Ayesha Qureshi remembers hearing about how awesome a place The University of Akron was long before she arrived on campus. She had heard about how the Akron experience was for her father, who immigrated from Pakistan to the United States because he got an opportunity from UA. Combined with scholarship opportunities, joining the Akron community proved to be one of the best choices she’s made.
A Green, Ohio, resident, who will graduate in spring 2025, Ayesha says the welcoming nature of the campus community will always remain with her. During her first year, she joined the Emerging Leaders Living Learning community on campus.
“That was such an awesome opportunity because, coming into my first year, I was really nervous, anxious because I didn't know anybody and this was a new place,” Ayesha says. “And so, coming into that Living Learning community I got to meet so many different people and engage in campus activities. I was actually able to meet my best friends who are now my roommates. So that was an awesome experience.”
Bringing an eagerness to learn was an additional benefit Ayesha says helped her adjustment to campus life. She says it can help others as well.
“I’ve had different research opportunities (with biology professors), including connecting with communities outside of the university because of my involvement here at the University of Akron,” Ayesha says. She has been able to participate in behavioral health research activities with Akron Children's Hospital.
“With my mentor I got to see different adverse childhood experiences,” Ayesha says. “(How people) cope with abuse experiences, but also social determinants of health. How families deal with financial instability, housing instability. How that impacts the development of post-traumatic stress symptoms.”
Ayesha fondly calls her parents her first role models and teachers. “They were both immigrants from Pakistan who were able to come to the United States because of the University of Akron and the opportunity (UA) gave to my father,” she says. “But throughout my childhood, I got to witness them go through different obstacles and struggles, whether that be financial barriers, economic barriers, linguistics and so on. Seeing their determination and the resilience to those barriers was a vital aspect of my childhood and that value has stuck with me throughout my college career and any career that I want to achieve in the future.”
Wherever in the world her professional career takes her, Ayesha says UA will always be a significant part. “You’re going to see that while the campus is smaller in comparison to the other ones in Ohio, it's definitely one that is a close-knit community. And you can see all of these friend groups and all these organizations that are here to support you in any active career that you have. And so that is just a great opportunity for students to come here and learn more about the campus that is bound to be their new home.”
To learn more about scholarships at The University of Akron, click here.