ClassOf2020

Girls on a Dirt Pile

UMBC’s newest arts grads forge ahead with creative work, despite a year apart

As the pandemic surged across the country last spring, university arts venues closed their doors, but that didn’t stop UMBC artists from creating. Without the traditional opportunities for collaboration that can be so important in dance, music, theatre, and the visual arts, they turned to new approaches and to individual projects with determination and passion. Continue Reading UMBC’s newest arts grads forge ahead with creative work, despite a year apart

A woman with long dark hair pulled back in a pony tail by a white, black, and orange scarf wearing a black shirt and white pants walks on a paved walkway with a green tree and some green shrubs behind her and a short yellow wall and a city behind her.

New UMBC grads honor parents’ immigrant journeys by forging their own paths

Graduating seniors Anthony Cano, Renato Zanelli, and Maya Scheirer came to UMBC with pride and hunger instilled by their immigrant parents’ work ethic. They brought rich cultures, languages, and hearts full of dreams and aspirations with the goal of forging futures of their own. “As a first-generation college student,” Zanelli says, “I can now be a role model for my younger cousins. I can help and inspire them. They will not have to do it alone.” Continue Reading New UMBC grads honor parents’ immigrant journeys by forging their own paths

UMBC’s newest computing grads, from bachelor’s to Ph.D., share stories of connection, support, opportunity

UMBC’s newest graduates in computing and data science fields include students at all stages in their education and careers. Undergraduates, master’s students seeking to access new career opportunities, and Ph.D. students completing high-impact research have thrived at UMBC. Many cite the university’s strong academics, accessible faculty, research opportunities, and connections across disciplines as drawing them to UMBC. Continue Reading UMBC’s newest computing grads, from bachelor’s to Ph.D., share stories of connection, support, opportunity

two students in lab coats at a microscope

UMBC’s newest biotech grads launch careers that will make a difference

UMBC’s Translational Life Science Technology degree is one of UMBC’s newest academic programs. The interdisciplinary program “is different from other majors,” says Titina Sirak ’20, “because you take a whole range of classes. It helps you open up your mind to different sides of biotech.” Continue Reading UMBC’s newest biotech grads launch careers that will make a difference

Large group of men and women dressed in traditional Polish clothing standing together at an outdoor Polish folk festival in Poland.

Acting locally and globally: Four UMBC students embark on community-engaged careers

Community-engaged work has been integral to the UMBC experience for so many Retrievers, including the four featured here. Despite coming from such different academic programs, they have all been able to connect in meaningful ways with local and international communities. And after graduating this week, they’ll each apply their talents, skills, and sense of commitment to community-engaged careers. Continue Reading Acting locally and globally: Four UMBC students embark on community-engaged careers

Black & Gold Forever—Celebrating the Class of 2020

We can all agree it was not supposed to be this way. Commencement—as President Freeman Hrabowski often reminds graduates during the ceremony—is a dignified occasion, deserving of the phrase “pomp and circumstance.” It’s also a day for jitters, lining up with your classmates in the hallways of the Event Center, and being mindful of your feet when crossing the stage. It’s a day for loud, celebratory shouts and enough clapping to make your palms feel sore afterward. Commencement is a day for shaking hands with your mentors, for hugging your suitemates and best friends so hard your mortarboard cap falls… Continue Reading Black & Gold Forever—Celebrating the Class of 2020

Creating new pathways: Meet ten UMBC arts graduates advancing their fields

Majoring in the arts requires intense levels of stamina and self-discipline — long hours rehearsing, creating, writing, designing, interpreting — coupled with an inner drive for inquiry and perfection. UMBC’s undergraduate and graduate students in the arts are no exception, reaching forward even in this era of social distancing. Continue Reading Creating new pathways: Meet ten UMBC arts graduates advancing their fields

Where math and medicine meet: Jeremy Rubin is one of UMBC’s nine new NSF Graduate Research Fellows

Jeremy Rubin had an unusual personal experience with the medical field early in life, and it sent him down a path to a research career. The experience “made me think, how can I use my interest in statistics to help the field of precision medicine? How can we tailor diagnoses and treatments to the individual?” Continue Reading Where math and medicine meet: Jeremy Rubin is one of UMBC’s nine new NSF Graduate Research Fellows

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