Major Insight hosts reflect on graduation, the moments that mattered, and who they became along the way
“I'd love to experience college all over again. And I wouldn't go back and change a thing.”
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Published
Podcast hosts Lauren Kelley (left) and Maggie Snee (right) reflect upon their college experience, while looking forward to exciting opportunities ahead
Major Insight hosts reflect on graduation, the moments that mattered, and who they became along the way
•
Published
“I was in my room, on my phone, when the notification pops down,” Maggie Snee said. “I saw the subject line and who it was from, and I immediately threw my phone across my bed. And I'm freaking out because I want this internship more than I’ve ever wanted anything in my life.”
The email was from the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden. It was regarding a highly competitive animal excellence research position -- and, spoiler alert, she landed the job.
“I opened it, and screamed,” she said. “And then I started crying my eyes out.”
A graduating junior majoring in Zoology, Snee is among the many Miami students looking forward to exciting opportunities after graduation.
It’s also an experience she shares with Lauren Kelley, a graduating Strategic Communications and Individualized Studies double major, who will be heading to Washington D.C. for a marketing position with the Society for Human Resource Management, the world's largest HR Association, which helps businesses all over the world build better workplaces.
“I love being a storyteller, and I am excited this is a marketing internship so I can explore that avenue of storytelling,” Kelley said. “I am also excited to learn more about human resources, and I’m very appreciative that I will be back in D.C.”
Both Snee and Kelley discussed these exciting post-grad opportunities, and the long and winding road that led to this new juncture, on the Major Insight podcast, where they also work together to create episodes that explore every aspect of the college experience.
As the podcast host and the senior producer, respectively, both Snee and Kelley, who also hosts the podcast’s Sounds of College Life series, have spent the past year engaging with students across campus to talk about choosing majors, finding mentorship, facing fears, getting involved, and about the immense amount of growth and change that happens in college.
And now, as graduating students themselves, it’s their turn to reflect back, before taking the next big life-leap forward.
“I’m much more confident now than I was before starting college,” Kelley said. “My self-esteem has grown exponentially.”
“And I'm much happier now,” Snee said. “I really was a lot happier once I got more involved.”
For Snee, getting involved meant combining a wide range of scholarly and social activities.
In just three years, she became an RA for the office of residence life, a director in Miami Activities and Programming (MAP), part of the ensemble cast for the Stage Left production of “Anastasia,” and the host of an award-winning podcast.
On the academic side, her love of animals and nature led to work as a lab assistant alongside Dawn Blitz, associate professor of Biology, in Miami’s “crab lab.” Snee also completed a mammal behavior project involving motion-activated trail cameras, and during which she was assigned chipmunks as her primary animal of observation.
She also completed a study abroad on Andros Island in the Bahamas, where she explored the biodiversity of marine protected areas and terrestrial plants, while learning from local experts about protecting and restoring ecosystems.
For Kelley, her confidence began to grow after several trips both abroad and away.
While participating in Miami’s Inside Washington program, Kelley interned with the Office for International Leadership in D.C., where she curated weekly dispatches on the war in Ukraine, tracked media coverage, and supported event logistics for visiting foreign delegations on Capitol Hill.
She was also the recipient of Miami’s Menard Center for Democracy Fellowship. And last year, she studied abroad in Nicosia, Cyprus, where she worked as a research intern with ΓΝΩΡΑ (Gnora Communications), examining the implementation of artificial intelligence in U.S. political campaign strategies.
During her senior year, Kelley also became more involved in the Government Relations Network with the office of ASPIRE, where she helped foster civic partnerships between the university and the broader local community.
“I can't think of a place where I haven't found support on this campus, and someone saying they believed in me, even when I didn't believe in myself,” Kelley said. “That's what higher education has provided me, and that's what I'll miss most. But I do feel confident in saying that I made the most of my time here. It really did lead to amazing opportunities, and it’s given me a whole new identity moving forward.”
It's said the only constant in life is change, and nowhere is that more clear than in college. And while graduation may be the end of one chapter, it’s also the beginning of another, which is what makes this milestone so meaningful.
