Personal

Statement
As a child I loved being recruited to accompany my mom on trips to the grocery
store. I felt important, running around on mini quests to retrieve all of the items on the list.
As time went on, I became less intrigued with the game, and more interested in the food
itself. I was curious as to why some foods were deemed healthy and allowed in the cart,
while others were junk foods, that must be returned to the shelf. In an attempt to lessen my
confusion, she always took time to explain some of the negative effects of poor dietary habits
such as obesity, cardiovascular disease, and high blood pressure. As a result of my growing
knowledge involving food and nutrition, I began to look around at other shoppers carts and
wonder why, with all the healthy options available, many people still chose junk food. Ten
years later, a childhood interest in the relationship between behavior and the critical role it
plays in health and nutrition, has developed into a deep-rooted passion aimed at better
understanding the complex and multidimensional factors contributing to peoples dietary
choices. It is this passion that has led me into the field of dietetics and sparked my desire to
promote permanent behavioral and lifestyle changes in individuals to improve overall health,
happiness and quality of life.
My first exposure to the clinical setting began as an intern with the UC Davis
Medical Center Outpatient Diabetes Clinic. Although I thoroughly enjoyed shadowing the
head dietitian during counseling sessions with patients, I was most intrigued by the clinics
LifeSTEPS weight management class where I administered patient weight-ins as well as
facilitated instruction of weekly weight management topics. During these classes, patients
opened up and expressed their personal struggles with weight loss and the barriers they faced.
Hearing about their difficulties to control deeply ingrained habits, such as mindless and

stress-induced eating made me more aware of my own relationship with food and the struggle
I sometimes faced with self-control. This experience really helped me appreciate the
interconnectedness between behavior and health, and solidified my desire to better
understand the behavioral predictors of nutrition-related health outcomes. As a dietitian, I
hope to one day work with clients and gain a deeper understanding of their struggles in order
to help them achieve healthier lifestyle practices.
As an intern under the Director of Sports Nutrition at UC Davis, I was pushed out of
my comfort zone and forced to think creatively and act independently. My first project was
the development of a handout for the womens intercollegiate tennis team, consisting of a
one-day sample menu based on carefully calculated macronutrient and kilocalorie intakes, as
well as, any additional information I felt was pertinent. In the past, I had always received
structure and direction in most aspects of my life. Yet, here I was, presented with the
challenge of designing a creative and original document for a professor I deeply respected
and admired. After countless hours of researching, rewording, and creative thinking, and at
least ten rough drafts later, I had designed and developed a document that I felt proud of.
Since then, I have created multiple handouts ranging in topics including: grocery shopping
lists, vegan sample menus, healthful snacks, and staple foods for the fridge and freezer. With
each new project, I fostered a greater sense of confidence in my abilities to work effectively
in situations of minimal guidance. I grew to not only enjoy creative freedom, but to actually
embrace it, and welcome the challenge of using my knowledge and skills to create something
valuable. In addition to the documents, I directed tours of the dining commons and held my
own office hours where I was available to intercollegiate athletes for any nutrition related
questions. Although taking on these leadership roles was at first intimidating, my
communication skills blossomed and I began to realize just how much I enjoyed talking with
and counseling people. Time spent working with these athletes reinforced the idea that it

wasnt just about nutrition education, but about presenting information in a way that they
could apply to their individual lifestyles.
I currently volunteer and perform nutritional counseling at Willow Clinic, an
organization that offers free health care services to the homeless and low-income population
of Sacramento. Counseling this patient population has undoubtedly been one of the most
humbling and challenging experiences of my life. Ive had to completely altar my approach
to counseling from what I was previously accustomed, and instead often discuss incredibly
personal and sometimes grave life circumstances, such as food insecurity, homelessness, and
a sense of emotional defeat. Im often attempting to promote lifestyle and dietary changes in
patients suffering from multiple debilitating conditions, when their main concern is simply
finding a place to sleep and food to eat. Although emotionally taxing, working in this
environment has helped me establish a much stronger sense of empathy for peoples
situations and I find one of my greatest strengths to be my ability to provide an environment
of trust and genuine compassion. Watching individuals struggle with health challenges that
could have been partially mitigated or prevented by early nutritional support and education
has further ignited my passion to help others make positive lifestyle changes that will benefit
them in the present and the future.
As a result of my education and these aforementioned experiences, I now
hold a much different view of nutrition. I understand that there is so much more to the health
equation than simply choosing to eat good or bad foods. Childhood experiences, genetics,
environmental influences, personal motivation, behavior, nutritional education,
socioeconomic status, and variety of other factors all play an important role in determining
health status. I want to become a dietitian because RDs have the unique ability to integrate
both knowledge and experience into practice and individually tailor nutrition therapy goals
while addressing barriers and promoting health. After completion of my internship, I plan to

return to school to earn my masters degree in nutrition with an emphasis in psychology. I

have always been fascinated by the behavioral aspect of eating and want to help people reach
optimal health through cognitive restructuring and lifestyle modification. My life dream is to
one day go into private practice and work with individuals looking at preventative strategies
as a means of attaining optimal health and quality of life.
Although my future goals of going into private practice focus on behavioral
modification, it is my belief that a basis in medical nutrition therapy is essential to providing
me with a strong and well-rounded foundation in nutritional care.

I am looking for a

Dietetic Internship with a diversity of clinical rotations that will provide me with the skills
and confidence necessary to work with any patient, disease or setting. It is my desire to one
day establish myself and give back to the community that first ignited my passion for
dietetics.