Graduate Program in Genetic Counseling

My most memorable moments in the Brandeis GC program always include laughing and learning with my classmates. The sense of community is what drew me to Brandeis originally, and even with the challenges of going to graduate school whilst in a pandemic, I still felt very connected to my classmates (especially during our Dunkin' runs in between classes!). I am extremely grateful for these friendships and I am so excited to see where our careers take us in the future. I will be starting out my genetic counseling career in-person in cancer at Dartmouth Health in New Hampshire, with plans to switch to a hybrid/mostly remote role once I am more settled in

Some of my best experiences at Brandeis definitely includes all my clinical rotations working with patients in a variety of settings, from talking parents through testing options for their child to counseling families about rare cancer syndromes. On top of clinical rotations and other learning opportunities, my most memorable experiences all include moments with my classmates, whether it be spending hours studying together, debriefing after a tough day in clinic, or just exploring the Boston area. I have learned so much from all of them and the Brandeis faculty and I can’t wait to see how much we continue to learn as we begin our careers! Upon graduation I will be I will be working as a prenatal genetic counselor at Massachusetts General Hospital.

My most memorable Brandeis experience was my rotation at Opportunities for Inclusion with their day habilitation program. I learned so much from the individuals there, about their own experiences as well as about adult disability services in general, and will take those lessons with me into my future as a genetic counselor. I will be working as a cancer genetic counselor this July at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston!

 

The most memorable part of my training at Brandeis was the patient narrative series. Hearing the stories of families impacted by genetic conditions was emotional, eye-opening, and inspiring. The patient perspective taught me so much and reminded me why I am pursuing this amazing profession! After graduation I will be working as a pediatric genetic counselor with the clinical genetics team at Yale University. I look forward to growing my skill set in this position!

My most memorable experience in the program was my rotation at the Manton Center for Orphan Disease. It gave me the opportunity to be on the cutting edge of research and help families on their diagnostic odyssey.  I will be starting my job as an adult cardio genetic counselor at Intermountain healthcare in Salt Lake City in July. 

 

For my summer rotation, I've been working at Boston Children's Hospital, and my favorite part has been getting to interact with patients and their family members for the first time. I can finally put faces to the genetic disorders we've been learning about in class. It's truly a privilege to learn about each individual's story, that is, who they are beyond a diagnosis. 

What I am most looking forward to during this upcoming school year is being able to grow into who I am as a counselor: figuring out what my counseling style is and developing the skills I need to assist those who come in for my help. 

One of my most memorable experiences in the program was learning to navigate graduate school with my classmates, both remotely and in-person, and having the opportunity to learn from their experience both within and beyond the program. I will be starting as an adult general genetics counselor at Brigham and Women's Hospital.

My summer rotation was such a wonderful learning experience. I enjoyed having the chance to work with the pediatrics patients in person for the first time, and learning from all my different supervisors! Being able to observe and learn from their different practice styles has really helped me begin to find my own.

I'm looking forward to so much going into my second year, but especially having the opportunity to take part in the Boston Children's LEND fellowship program, finishing the rest of my clinical rotations and, of course, NSGC! I can't wait to hear about what my classmates have learned over the summer and to see them all again this fall!

The thing that I enjoyed most about my summer rotation was getting my first real experience in counseling and feeling like a real genetic counselor! It was so great to be able to apply what we learned in class to sessions with patients and see how far I’ve come! I also loved building relationships with the counselors who I worked with during my rotation.

In my second year, I am most looking forward to having the rest of my rotations and seeing all the different aspects of genetic counseling. There are so many different career paths that you can follow as a genetic counselor, so I’m excited to see what opportunities await and find my own place in the genetic counseling community!

There are two moments that feel descriptive of my time at Brandeis and two things I will remember for years to come: the personal narrative series and resuming in person classes. The personal narrative series provided invaluable insight into patient experiences with genetic diagnoses and the role of genetic counselors. This series was full of educational and transformative moments that shaped me as a genetic counselor. Also, despite the pandemic and remote classes, my cohort formed a strong and supportive community between faculty and students. I am grateful that our program was able to spend the last semester at Brandeis very much together.  I accepted a position as an OB/GYN genetic counselor at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center's Center for Maternal Fetal Medicine. I am excited to start my career in prenatal genetics, which has always been a passion of mine.