“Savor your time here,” said Kayla Ketner, senior English and political science double major. “This is, in the grand scheme of things, a very short time in your life. Do everything you can, get involved in as much as you can, and take full advantage of everything these four years have to offer.”
She has been involved in Student Government Association, serving on sophomore, junior and senior council; she is a member of the political science, English and history honor societies; she tutors in world literature and English and critiques papers for the Hundley Center. Ketner also studied abroad in Austria last summer.
Additionally, Ketner has an internship with the University Archives on Union University’s campus.
Ketner has taken full advantage of her time at Union University and says she hopes to continue her education upon graduating in May. She wants to get her masters immediately.
Currently, she is looking at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville for a masters of political science or the University of Georgia for a masters in political science. She eventually wants to get her doctorate and work in international relations.
“I would like to live and work in another country after I finish school,” Ketner said.
Ketner’s time in Austria last summer provided her with insight into the future career path she wants to pursue, as well as increased her desire to travel Europe. Three days after her finals her junior year, Ketner traveled by plane for the first time to another country. While in Salzburg, Austria she took German and European policy classes and completed an internship with the Institute of the Regions of Europe.
As part of her internship, Ketner worked with different cities and municipalities to gain investment opportunities. While in Austria, she spent a lot of time going on adventures and exploring the country. Ketner said her favorite things to do were going sight-seeing and trying the delicious food the country had to offer. Ketner said going to Austria and Florence inspired her to travel more.
“I have always been adventurous and I want to keep exploring the world,” Ketner said. “I have a list of every country in Europe and I want to slowly mark them off my bucket list.”
Ketner said she is excited about the future, but will surely miss a few things about her undergraduate career.
“I’m going to miss my friends that aren’t graduating and the faculty members that I’ve gotten close with,” Ketner said. “The community between my close friends that I’ve met within my department and the relationship with our professors at Union will always be missed.”
