Degree: B.S. in Biomedical Engineering
How did the Stamps Scholarship help shape your undergraduate experience?
The Stamps Scholarship has profoundly changed my college experience, and life. Through the scholarship, I had the opportunity to form long-lasting mentorships and friends in the community. The last few years, I was surrounded by talented and like-minded individuals who inspired me and pushed me to better myself.
Furthermore, the Stamps Scholarship allowed me to follow my passions and start a company aiming to solve global problems through resource-constrained design. Our current project is aiming to decrease cervical cancer in low- and middle-income countries by providing opportunities for early detection. Thanks to the Foundation, I was able to travel and meet key opinion leaders and learn so much about the problem, business, and product development. In a nutshell, the Stamps Scholarship allowed me to pursue my dream while still in college.
Knowing what you know now, what advice would you give your freshman self?
College is a great time to redefine yourself and start off with a blank slate but it’s important to remember where you come from and how your past experiences have shaped you. It’s very easy to forget everything that has led up to where you are – especially when you have the chance to “start over”. I would encourage my freshman self to stay connected with the people and experiences from high school, which is a piece of advice very applicable to my situation now as I am graduating from college.
Who has had the greatest impact on you throughout your college career and how so?
I can’t think of a single person who has most impacted me because I believe that impact is created through a combination of lots of smaller things. As I am graduating college, I realize the sheer amount of people who have affected my life in the last five years. Chaffee Viets, the Director of Special Scholarships at Georgia Tech is always there to make sure that I am doing okay and to provide advice and support when I need it. David Knobbe, my boss and friend at Outdoor Recreation Georgia Tech always supports me in my endeavors and pushes me to take on new opportunities. Lastly, the friends I have made while being at Georgia Tech have become my family and the people I go to in my happiest and saddest times. I am truly surrounded by the most amazing people.
What comes next?
I am going to keep working on my startup, Afina LLC, with the hopes to launch a cervical cancer detection product in the next few years. I love the medical startup environment and am currently looking for full time positions at startup companies or small companies based around Atlanta.
Despite being from Belgium and having always thought that I would leave Atlanta post graduation, I have found myself wanting to stay here because of the support system I have here.