Charlotte Dutcher, a double-major in speech and hearing science and French, initially came to The University of Iowa as a pre-medicine major, “because I enjoyed science and thought being pre-med was a logical choice. After about a year at The University of Iowa, I realized that I did not want the lifestyle of a doctor—working insane hours and not being able to do much of anything outside of my career. I was introduced to speech pathology by some friends who were already in the Speech and Hearing Science Program at Iowa. Speech pathology appealed to both my love of science and my love of language, so it seemed like a perfect fit.”

Outside of her majors, Dutcher’s favorite class has been The President’s Leadership Class, taught by UI President Sally Mason. “It made all the difference in my college experience,” she writes. “I loved learning about the styles of leadership and the practices of great leaders from someone I look up to. I highly recommend that all incoming freshman apply for this class.” In fact, she advises all first-year students to “apply for things even if you think they are a long shot. I didn't think I would get into the President's Leadership Class (350 applied, 30 accepted), but I did. There are a lot of opportunities in college, but you have to put in a little effort for opportunities to become actualized.”

After graduation, Dutcher plans to attend graduate school and become a speech pathologist.