In a few sentences, describe your post-Biola work/life journey.

After graduating from Biola, I moved to New York City to pursue a career in publishing. I first worked as a ghostwriter for a New York Times bestselling author and later transitioned into magazine publishing at Hearst Magazines. All along, I freelanced as a writer for faith publications like Relevant Magazine and worked as the pop culture editor for UrbanFaith.com. I learned my passion was helping people make sense of their lives and writing about relationships so I became trained as a marriage and family therapist.

What's your current occupation, and in what ways did getting a degree in English prepare you for your job?

I now work as a life planner, helping individuals discover God’s purpose for their lives and create a strategic plan to live out that purpose. I also provide premarital and marital counseling. You can learn more about me at www.lifeplan.nyc. My English degree of course directly prepared me for my previous roles in publishing. However, I also find that I am an excellent life planner because of my understanding of character, the complexity of the human spirit and a knack for language. I think of De Saussure almost every day in his belief that language constructs reality, and I truly believe my purpose is to help people apply the right language to construct the reality God means for them to experience.

What was a favorite class or experience you had while a Biola English major?

It’s so hard to choose a favorite! Literature has never been as fun for me as it was during my Dostoevsky class with Dr. Pickett. I fell in love with my classmates, with God and with humanity through The Brothers’ Karamazov. But I loved Buchanan’s Advanced Composition class because my magazine pitch for that class directly led to a job offer that got me out of CA. And I’ll never be a poet, but I am a ruthless editor due to my Poetry class with Davidson.

What about life after college was most surprising to you?

I’m most surprised by how phenomenally the English Department, as opposed to my biblical studies courses, prepared me to engage with alternative world views and the culture at large. The way we studied character, allowed for the suspension of disbelief and honored nuance and specificity in language set an incredible foundation for operating in a post-post-modern world.

What advice would you give to a current Biolan majoring in English? Or what's something you did in college that later helped you professionally?

I would recommend studying abroad if you can. Spending time outside of the Biola bubble was crucial for me. I spent a semester in London during my junior year. I’m still close friends with my classmates from that time. Also, go to chapel. You’ll never again get “free” access to that many Christian thinkers. It’s a privilege, not an obligation.

What are you reading?

I’m reading Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes.