Alex Estrella
As a student in the highly selective University of Massachusetts Amherst College of Nursing, Alex’s broad training has him uniquely positioned to achieve his career goals.
Both my parents graduated from UMass Amherst. And sending me here is something that I was really grateful for. The nursing school by the numbers is the most selective. It's only 80 students. And now those 80 students kind of form their own family here. We're able to help each other out, study with each other, ask each other questions. And it's really nice to have such a close-knit group of students working toward one common goal. The ultimate goal for me is to be working with patients no matter what the setting is. So between the College of Nursing and working with the tour guide staff, I've been in contact with so many different diverse groups of people. I've gone into hospitals in Springfield and seen the patient population there. I've had students come in from Brookline, Boston, New York, for special tour visits on campus, and been able to interact with those people. And that's something that's been really unique to my time at UMass, because it's given me a solid foundation that no matter where I go or what group of people I'm talking to, or interacting with, I've had that experience while I've been at this university. UMass to me has been a community. And it's been a community where I've been able to grow and explore my own personal ideas, but also being supported by so many other people in so many different ways, to be involved in my community, to work with homeless shelters and food banks. So being a mentor is really what makes UMass special for me. Having this incredible amount of opportunities in one place is so beneficial to students, because students are able to then explore what they like, and grow as people and as leaders. It's, in my opinion, the biggest draw to students. My name is Alex Estrella. College of Nursing, Class of 2015. I stand for community. And I stand for UMass.