Graduate Alumna Focus | Ellie Weber

I am from Chester, NJ but my heart will always be in Maryland.

I attended Washington College where I earned a bachelor’s degree in biology as well as a minor in public health. After graduation, I had my mind set on becoming a genetic counselor, so I took a genetic counseling assistant position at GeneDx.

While I loved my time there, I quickly realized it was no longer the career path I wanted to pursue. I had always wished I had more time during undergrad to take more psychology classes, so I decided to switch my focus a little bit and go back to school!

I began the Interdisciplinary Studies in Human Behavior Master's program at Hood College in May 2019 and just completed it in September 2020.

I chose Hood College because it reminded me so much of Washington College. A smaller campus and class size have always been appealing to me.

I chose the Interdisciplinary Studies in Human Behavior program because it met all of my interests but was still very diverse.

I was very stressed and confused about choosing a definite career path, but I knew this particular program was going to benefit me in any path that I might chose.

My favorite thing about Hood is the small class size. You get to know and grow with all of your classmates as well as your professors.

I was there for what felt like such a short time, but I know I have made connections with people that I will have forever.

My favorite memory is when I explored downtown Frederick for the first time. It is such a beautiful place and there is always something fun going on.

The classwork for my degree began to benefit me right away. Because it was all about human behavior, my eyes were opened more to not only the people around me, but to myself as well.

I have always thought of myself as being very intuitive when it comes to knowing how others around me are feeling, and this program has enhanced my confidence in this area.

As for my career, I am considering opportunities in criminology and mental health.  No matter which path I choose, I am confident that the ISHB program will have prepared me well for the new role. 

I was a research intern for a suicide prevention non-profit called REBORN located in New Jersey.

I was part of a small research team given the complete freedom to prepare our own research project. Our goal was to compare sociodemographic risk factors of suicidal behavior in the adolescent population (ages 10-24) across the twenty-one counties of New Jersey.

We created a proposal along with all outreach materials including documents like consent forms, questionnaires, and guided interviews. Completing these tasks took the majority of the internship, but we were rewarded in the end by finally receiving Institutional Review Board approval.

The ISHB program is special because you can tailor it to fit your interests.

The graduate school is happy to work with you to make sure you are getting the most out of your classes, not just fulfilling requirements, so I strongly encourage you to express your interests.

Inspired by Ellie's journey to #GOFURTHER in your education and career? Click here to learn more about Hood graduate programs, including the Interdisciplinary Studies in Human Behavior Master's program.