Name: Molly Chatham
Major: Community Health
Year: Senior
Hometown: Bloomington, IN
Why did you choose to come to IU?
I chose to come to IU because it’s always been a passion of mine. Growing up my parents were always big IU fans and living out-of-state, it never seemed a possibility. Once I moved to Bloomington my junior year of high school, my dream became a reality. There are so many amazing opportunities on this campus and I knew it was the right place for me.
What has involvement meant to you at IU? What are some of your favorite things that you have been a part of?
Throughout my four years here at IU I have been a part of many different organizations that have brought me experiences I will always cherish. One of my favorite things I have been involved in is the Scholarship Advisory Committee (SAC), which is a student recruitment group that recruits high achieving seniors in high school to come to IU through traveling receptions and football game-day tailgates. Through this organization, I met some amazing people, one in particular that connected me to the IU Health internship I currently have.
How did you go about finding an internship with IU Health Goal Internship? What made you chose this internship?
I knew I wanted to do my senior internship within the hospital, but I wasn’t exactly sure which avenue until I was connected with a colleague of mine through the SAC that referred me to the program manager of the GOAL program. After networking with her, I realized this internship would be right up my alley of interests. I chose this internship because it would give me the chance to learn how to effectively manage a health education program in the community, while also giving me the chance to shadow/get insight on other fields of health within a hospital setting.
Molly on a GOAL field trip to the IU softball teams batting cages
What have you learned from your internship that you weren’t expecting to?
Through my internship, I have learned the duties and tasks that go into managing an effective health program within a certain population. This internship is essentially putting everything I have learned about Community Health into action. I have had the chance to first-hand experience the issues and challenges when dealing with a desired population from a hospital-led program, which has been so valuable and insightful for me own career development.
Congratulations on your full-time employment with Cerner! How did you go about obtaining this position? What kind of application process was there?
Thank you, I’m really excited! As far as obtaining this position, originally I went to an information session on campus with a recruiter where I gave her my resume and talked about the company/positions open. Then I applied online, after that there was a phone interview screening process before flying me out for the in-person interview weekend. There they gave us tours of the Cerner campus as well as the Kansas City area (the city I’d be living in). The weekend included information about the company and the position they were interviewing for, then I had two separate interviews including a small presentation to the interviewer to display my presentation skills. About two weeks later, I got an offer. Growing up in Kansas I had always known of Cerner the company, but never thought I would be moving back to the KC area working for them. I guess life has a weird way of working out as I plan to move back in July being familiar with the area from when I had moved away 6 years ago.
If you could go back and tell your freshman-year self anything, what would it be?
If I could go back and tell myself anything it would be don’t be afraid to step out of your boundaries and try new things. Each experience and everyone you meet can bring about opportunities you wouldn’t have even thought possible freshman year.
Just a girl trying to get through her senior year, one cup of coffee at a time.
