Howe Writing Center Alumni Spotlight: Kyle Smith ('20)
Interviewed by Winnie Wolf ('25)
Kyle Smith, a Public Health and Spanish Miami graduate, reflects on how his time as a Howe Writing Center consultant shaped both his career and personal growth.
When Kyle Smith graduated from Miami University in 2020 with degrees in Public Health and Spanish, the world was shutting down. His senior year, and his work at the Howe Writing Center (HWC), ended abruptly with the onset of COVID-19. But for Kyle, his experiences with the HWC were formative as he embarked on a public health career requiring adaptability in the midst of challenges like the global pandemic.
From Miami to a Public Health Career
Kyle joined the HWC in 2017 as a sophomore and continued consulting through his senior year. While appreciative of the technical skills that he gained in the role, he maintains that his most consequential personal growth came from learning to connect with students across different academic backgrounds. Many of his sessions were with Miami’s international student population, as many as half in his estimate. Looking back, he noted, “Learning how to adjust my communication to meet each writer’s needs was one of the most valuable skills I took away.”
After graduating, Kyle planned to pursue a Master’s in Public Health; however, the pandemic shifted his path. Instead, he stepped directly into the public health workforce, beginning as a disease investigator with the Indiana Department of Health and later transitioning into roles that continued to broaden his experience. He is currently a public health consultant with the Ohio Department of Health’s Vaccines for Children program, and has recently obtained the graduate degree that he set aside pursuing during the pandemic.
Lessons from Consulting
Kyle credits the Howe Writing Center with giving him the confidence to navigate uncertainty. As he explains, “Every consultation came with a little bit of anxiety, you never knew what kind of paper or topic would walk in the door. The center taught me how to be comfortable with being uncomfortable.”
That skill, he says, has been just as vital in his professional life, from interviewing for jobs he wasn’t sure he was “qualified enough” for, to managing sensitive conversations in public health: “While you're always going to be apprehensive of what could potentially go wrong, you overcome that by having trust in yourself.”
Kyle also sees his consulting experience shaping his broader identity: “I came to Miami as a pretty shy, reserved kid who tended to stick to familiar things. Working at the HWC helped me grow into a more confident person. I learned not to catastrophize about worst-case scenarios, because more than likely something really cool could come out of what seems like an uncomfortable situation.”
Even now, when he enters new professional spaces, like his recent transition into vaccines policy work, Kyle draws on those early lessons from consulting: “Sometimes I walk into meetings where I don’t know the specifics, but I know how to ask questions, listen carefully, and collaborate. It feels a lot like sitting down with a writer outside my comfort zone.”
Advice for Current Consultants
Kyle encourages current HWC consultants, especially those heading into the job market, to stop pressuring themselves to have the perfect plan: “It’s okay if you don’t have it all figured out yet. Things will work out, even if it takes time. Be open to opportunities you wouldn’t have expected, the ones you’re unsure about might just become the most rewarding.”
Interviewer Winnie Wolf, a graduating senior herself, was receptive to Kyle’s message about expectations.
She noted: “As someone in the middle of the job search, Kyle’s advice to take things day by day resonated with me. His reminder that it’s okay to not have everything lined up immediately after graduation is something I needed to hear. Sometimes it takes time and life experience to figure out the path to a career you really love.”
