After graduating from Central High School in 2015, Keria enrolled at the University of Minnesota – Duluth, where she is earning her Bachelor of Arts in social work with a minor in psychology. She has been incredibly busy, but her hard work is paying off, as she plans to graduate this May. She will be walking across the graduation stage one year earlier than expected, due to the many PSEO credits she earned while in high school!
This semester, Keria has a packed schedule! A typical day for her includes interning from 9:00 am-2:00 pm, working from 4:00-9:00 pm, then staying up to finish homework. This sounds stressful, but Keria says that she has absolutely loved being a college student and stated she has many great memories of her freshman year!
Although she says she does not have much free time due to her busy class schedule and internship, she has managed to serve as the treasurer of the Muslim Student Association and is involved with both the Black Student Association and the Oromo Student Association.
Thinking back to her time as a high school Upward Bound student, Keria said, “I don’t know where I would be without the support and guidance of UB! UB helped me get an idea of what college was going to be like and prepared me for the real world.” As she reminisced, she recalled Cryfest and the college tours during her Post-Secondary Explorations (PSE) summer as some of her favorite times in the program.
After graduation, Keria plans on traveling to Ethiopia for three months, then coming home to start her career. Ideally, she would like to work with the elderly, children and family services, or with local refugee communities.
Keria also has advice for current and future UB students, “Have fun! Life is way too short. Make connections and network, it will get you ahead of the game.”
We would like to thank Keria for taking the time to catch up with us about everything she has accomplished in the last three years. We are so proud of what she has done and are excited to hear about her travels and future endeavors!
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