Student Spotlight

Jacob Eyster

Major: Biomedical Health Sciences

Hi! My name is Jacob Eyster, and I am from Mooresville, Indiana. I’m studying Biomedical Health Sciences. For me, Purdue was an easy choice; between its reputation for a strong, academically-focused community and the only pre-health major of its kind among large universities in Indiana, it was a no-brainer.

As someone who has been interested in medicine since I was relatively young, the Biomedical Health Sciences major was a great fit for me. When applying to most schools, I found myself having to choose between biology and chemistry; both are great, but that choice was always going to be a tough one—I liked them both equally! Purdue’s program provides an excellent middle ground; as a BMHS major, I am able to take two years’ worth of courses in biology and chemistry concurrently, while a myriad of health-focused electives (think anatomy, oncology, immunology, and everything in between) await me in the latter half of my college career. The major focuses heavily on what I’m interested in, and it leaves out a lot of what seems trivial—it doesn’t get better than that!

My major is very broad, if not interdisciplinary, which was also a big draw when it came to deciding to join the Honors College. The prospect of being able to spend my time in a focused community of highly-motivated people from all walks of life was an important consideration. I had also heard about the smaller class sizes of HONR courses; as someone from a small-medium sized high school, I figured that this would help to ease the transition between my last four years and the huge, packed lecture halls that often accompany the college experience.

Purdue and the Honors College met these expectations and more once I got here. The community in the Honors residence halls is second-to-none; people are always willing to say hi—even if we’ve never met before. Finding someone to study with is as simple as having a seat in a study lounge on your floor! There’s someone around doing some work practically all the time, and most everyone is always happy to take a break and talk about life, homework, and everything in between.

In addition to serving as an Honors Ambassador, I am a member of Purdue’s Caduceus (pre-medical) club and Purdue World Health; I’m also preparing to join the Shannahan Lab to participate in Toxicology research starting next semester. The vast variety of different activities in which to get involved is one of the neatest parts of Purdue—no one person will have the same resume, and you’re bound to hear about a club you’ve never heard of from talking to people around campus.

My favorite part about Purdue, though, is the supportive and dedicated nature of the collective student body. Students here are committed to excellence—personal, academic or otherwise—and people that you’ve never even met are always willing to lend you a hand, whether it’s homework help, some advice at the gym, or an umbrella if you’re caught in some heavy rain.

To prospective Honors students: I encourage you to read extensively and develop a thorough understanding of your own about the Honors College—it’s not about more work, just different work, and I encourage you to determine for yourself whether that different work is right for you. I’m definitely biased in this regard, but if you’re a fan of smaller class sizes, a large, diverse group of students that are just as serious about academics as you, and an excellent group of people that’ll keep you going throughout even the busiest of weeks, be sure to give Honors a close look.