Hey everyone! My name is Alison Chilcott, I am a senior at Pitt and I’m from Hudson, Ohio (about 30 minutes outside of Cleveland). I am majoring in Biology and French, with minors in Chemistry and Sociology, and a Certificate on the Conceptual Foundations of Medicine. What I love about being a Pitt student is that I get to meet and work with students and professors from all backgrounds and areas of interest, and I get to use my experiences to create my own path. I have always been interested in a wide array of topics, and Pitt—especially Pitt Honors—has helped me to design a plan that allows me to engage with all my interests! From pursuing multiple majors and minors, to creating an interdisciplinary research project, to my outside of the classroom activities, I have been able to use the last 4 years to gain exposure with all my passions. 

I first decided to interact with Pitt Honors when I applied for honors housing my freshman year because I wanted to engage with like-minded students and form long-lasting connections. I lived in an 8-person suite in Sutherland, and made long lasting connections with my roommate, suitemates, and floormates. My incredible experiences there led me to stay involved with the Honors College with honors courses, fellowships, advising, internships and by becoming an Honors Ambassador! Last semester, I took Honors Human Physiology, and while it was the most difficult course I have taken at Pitt (designed to mimic a medical school course), it was also the most rewarding and informative. I also participated in the THINK Fellowship (now called the UHC Research Fellowship I believe) during the spring 2019 semester for my independent, interdisciplinary research project that translated a diagnostic medical test for aphasia into French. 

One of the best experiences Pitt Honors has helped me with was my internship abroad. I studied in the south of France during the fall of 2019, and I was able to do a study+internship program where I worked with kids at a bookstore for an after-school program. The interdisciplinary goal of Pitt Honors helped me to find this program and identify internships and courses abroad that worked well together and for what I wanted to accomplish in my international experience. Most recently, I have been working with Honors advisors for post graduate fellowships and projects, and their advice has been instrumental in the success of these pursuits. The Honors College has always been incredibly supportive and helpful in all of my projects and ideas, and everyone has been so receptive to assisting me in any way they can.