Author Details

Cherissa Medina is a pre-health advisor at Grand Canyon University. She assists students navigating the process of applying to graduate school. She is a Phoenix native and loves it here – you can’t beat the weather and food! Her undergraduate degree is in psychology, and she is pursuing a second master’s degree in psychology. Cherissa has loved learning from a young age and believes in the importance of education. She knew from a young age that she would go to college. She was the first person in her family (extended family, too) to go to college and graduate. She now hopes to help students achieve their dreams of becoming a professional in health care.

Faculty Spotlight Questions:
I got to GCU by starting a master’s degree in business. I was working in another field and heard about the business program. I decided to attend GCU because of its reputation, small class sizes and the availability of the faculty. I loved the professors and the knowledge I gained, so much so that I stuck around. I started working at GCU in 2011.

I love interacting with the students, staff and faculty in CSET. Everyone is so helpful and friendly. It is really important to enjoy the people you work with, and I do. I also like our discussions about current events in health care and innovation. I love being able to constantly learn new things from everyone.

Study, study and study some more. The number one reason people are rejected from graduate schools is because of their grades. I recommend that students study 2-3 hours per credit hour per week. That’s 32 hours a week of studying if you’re taking 16 credit hours, hence the name “full-time student.” Also, do not be afraid to go to faculty’s office hours or ask anyone questions. We’re here to help, but we can’t help you if we don’t know we need to.