Deciding on a major wasn’t easy for senior Natasha Filipovitch, who is majoring in geology and geophysics. Interested in a variety of things, it was tough for her to narrow it down to one subject area.
“I would look through the catalog of class descriptions and find way too many courses much too interesting to pass up,” Filipovitch said. “It wasn’t until I took a class entitled Volcanoes and visited Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument in Washington that I decided to focus on geology and geophysics.”
This year Filipovitch received the Robert R. Berg Scholarship and the Fred A. Donath Honors Scholarship in Geosciences, which supports an outstanding student entering his or her final year of undergraduate work in geosciences and who plans to pursue graduate work.
“Receiving this scholarship reduces a lot of stress in my life,” Filipovitch said. “Unfortunately, money is a necessary evil. Instead of having to work a significant part of the day to pay my tuition and living expenses, I’m able to have more time to focus on learning and participating in activities related to my major.”
As president of the University of Minnesota Geological Society, Filipovitch spends some of that time collaborating with other students interested in the geology field. After commencement, she is looking at attending graduate school and perhaps pursuing a career in research and teaching.
“It’s great to know I won’t have that much school debt to pay back once I graduate,” she explains. “The size of student loans can become insane.”
Deciding on a major wasn’t easy for senior Natasha Filipovitch, who is majoring in geology and geophysics. Interested in a variety of things, it was tough for her to narrow it down to one subject area.