Senior economics major Carlos Sepulveda spent most of the summer before his senior year studying for the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT), the exam required to gain entrance into law school.

But a recent cancer diagnosis and his subsequent admission into St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis altered his post-graduation plans.

“Being there completely changed my perspective on health care and kind of drew my attention to something that before I really had no interest in,” he said.

“Seeing all the doctors who treated me, the nurses, and even the administrative side of the hospital and how they make everything run – everything seemed so perfect; that’s something that really drew my attention.”

Because of his positive experiences at St. Jude, Sepulveda no longer envisions a life as an attorney but as a patient advocate. He is particularly interested in working in the health care industry and hospital administration.

“I’m very interested in how to improve patient care and ensure they come out satisfied with the help they receive,” Sepulveda said.

To that end, he is investigating master’s degree programs in public health and is intrigued by the public health services and administration degree at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

For him, a dream job would be in a hospital for children – “somewhere that I know I can make a major difference” – maybe even St. Jude.

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