Kaylyn is a freshman nutrition major here at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She decided to attend UMass Amherst because she wanted to attend a school with endless opportunities. 

"UMass gave me the feeling of home and belonging: everyone on campus is welcoming and every type of personality can be found,” Kaylyn says. 

Her major is nutrition, and she believes it is so important because “food impacts our physical and mental health in ways that not everyone realizes”. She hopes to help others avoid the load of false information out there and guide her future patients in the right direction. UMass Amherst’s Nutrition Department is accredited by the Accreditation Council of Education in Nutrition and Dietetics of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. These accreditations are something that Kaylyn sees as a huge educational benefit and go to show just how strong our university’s programs are. 

Kaylyn is taking a mix of general eds, major-related classes, and electives, which she says makes for the best experience because you’re able to get a taste of your future career, while also obtaining a solid background in the core subjects and having fun with the electives. She notes that while UMass Amherst is a large school with some large lecture style classes, they often include discussion sections which are smaller and more personal, giving more hands on experience and encouraging more participation/collaboration. 

Kaylyn says she believes she is very lucky to have had amazing professors so far. Her nutrition professor often brings up examples relating to the class material that she’s seen in her own work with patients, something Kaylyn feels really shows her passion for the subject.

“All of my professors have been caring and they’re understanding of our lives as college students” Kaylyn says. She believes she “couldn’t have asked for a better relationship” with her professors here at UMass Amherst.

For those looking to go into nutrition, many students will go on to become registered dietitians. There are a large range of opportunities for dietitians including: having consultations with patients with eating disorders, working at the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at a hospital, and being a sports dietitian working with athletes. Many students in nutrition will also go on to medical school to become a doctor, dentist or physician assistant. Another path is to become involved in the research field, working in a lab for nutritional analysis or with a food company to improve their products. These are just some of the many options for those majoring in nutrition.

For Kaylyn, she plans on following the registered dietitian path. After earning her bachelor’s degree, she will go on to get her master’s, then complete a year-long dietetic internship before taking her Registered Dietitian Exam. UMass Amherst’s first try passing rate for the RD exam is 80%, which is 10% higher than the national average; giving our students the upperhand. After passing the exam Kaylyn says she would “love to be a high school health or science teacher at some point” because she loves kids and teaching. 

Outside of her classes, Kaylyn is involved in the UMass Nutrition Association and was just elected Secretary for the fall 2020 semester. The UMass Nutrition Association is a club for nutrition students to mentor, network, socialize, and volunteer together. She’s also involved in CHAARG, a women’s fitness club here on campus with the goal to empower women to be the healthiest versions of themselves. Kaylyn has been very active in volunteering since high school, and continues to be here at UMass Amherst as a relief foster for service dogs in training through Diggity Dogs, a psychiatric and medical service-dog training organization. Staying active through intramural sports also takes up a portion of her time, and she’s played intramural volleyball and basketball. Campus Recreation offers over 100 free group fitnessclasses a week to students, another favorite of Kaylyn’s, which she recommends everyone to take advantage of. Kaylyn also holds an on campus job as a tour guide. She loves “being able to show prospective students everything that UMass Amherst has to offer”, and hopes that by sharing her experiences with them they’ll be able to see themselves as a student here.