Recently, there has been a notable rise in the number of Pinewood students gravitating towards STEM majors. While STEM occupations are often associated with higher salaries and job market demand, most choosing this field aim to use their passion in STEM to help people. This goal aligns with many Pinewood seniors pursuing STEM majors as well.
Senior Christina Tanase plans to major in nursing at New York University at the Rory Meyers College of Nursing, one of the highest-ranking nursing programs in the nation. The program is known for its hands-on approach, preparing its students for high-stress environments.
Tanase first discovered her interest in nursing during her sophomore year.
“There’s really nothing like nursing out there,” Tanase said. “The versatility of this job and being there for people during their most vulnerable moments are really important to me.”
On the other hand, senior Annabelle Eaton intends to study chemical engineering at Brown University, where the Open Curriculum offers students more freedom to explore their interests before completely committing to a field.
Eaton’s interest in chemical engineering was largely influenced by her experiences at Pinewood.
“Taking chemistry at Pinewood was pretty difficult, but being able to succeed with that pressure made me realize how intricate and complex this subject was,” Eaton said. “[High school chemistry teacher Sarah] Prestwood helped me realize that chemistry could be used in so many ways.”
To expand her knowledge on this subject, Eaton also participated in two summer opportunities throughout high school. She worked in a lab at University of California, Santa Cruz and attended the Stanford Institutes of Medicine Summer Research Program, both of which solidified her passion for chemistry.
While senior James Chang is currently undecided, he plans to major in either mathematical economics at the College of Arts and Sciences or digital media design at the School of Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania.
Chang’s interest in digital media design stemmed from creating his own video games during his junior year.
“I mostly explored my interests during my own time and learned using tutorials,” Chang said.
Chang also attended the TeenArch program at University of California, Los Angeles and the National High School Game Academy program at Carnegie Mellon University, which allowed him to further develop this interest.
Driven by their passion and dedication, Tanase, Eaton, and Chang will leave a lasting impact on both the Pinewood community and others, regardless of their future career paths.
“Pinewood encouraged me to go for my dreams, and even though the nursing program I was admitted to was very competitive, no one told me I couldn’t do it,” Tanase said.
