As an MSU Distinguished Scholar and Shackouls Honors College student, biological engineering major Emily Nations is--to say the least--a busy Bulldog.
However, she told herself when she entered the university as one of its most highly recruited students in the fall of 2008 that she was going to be just as active outside the classroom as inside the lecture hall and laboratory walls.
The senior from Clinton said that the first thing she tells incoming freshmen is to become involved on campus.
"I tell them not to be afraid to put themselves out there," she said, adding, "It's because I integrated myself into the whole college experience that my time here has been so special."
She also encourages students, even upperclassmen, to live on campus if possible, having lived in Griffis Hall and the Chi Omega sorority house for all four of her years at MSU.
Organizations all across campus are glad that Nations has stayed "well connected." She has served most recently as chief programming officer for the MSU Student Association, managing six cabinet members who have organized some of the university's biggest events, such as Bulldog Bash, Cowbell Yell, homecoming, Tents for Tickets, and the Big Event, an annual community service project. She is one of 18 students planning activities and events for the University Honors Council, the honors college governing body that represents more than 1,000 students. And, in her sorority, she has helped raise $40,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Mississippi to send a local child and her family to Disney World.
Ironically, four years ago Nations thought she wanted to attend college outside the Magnolia State, having lived here all her life. However, once she arrived on the Starkville campus for the Distinguished Scholars interview, she fell in love with Mississippi State.
"This day definitely shaped my decision," she said. "I felt like everyone took the time to get to know me. It was like being welcomed into a family."
Nations has been accepted to the University of Mississippi School of Medicine for the 2012 fall semester.