Graduates in the Spotlight

Jenna Gaudioso

Image of Jenna GaudiosoHOMETOWN: East Haven, Connecticut

MAJOR: Nursing

WCSU DEGREE:  Bachelor of Science in Nursing

ACTIVITIES: WCSU Softball Team, Kathwari Honors Program, part-time job at Danbury Hospital throughout college as a Student Nurse Associate in the float pool; worked on every floor of the hospital, from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m.

INTERNSHIPS: Senior internship in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Danbury Hospital

HONORS AND AWARDS: Scholar-Athlete Award freshman year, Dean’s List, 3.45 GPA, First Team All Little East Conference (LEC) freshman year, Second Team All LEC sophomore year

_____________________________________________________________________________________

 

Some students struggle with choosing a major, but not Jenna Gaudioso. She knew from the start she wanted to go into nursing. “I love helping others and that is one of the main components of being a nurse,” she says.

Gaudioso says WestConn was the right choice for her “because it had an amazing Nursing program and softball team.”

Assistant Professor of Nursing Dr. Jennifer Ort was someone who made an impact on Gaudioso during her time here. “Dr. Ort has been a mentor of mine. She is an amazing professor and nurse. She specializes in Women’s Health and that is what I want to focus on in my personal career. She supports me with nursing classes and also was a softball ambassador and supported our team, which was very sweet.”

Asked what she will remember most about her WestConn experience, Gaudioso says, “Winning the conference tournament my sophomore year and getting a bid to the Division III NCAA tournament.”

After graduation, Gaudioso says she plans to work full time in a hospital for a few years and then apply to graduate school to eventually become a Nurse Practitioner.

Her advice to new students entering WCSU is: “Enjoy your time here in college because it will fly by, and really work hard freshman year because those grades are important!”