Kellye Walters-Warren, MS, loves to cook and show others how to make delicious, healthy meals using the knowledge she gained from earning her master’s in clinical nutrition at Rush. But it was completing her BS in health sciences from Rush in 2020 that laid the groundwork for that degree and helped her make the switch from working in retail while raising her family.
“If there is something that people want to do, they have the support from the BSHS program to get them where they want to go and be successful,” she says. “It was a wonderful opportunity for me, and I’m glad life steered me in this direction.”
As a project coordinator for the undergraduate programs at CHS, Walters-Warren stays connected to students and advises them to keep their minds open to the possibilities they may discover through the program.
Her choice to go on to graduate school is shared by most of her peers in the BSHS program, according to Mary Jo Guglielmo, MPH, assistant dean and director of undergraduate studies at CHS.
“From the program’s inception in 2013 through 2019, 89% of graduates pursued further education and 11% worked in health care with the intention of future education,” Guglielmo says. “Of those pursuing further education, 90% were accepted into master’s or doctorate programs, and 10% were at the certificate or accelerated bachelor’s level.”
BSHS paves the way to MD
Another BSHS graduate who used his undergraduate degree to pursue his career goals is Miguel Woodham, MD. This spring, Woodham graduated from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine & Public Health with adistinction in research. He says the BSHS program, from which he graduated summa cum laude in 2018, equipped him for the challenges of medical school in many ways.
“Academically speaking, it offered rigorous, clinically relevant courses, such as anatomy, physiology and pharmacology, that really helped build a strong knowledge foundation and proved to be helpful during the didactic portion of my medical school career,” Woodham says.
“Professionally speaking, the leadership at Rush’s BSHS program was amazing. They helped me build a CV/resume that was impressive for my level of training at that time. In addition, they helped me prepare for medical school interviews, which is a vital part of the process.”
IS program provides graduates with the right career tools
Another pathway to success for many students is a BS in imaging sciences. Rush’s program has achieved a 91% average completion rate during the past seven years. The program also boasts a 98% average job placement rate, Guglielmo says.
IS graduates can be confident they leave Rush with the skills they need for a successful career. Students complete 1,000 hours of clinical specialty experience, with a mean clinical performance score of 4.4 on a 5.0 scale. The program also has high ratings on student and employer satisfaction surveys.
Shaunice Davis, ARRT, BS, RT(R), MR, was already working as an X-ray technologist when she chose the IS program at Rush to advance her radiology career. “The IS program prepared me with the skills to be technical and the compassion to help ease patients’ minds when undergoing MRI procedures,” she says.
After graduating from the IS program in 2014, Davis was hired as an MRI technologist at a hospital in the Chicago suburbs. Today, she works as an MRI technologist at two hospitals in the Chicago area.
“At CHS, accountability means providing undergraduate programs that allow students from a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences to reach their goals. That means offering support to make sure that if you’ve come in the door, you’re going to be successful.”
- Mary Jo Guglielmo, MPH, assistant dean and director of undergraduate studies at CHS
Vascular ultrasound graduates equipped for promising careers
Like their peers in the BSHS and IS programs, graduates of the vascular ultrasound program at Rush have achieved outstanding results. Since 2014, the average job placement rate is nearly 95%, while 96.5% have achieved credentialing success.
“Many of these graduates are placed all over the country, even before they graduate,” Guglielmo says.
Part of what makes students in the three undergraduate programs at Rush so successful — beyond their intelligence, motivation and determination — is the support they receive from faculty and staff. This includes individualized personal and professional development programs and mentoring designed to help students achieve their potential.
“At CHS, accountability means providing undergraduate programs that allow students from a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences to reach their goals,” Guglielmo says. “That means offering support to make sure that if you’ve come in the door, you’re going to be successful.”
Photo captions
Top: BSHS alumni Kellye Walters-Warren, MS; BSHS program director Brinda Bradaric, PhD; and BSHS alumni Tatiana E. Wilczak, BS, at the Rush 50th anniversary CHS alumni reception
Below: Miguel Woodham, MD, graduated from medical school with a distinction in research after earning his BSHS at Rush