Student Life

The Class of 2003 reports back on life after CBS

James Ross says his CBS education prepared him well for Harvard Medical School.

Since Harvard Medical School was on that list for Ross, a 2003 CBS graduate (B.S., biochemistry), he gave it a shot. Although he wasn"t certain of his academic pedigree while being interviewed with peers from Stanford, Harvard, and Yale, he soon found out he was more than qualified with his background at CBS.

"I realized how good my undergraduate education was compared to the background of other students," Ross says. "At times I thought I was actually more prepared than some of my classmates."

Ross is now keeping up with the rigors of medical school at Harvard and the accelerated pace of the Boston area ("Everyone seems like they're on the run," he says) with a hectic schedule of his own. He"s in the Big Brothers program, tutors students in grades 9-12 who may be heading into medicine, and recently started coaching Little League baseball.

In addition to his academic background at CBS, there"s one other thing that being from Minnesota prepared him well for: Ross says he"s the "only Minnesota kid" playing hockey for the Harvard Medical School club team.

Ross is one of 273 students who graduated last year from CBS with majors spanning biology, biochemistry, ecology, genetics, microbiology, and neuroscience.

More than 50 graduated with honors. Their paths since graduation are as divergent as their fields of interest, from medical school to research in labs on campus. According to a 2003 exit survey of CBS graduates, approximately one-third were preparing to begin graduate or professional programs last fall, and 48.6 percent planned to enter a graduate or professional program at some point in the future. Nearly 26 percent were entering the workforce and another 39 percent were still looking for jobs.

Imee Cambronero's path took her to Washington, D.C., as an intern for Minnesota Congresswoman Betty McCollum. While working on Spring Jam last year, the December grad (B.S., biology) researched and wrote about alcohol policy. Her newfound interests in policy and health led her to take a public-health class in the fall, and when she heard of an internship opportunity in McCollum's office, she thought, "This really aligns well."

Cambronero's future may entail graduate school either in public health or public policy but for now she"s happy in D.C., and was recently promoted to staff assistant. "I feel very comfortable out here," says Cambronero. "I'll probably stay here on the Hill for a while, or I might look at the National Institutes of Health or other contract agencies that deal with public health, or nonprofits. There are definitely opportunities out here."

Cara White will head to Texas this summer to teach Hispanic students in a low-income school district.

This summer, she'll be joining Teach for America, a program that places recent college graduates in low-income school districts around the country. Her two-year assignment will take her to the Rio Grande Valley in Texas. As she works toward teaching certification, she'll be able to gauge her interest in an education-related career.

"It"s an opportunity to work where the need is the greatest," White says. "If I"m going to be teaching, I"d like to be able to make a difference."

Rick Moore