Reflections on my Final Class

What a journey this has been! I started grad school way back in 2019 when I worked in the nuclear industry. I was concerned about losing my job, as the future of nuclear power has been up in the air for some time now. I wanted to stay in the energy industry, and an Masters in Natural Resources seemed like the best option if I wanted to explore careers in renewables. However, in 2021, my career path took a sharp turn away from nuclear, and I became a field service engineer for Thermofisher Scientific. Thermo was kind enough to provide me funding to finish my degree, but my path seems less clear now. I wonder where the teachings of this Master's program and my current trajectory will cross paths, as I'm sure they will.

Biodiversity Stewardship turned out to be one of my favorite classes, which was unexpected. I learned about a lot of different tools that I would likely never have discovered on my own. My favorite was by far Google Maps; it provided me the versatility to present Back Bay and False Cape in a way that I hope will make it more accessible and intriguing for people who have yet to set foot there. My least favorite was Google Slides, which feels like a more cumbersome version of PowerPoint. This class also deepened by connection with that area and re-sparked my passion for saving the last wild places of the world. Biodiversity Stewardship also gave me the opportunity to reconnect with Richard Dyer from the Back Bay NWR Society and establish a new connection with the Back Bay Restoration Foundation. All in all, it wasn't a bad way to spend the summer. 

Now that I will be closing this chapter of my life, I am unsure what I will put my mind toward in the future. My professor, Jim Egenreider, advised that I should take the hours I've spent in study and put them to good use elsewhere, possibly toward outreach. I don't know if this blog will ever serve anyone other than myself, but maybe someone will stumble upon it and take the chance to fall in love with Southeastern Virginia. I'll be returning to Back Bay and False Cape as soon as I can, and maybe when I do, it will be to teach others. Until then, it's been a great three years and this ending feels bittersweet. Jim told me that when you stop learning you start dying, so I'm excited to see where my mind will take me next!


Shannon Titus

Field Service Engineer

Virginia Tech Master's Degree Recipient (almost)

Reptile Enthusiast

Architect of Bad Puns




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