The National Conference for College Women Student Leaders (NCCWSL) was held virtually on May 25 and 26, 2021.

I sincerely appreciate UMBrella giving me the opportunity to learn from inspiring women. Despite the difficulties that came with the pandemic, NCCWSL provided priceless resources to me, a dental hygiene student who will be graduating in Spring 2022. My favorite workshops were “BRANDYOU for career excellence” by Chelsea C. Williams, “AAYW start smart: know your value and get paid” by Andrea Martinez and “Careers that do good” by Allison Conyers. Ms. Williams's session helped me define values that I put emphasis on for career building and for my life goals. Ms. Martinez shared lots of practical strategies in salary negotiations and how to effectively tell others the values I bring to a workplace. There were three experts in non-profits and philanthropy in Ms. Allison's session. I recently received an award for my business venture pitch idea and my business idea's core value is corporate social responsibility, so this meeting was very helpful. I would strongly recommend participating in next year's NCCWSL (hopefully in person) to anyone who has the opportunity.

Hee Yeon Kim
University of Maryland School of Dentistry
Junior Dental Hygiene Student