Lindsey Lucas, a Collinsville, Ill. native, knew exactly what she wanted to do and where she would do it before she even graduated from Southeast in 2007. Lindsey is currently in her second year of veterinary school at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
A day in the life of this Southeast graduate includes a lot of class work.
“I usually have class from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. every day and have at least one or more labs per day, which varies depending on the semester and year,” Lindsey says. “Last year, I had “Gross Anatomy” and “Histology” labs. This semester, I have “Bacteriology/Mycology,” “Pathology,” and “Parasitology” labs. After class, a bunch of us meet up to let the dogs play and then study until late in the evening. Then the cycle starts all over again.
“My favorite part of grad school is learning things that will be clinically relevant someday,” Lindsey says. “It makes studying a lot easier when you know the material will actually be useful someday. I especially like when we have hands on lab sessions with live animals. It’s also nice to go into a clinic or hospital in the summer and actually use what you learned previously in the year. My least favorite part of graduate school is the many, many weeks I lock myself away studying for several tests in one week. It’s like the worst finals week ever, except you still have classes to go to and it happens a lot more often than once a semester.”
Lindsey says her time at Southeast has contributed immensely to her time in graduate school.
“I’m still recalling things from my classes at Southeast for the classes I’m attending now. I actually even brought several of my Southeast class notes with me, and they helped me get through my first year so far here. It also helped me transition my study habits from a ‘memorize and forget’ attitude, to one in which I am actually able to retain information after a test is over.”
Lindsey said she chose Southeast for its small class sizes and distance from her home. She said it was far enough away, but yet she could still travel home when she wanted.
“I come from a smaller town, and didn’t want to be thrown into a huge college setting; I really wanted more one on one time with professors,” Lindsey said. “Also, after meeting up with a girl I knew and visiting the campus for a weekend, I just felt like Southeast really fit who I was.”
“One of my all time favorite moments at Southeast was when I traveled to Texas with Delta Tau Alpha for a Convention,” she said. “I also loved the times I spent with my sorority sisters of Alpha Delta Pi. There are so many memories, I don’t know if I could ever pick just one, but Greek Sings and Homecomings were always a really great time.”
Lindsey says veterinary school pretty much consumes her life now. However, when she is not studying, she loves anything to do with the outdoors, especially boating, camping, and water skiing.
“I love sports, especially hockey. I also love riding dirt bikes and four wheelers,” Lindsey says. “I love to just hang with friends and have a good time in general. I obviously also love animals, especially my two pups. I love music, and I listen to just about anything and everything. I also really like to read, but I just never have much time for it anymore.
I love to travel, but just don’t have a lot of time or money for it, yet,” Lindsey says. “However, of the places that I have been, I liked Florida the best. Actually, anywhere with a beach and lots of sun keeps me pretty happy. In the future, I’d love to travel to Hawaii and Jamaica.”
While at Southeast, Lindsey did a lot of volunteer work through the Greek community and Alpha Delta Pi. She is also on a team every year for Relay for Life to raise money for cancer research and awareness. While applying to get into veterinary school, she spent many summers volunteering for animal hospitals and humane societies around the area.
Lindsey offers the following advice to students: “Enjoy every minute you have at Southeast because it flies by way too fast. Study hard, but remember there is more to the undergraduate experience than just studying. Years down the road, you are going to remember the nights with friends and days lounging on a porch, not all the late nights studying.”