6 questions with 6 BHSU grads: Madison Jilek

Full-time jobs, travels across the world, and advanced degrees. In this series “6 questions with 6 grads,” Black Hills State University will highlight the future plans of some of the University’s May 2018 graduates.
 
Name, Location, and Major?
I’m Madison Jilek, I’m originally from Spearfish, S.D., and my majors are physical science and chemistry.

What are your plans after graduation?
After graduation, I’m going on a short trip with my family to Alaska. More professionally, I’m starting graduate school this fall at University of Colorado Boulder for their Ph.D. program in physical chemistry.

What will you miss most about BHSU?
There’s a lot of things I’ll miss about BH, but I’d say the professors the most. The chemistry program especially is pretty close-knit, pretty small, so you get really close to your professors and they’re really great mentors for me.

What’s your favorite memory at BHSU?
I definitely think that starting research here was, in general, one of my favorite memories just because, it was super exciting. I started in high school and it changed my trajectory of what I wanted to do when I grew up.

How has BHSU prepared you for your future?
BHSU has prepared me in a lot of ways, but I think that one skill in particular that I didn’t really have before coming to BHSU that I’ve learned and developed is being comfortable putting myself out of my comfort zone and talking to people—whether I knew them or not—just initiating conversation and feeling free to let myself out there a little more.

Who is your favorite professor?
I can’t just name one favorite! Definitely Dr. Briana Mount, assistant professor of physics, and Dr. Katrina Jensen, associate professor of chemistry, have both been great mentors the four years, plus, that I’ve been here. Dr. Mount I knew before coming to BHSU, she was the one I did research with in high school. Those two could not have been better mentors to me and really helped me along.

Nearly 390 graduates will be recognized during the 175th BHSU Commencement Ceremony at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 5 at the Donald E. Young Sports and Fitness Center. The public is invited to join and celebrate the students’ achievements. Degrees to be awarded include 66 master’s degrees, 294 bachelor’s degrees, and 28 associate’s degrees. An honorary doctorate will be bestowed upon Dr. Lowell Amiotte, Oglala Lakota and a 1964 graduate of BHSU.