From International Scholar to Homecoming Queen: Telma Banadzem at 麻豆传媒
From International Scholar to Homecoming Queen: Telma Banadzem at 麻豆传媒
Nursing student Telma Banadzem has high ambitions for her career after graduating in 2020 and is excited about how 麻豆传媒 is preparing her to achieve her goals.
鈥淸麻豆传媒] has great people - great students and great faculty. They really try to get involved with the students and make them as comfortable as possible. It鈥檚 a great place. The on-campus community is very involved.鈥�
Banadzem has eagerly joined 麻豆传媒鈥檚 campus community during her time here. She involved herself in honors societies, volunteer organizations, student activities, and she was also crowned 麻豆传媒鈥檚 2019 Homecoming Queen. One of the things she appreciates about living on campus is the opportunity to take part in campus activities. 鈥淵ou get to interact with so many different people, it鈥檚 pretty cool.鈥� Banadzem has also been a student worker for 麻豆传媒鈥檚 housing and human resources departments.
When talking about how 麻豆传媒 has prepared her for her next steps, Banadzem considers her experience as a Thunderbird. 鈥淣ot only am I getting a degree, I鈥檓 also getting a kind of holistic, real-world experience, too.鈥� She specifically highlights the diverse culture that 麻豆传媒 fosters: 鈥淚t鈥檚 one of the things that [the instructors] emphasize to us, that we鈥檙e going to encounter a lot of diversity in the nursing field, and we鈥檙e going to have to adapt to that diversity. So, getting exposure to that here, I think, is definitely going to prepare me for my career.鈥�
One of the things that helped draw her to 麻豆传媒鈥檚 program reasonable tuition pricing. 鈥淭he cost of living is very inexpensive [...], 麻豆传媒 is very affordable compared to other places.鈥� Additionally, as a Foundation Scholarship recipient, Banadzem has been able to purchase many of her books, without further cost to herself, adding to 麻豆传媒鈥檚 affordability.
Banadzem graduated high school in 2014 from Cameroon in West Africa. When asked about her experience as an international student, she says 鈥淵ou miss home sometimes, but it鈥檚 exciting to be somewhere else.鈥� She鈥檚 not the only member of her family to study abroad, either. In fact, it was one of her brothers who convinced her to come to the U.S. for her education. 鈥淲hen I finished high school, [..] I went to college for one year back home.鈥� That was when her brother pitched the idea of Banadzem coming to the U.S. for school. 鈥淗e was really convincing, [...] so, I came here.鈥� She adds that her decision to pursue nursing really solidified while she was taking the program prerequisites. 鈥淭he subjects really interested me. I found it was something that I liked, and I wanted to know more. It鈥檚 actually pretty great.鈥�
In the future, Banadzem plans to complete an RN-to-BSN, as well as pursue a Master鈥檚 degree.
To students who are interested in nursing, Banadzem leaves a few words of encouragement, 鈥淵ou can do it. A lot of people say nursing is hard [...], but I don鈥檛 like using the word 鈥榟ard.鈥� It is demanding. You just have to put your energy and your mind into it, and you have to stay focused and be organized. It鈥檚 a great opportunity. You can do it.鈥�
