in Health Sciences. I graduated from Pembroke Pines Charter High school in sunny South Florida. I would say that my favorite class at UCF so far was Biology 1 (BSC 2010) with Dr. Diercksen. Her…

Hello! My name is Sonali Joshi and I am a Sophomore studying Physics. I graduated from Dr. Phillips High School in Orlando, Florida in 2016. My favorite class has been Introduction to Numerical Computing with Dr. Harrington. It was a great class that gave many great exciting physics problems to solve. In the class we…

Hi, I'm Sarah Sheehan and I'm a computer science major. I am going into my second year at UCF. I graduated from Apopka High School in Apopka, Florida which is only about 45 minutes from campus. One my favorite classes at UCF so far has been Intro to C Programming with Professor Lobo. He was…

Hey mentees! I'm Sam, and I'm a sophomore majoring in Environmental Engineering here at UCF, but I'm originally from Parkland, Florida and graduated from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. I'm super excited to be a GEMS mentor this year so I can help guide a few new people through their first year at school here,…

Hi there, my name is Rebecca Vollmann and I am a sophomore majoring in Mechanical Engineering. I graduated from Indian River Charter High School in Vero Beach, FL. I love working on cars, photography, puppies, cooking, baking, watching movies, exercising, going to the beach, and spending time with friends. I've had my heart set on…

My name is Pia Nelson. I am a second year Computer Engineering major. I graduated in 2016 from Lake Brantley High School here in Central Florida. My favorite class so far has been the Enjoyment of Music with Dr. Lazslo Marosi. This class expanded the scope of my historical music knowledge while being one of…

My name is Marisa Webber and I am a third year Industrial Engineering major. I graduated from Bloomingdale Senior High School, which is near Tampa, Florida, in 2015. My favorite class at UCF would have to be Engineering Economic Analysis. This course is for Industrial, Civil, and Environmental engineers. It was a very interesting class…

Hi! My name is Maria Urdaneta, and I'm a sophomore studying Mechanical Engineering. A little bit about me: In 2015, I graduated from Wissahickon High School in Ambler, Pennsylvania. I then took a gap year and studied abroad in Germany, and then I started school at UCF in fall 2016. Why did I join GEMS?…

My name is Maggie LaFratta and I'm a biomedical sciences major. I am currently a junior at UCF, and I graduated from Niceville High School. I really wanted to get involved with the GEMS program because I benefited a lot from having a mentor over my first year of college, and I'm hopeful that I'll…

Hello! My name is Madeline Sinclair, and I'm a Junior at UCF studying Industrial Engineering. I attended Chiles High School in Tallahassee, Florida, and graduated in 2015. My favorite class in college so far has been Calculus with Analytic Geometry III, taught by Professor Jeff. Although the class was hard, studying the material made a…

Hey! My name is Kristianna Nicolai and I am a Mechanical Engineering major. This will be my second year at UCF and so far I'm loving it! I graduated from Winter Haven High School which is located in Winter Haven, Florida, about 2 miles from Legoland. So far my favorite class here at UCF has…