“I'd love to experience college all over again. I really would,” Snee said. “And I wouldn't go back and change a thing. Everything worked out. And I'm at a point in life where I feel very happy with where I'm going.”
The email was from the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden. It was regarding a highly competitive animal excellence research position -- and, spoiler alert, she landed the job.
“I opened it, and screamed,” she said. “And then I started crying my eyes out.”
A graduating junior majoring in Zoology, Snee is among the many Miami students looking forward to exciting opportunities after graduation.
It’s also an experience she shares with Lauren Kelley, a graduating Strategic Communications and Individualized Studies double major, who will be heading to Washington D.C. for a marketing position with the Society for Human Resource Management, the world's largest HR Association, which helps businesses all over the world build better workplaces.
“I love being a storyteller, and I am excited this is a marketing internship so I can explore that avenue of storytelling,” Kelley said. “I am also excited to learn more about human resources, and I’m very appreciative that I will be back in D.C.”
Both Snee and Kelley discussed these exciting post-grad opportunities, and the long and winding road that led to this new juncture, on the Major Insight podcast, where they also work together to create episodes that explore every aspect of the college experience.
As the podcast host and the senior producer, respectively, both Snee and Kelley, who also hosts the podcast’s Sounds of College Life series, have spent the past year engaging with students across campus to talk about choosing majors, finding mentorship, facing fears, getting involved, and about the immense amount of growth and change that happens in college.
And now, as graduating students themselves, it’s their turn to reflect back, before taking the next big life-leap forward.
“I’m much more confident now than I was before starting college,” Kelley said. “My self-esteem has grown exponentially.”
“And I'm much happier now,” Snee said. “I really was a lot happier once I got more involved.”
For Snee, getting involved meant combining a wide range of scholarly and social activities.
In just three years, she became an RA for the office of residence life, a director in Miami Activities and Programming (MAP), part of the ensemble cast for the Stage Left production of “Anastasia,” and the host of an award-winning podcast.
On the academic side, her love of animals and nature led to work as a lab assistant alongside Dawn Blitz, associate professor of Biology, in Miami’s “crab lab.” Snee also completed a mammal behavior project involving motion-activated trail cameras, and during which she was assigned chipmunks as her primary animal of observation.
She also completed a study abroad on Andros Island in the Bahamas, where she explored the biodiversity of marine protected areas and terrestrial plants, while learning from local experts about protecting and restoring ecosystems.
For Kelley, her confidence began to grow after several trips both abroad and away.
While participating in Miami’s Inside Washington program, Kelley interned with the Office for International Leadership in D.C., where she curated weekly dispatches on the war in Ukraine, tracked media coverage, and supported event logistics for visiting foreign delegations on Capitol Hill.
She was also the recipient of Miami’s Menard Center for Democracy Fellowship. And last year, she studied abroad in Nicosia, Cyprus, where she worked as a research intern with ΓΝΩΡΑ (Gnora Communications), examining the implementation of artificial intelligence in U.S. political campaign strategies.
During her senior year, Kelley also became more involved in the Government Relations Network with the office of ASPIRE, where she helped foster civic partnerships between the university and the broader local community.
“I can't think of a place where I haven't found support on this campus, and someone saying they believed in me, even when I didn't believe in myself,” Kelley said. “That's what higher education has provided me, and that's what I'll miss most. But I do feel confident in saying that I made the most of my time here. It really did lead to amazing opportunities, and it’s given me a whole new identity moving forward.”
It's said the only constant in life is change, and nowhere is that more clear than in college. And while graduation may be the end of one chapter, it’s also the beginning of another, which is what makes this milestone so meaningful.
“I'd love to experience college all over again. I really would,” Snee said. “And I wouldn't go back and change a thing. Everything worked out. And I'm at a point in life where I feel very happy with where I'm going.”
Established in 1809, Miami University is located in Oxford, Ohio, with regional campuses in Hamilton and Middletown, a learning center in West Chester, and a European study center in Luxembourg. Interested in learning more about the Department of Biology, the Department of Media, Journalism and Film, the Individualized Studies (Western Program), or the Major Insight Podcast? Visit their websites for more information.
