Megan Tyler ’23 is a biomedical science: medical laboratory science major from Dracut, Mass. She is a two-year recipient of the Charles F. Marble Scholarship and has also received the Evelyn Nixon-Jardine Scholarship, the Dickie Family Scholarship, the Pamela Low Scholarship, and the Class of 1931 Alumni Memorial Scholarship.
While Megan spent five summers scooping ice cream — and professes to never say no to going out for the frosty treat — she is leaving her ice cream scooping days behind her as she prepares for a career as a medical laboratory scientist.
Megan Tyler: The main reason I chose UNH was for the biomedical science: medical laboratory science (BMS:MLS) major. When I was looking at majors offered at other colleges, I saw a lot of biology and biochemistry options, but nothing that focused on the pathogenesis of human disease and the study of diagnostic tests. The BMS:MLS major at UNH focuses on those things, which I was super excited about.
At UNH admitted students’ day, BMS:MLS students and faculty explained the opportunities and internships that the major offered, and I was hooked. On top of loving this major, I fell in love with the beautiful UNH campus. UNH is the perfect size — large enough to offer endless academic resources and fun events, but small enough to form close relationships with the students and faculty in your major.
Megan: I like the BMS:MLS major because I get to act like a biological detective and help solve the medical mysteries of patients. I learn about what causes disease and how to identify and differentiate it from other diseases using lab tests. I get to discover the mechanisms behind why diagnostic tests work and how to troubleshoot them when an unexpected result is obtained.
One of the best parts of the major is how much hands-on lab experience I have gotten in the various areas of medical lab science. I've practiced everything from identification of blood and bacterial cells under a microscope, electrophoresis of proteins, determination of blood types and streaking bacteria on agar plates.
The major prepares you to be able to give valuable clinical test results to doctors, which means your work can help patients receive answers and treatments for their condition.
Megan: I am most proud of being selected as a Marble Scholar because I get to help prospective students decide if UNH is right for them by sharing my experiences as a COLSA student at UNH. I feel that my time at UNH has come full circle. As a prospective student, I remember hearing students speak at the admitted students’ day and open house, and now I am one of those students speaking toprospective students about COLSA. The scholarship also validates all of my hard work as a student here.
Megan: I plan to work as a certified medical laboratory scientist in a hospital laboratory.
Megan: UNH offers a clinical internship program with the BMS:MLS major, which I have been selected to take part in during the spring semester of my senior year. I have chosen to complete my internship at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, NH, where I will complete a full-time internship in their hospital lab. I will rotate through the four sections of the lab, including hematology, chemistry, microbiology and blood bank.
The internship will give me real-life experience in the hospital lab where I will be exposed to the day-to-day duties of a medical lab scientist. At the end of the internship program, I will be eligible to sit for the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) certification exam and can then become certified as a medical laboratory scientist. During this internship, BMS:MLS faculty will provide study material to prepare me to pass the certification exam.
Megan: UNH makes it so easy to find a community you fit in with. Getting involved with intramural sports, clubs, classes and residential life has resulted in meeting so many new people and making great friendships. I am grateful to UNH for the wonderful people and programs that have helped make my college experience both fun and academically successful. It's almost impossible to be bored at UNH because there is always something to do on campus or new places to explore nearby.
