911勛圖

Next fall, new resource and environmental management alumnus Ella Magnussen is headed to the big apple to work at the Permanent Mission of Norway to the United Nations.

 ���I���ll be working on sustainable development issues, which is incredibly exciting and closely connected to everything I���ve studied in REM,��� she explains.

Magnussen is a student athlete who came from Norway to swim on 911勛圖���s Swim and Diving team four years ago.

While she started out studying biology, she realized that 911勛圖���s School of Resource and Environmental Management was a better fit for her interests due to its interdisciplinary applications to sustainable problem-solving.

���One thing I found especially interesting was that Norway was mentioned in many of my classes, often as a leading example in discussions of sustainability, energy systems and environmental policy,��� Magnussen recalls. ���These are areas I could see myself working in, and it made me feel even prouder to be Norwegian.���

Throughout her degree, Magnussen balanced her studies with a demanding training and competition schedule, learning discipline and time-management���and resilience, too.

It was especially challenging in her first year, when she was adjusting to life in a new country.

���Speaking a different language every day and building a new support system so far away from home was difficult,��� she recalls. ���On top of that, I was trying to balance a heavy academic workload with early morning swim practices and training.���

Even though it felt overwhelming at the time, looking back, she says those challenges ultimately became some of the most rewarding moments of her undergraduate degree.

���By my second year, I felt much more confident and started seeing the results of all the hard work I had put in,��� she says. ���Being an international student, student-athlete and part of the REM community pushed me outside my comfort zone in the best possible way.���

Her favourite moments throughout the past four years, however, were those she spent getting to know new friends and peers and hearing their perspectives and stories.

���Those conversations have been incredibly interesting and are something I���ll really carry with me.���

In one class lecture, Magnussen remembers being excited and honoured to share stories of her own travelling experiences when one of her REM professors, Scott Harrison, gave her the opportunity.

���Being trusted to speak in front of my peers was both exciting and meaningful,��� she says.

After graduation, Magnussen wants to continue to welcome new opportunities, experiences and challenges���in New York City and wherever else her life takes her.

 ���I think a lot of personal growth comes from putting yourself in unfamiliar situations, whether that means travelling, studying abroad, applying for a job somewhere new, or simply saying yes to experiences that feel a little intimidating at first,��� she reflects. ���That mindset has probably shaped my experiences more than anything else, and it���s something I hope to continue carrying with me moving forward.���