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Britt Peyton is a first-year student from Norris City, Illinois, studying\u00a0physiology<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n Why did you choose SIU? What would you tell a prospective student about SIU?<\/strong> What inspired you to choose your area of study? What is your most memorable experience at SIU?<\/strong> Have you received any scholarships as a student?<\/strong> What does the scholarship mean to you and how has it enabled you to pursue your goals? How has SIU inspired you? Why should someone consider donating to SIU? What do you brag about most when you tell your friends about SIU? If you had $1,000 to donate to the SIU, what would you like to see that money benefit?<\/strong> <\/p>\n You can support SIU students\u00a0during SIU Day of Giving on Wednesday, March 7, 2018:\u00a0https:\/\/siuday.siu.edu\/<\/a><\/p>\n Engage with us on\u00a0LinkedIn<\/a>,\u00a0Facebook<\/a>,\u00a0Twitter<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Instagram<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Britt Peyton is a first-year student from Norris City, Illinois, studying\u00a0physiology. Why did you choose SIU? I chose SIU for a few reasons. The first reason is that SIU felt like home. I\u2019ve grown up in southern Illinois, so SIU automatically felt like where I should be. Another reason is the research that happens at … Continue reading SIU Day of Giving 2018: Give the Gift of Experience \u2013 Britt Peyton<\/span>
\n<\/strong>I chose SIU for a few reasons. The first reason is that SIU felt like home. I\u2019ve grown up in southern Illinois, so SIU automatically felt like where I should be. Another reason is the research that happens at SIU. I started working as a research assistant in Dr. Gilbert\u2019s Integrative Neuroscience Laboratory as a freshman, and I knew that SIU was one of the only universities that could give me that opportunity.<\/p>\n
\nNo matter what your major is or what your interests are, SIU has something for you. Whether you\u2019re a business major who could be a part of the Saluki Student Investment Fund, or a pre-medicine student who could be in a research lab, or a forestry student who might work at SIU\u2019s Touch of Nature, you can thrive in your major and pursue your interests.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>I\u2019m studying physiology in the hopes of going to medical school. What inspired me to choose this path and area of study was loving science and wanting to have a career that meant something to me. I know that going into medicine will be difficult, but the thought of working as a physician and helping people and continue learning new things throughout my life will be well worth it.<\/p>\n
\nSo far, my most memorable experience has been making friends and the memories I\u2019ve had with those people. I knew nobody when I first came to SIU. Seeing how welcoming and friendly everyone was here really helped me come out of my comfort zone and find the people that I now call my friends.<\/p>\n
\nYes, I received a few local scholarships my senior year of high school, as well as SIU\u2019s Chancellor\u2019s Scholarship.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>The Chancellor\u2019s Scholarship means the world to me. It has enabled me to completely focus on my classes and extracurricular activities instead of worrying how I\u2019d pay for college. It\u2019s also allowed me to put all of my local scholarships aside, which I\u2019m also incredibly grateful for, and save them for medical school and maybe even studying abroad.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>SIU, most of all, has inspired me to be the very best I can be. Whether that be through professors who have encouraged me to take that extra class, or advisors who encouraged me to join a research lab as a freshman, or RSOs that have allowed me to be more involved on campus than I thought possible in my first year. Every aspect of my experience at SIU has taught me to push myself and that my experience here can be as great as I make it.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Someone should donate to SIU because of the promise our students have. There are students here going overseas to help deliver medical supplies to countries that need them, students who are involved in life-changing research, and first generation college students graduating and making the world a better place. Donating to SIU would be helping these students, as well as many more students who are doing equally amazing things.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>I brag most about all of the opportunities I\u2019ve had, even just in my first year here. SIU had enough faith in me to award me a full-ride scholarship. I\u2019m involved in an exceptional research lab as a first-year student, I get to be a part of bringing new students to SIU through being a Saluki Ambassador, and those are just a few examples of how SIU has given me more opportunities than I thought possible.<\/p>\n
\nI would like to see that money benefit paid research assistant positions. It is my understanding that students used to get paid while working in a research lab, so I would love to see that come back. My main reason for that is because I, as well as other students, work in research labs and don\u2019t have time to have paid jobs outside of class and research, so it would be extremely helpful to us if we could have both in one.<\/p>\n