Name: Jamie Brenner
Majors Advised: LAS, Students still exploring LA majors
Hometown: Hanover, PA
Educational Background:
Mount Saint Mary’s University, Emmitsburg, MD
BA in Sociology and Spanish
University of Notre Dame
MA in Sociology
Michigan State University
PhD in Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education
My philosophy during my PhD program was to get as many diverse experiences in higher education as possible while I completed my studies. After completing several assistantships in areas around the university, I took an advising position at Michigan State in Interdisciplinary Studies in Social Science. It afforded me the opportunity to work part-time while I continued my dissertation research and to learn about advising – one of the major career opportunities for people studying Higher Ed. I found that my personality and interest in academics melded well in the advising setting, and I felt fulfilled at the end of a day helping students.
Something most students don’t know about you:
I was a Pre-Health adviser for 5 years before returning to my Liberal Arts roots at PSU.
If you could do college over again:
I would finish the Latin American Studies minor — I was only one class away but didn’t feel like taking the Political Science class that was required. Now I think that class would be really interesting and I would love to have the background.
Have more fun — but still study hard. I benefited tremendously from my efforts to succeed academically, but I could have included more traditional college fun in between study sessions.
What you like most about your job?
Because I am an administrator in addition to working with students, I not only get the satisfaction of helping students, but I also am able to support my staff so that they experience a positive work environment and have job satisfaction.
Throwback Photo