Graduate Alumni Stories

Unity College Alum, Brooke DiPaula, works as a Wildlife Rehabilitation Coordinator with West Shore Wildlife Center.

West Shore Wildlife Center is a nonprofit wildlife rehabilitation center in southern Pennsylvania that provides services for sick, injured, and orphaned native Pennsylvania wildlife.

Brooke supervises interns, volunteers, and apprentices in wildlife patient care and care of non-releasable animal ambassadors, ensuring all internal protocols and safety measures are followed. She also does training, research, outreach, and more.

“When I graduated from Unity College in May of 2021, I was nervous that I wouldn’t have enough “experience” to jump headfirst into any wildlife profession. However, I can wholeheartedly say I have learned more from Unity and can teach more effectively than many of my contemporaries. Thanks to my experience and education through my master’s program, the core skills I developed were inclusive and adaptive strategic framing and communication practices, making me an excellent science communicator for the general public.”

“I just completed my Master’s degree at Unity with an MPS in Wildlife Management and Conservation on the Professional Biologist track. I chose Unity because it was flexible and 100% online and allowed me to obtain my degree while continuing to work full time in my career as a Shellfish Constable/Shellfish Propagation Specialist. Unity gave me the flexibility to complete coursework on my own schedule in a program focused on environmental professions.”

“My education at Unity has been very beneficial. I was hired at a higher grade level because I applied with a masters degree. The professional skills courses in my program, particularly Communication for Environmental Professionals and Ethical Practice and Policy provided me with an understanding of oral and written communication skills and how to interact with the public as well as how to solve environmental issues ethically while considering the diverse array of stakeholders that are involved in many environmental projects. The track course, Human Dimensions of Natural Resource Management was particularly useful for understanding how and why humans value natural resources and how these resources should be managed, and how humans affect or are affected by management decisions.”

“I’ve been hunting and trapping since I was a child. When I turned 18 I got my Registered Maine Hunting and Trapping Guide license and guided bear hunts in northern Maine. I received my Bachelor’s degree in Wildlife Management and my Master’s degree in Natural Resource Management. I’ve been working for USDA Wildlife Services as a Wildlife Specialist for 8 years now and we provide federal leadership and expertise to resolve wildlife conflicts that allow people and wildlife to coexist.”

“I wanted to use a way to utilize social media to reach out to people and get them interested in marine conservation. Public outreach and education are incredibly important for environmental issues. Since people spend almost three hours of their day on social media, I started Ocean EduKate as an extension of my capstone project that I did for my Master’s degree. Honestly, Unity College really gave me the tools I needed to understand the research and networking for this project. I learned so much about science communication and project management during my time there that has been incredibly invaluable. I’m hoping to expand my brand to include easy-to-read articles, lessons for other educators to follow, and infographics for those who aren’t into reading long articles to see.”

“Unity College was an amazing learning experience for me! As I was running through ideas of how to progress with my desire to study and conserve wildlife I came across Unity College and its wildlife conservation program. As I began reading more about it, I felt more compelled to apply and try my luck! The curriculum is what I was looking for in terms of learning more about the discipline of wildlife conservation. Through my collegiate experience, I enjoyed the attention to detail and the reading material is given by my professors. The classes were very interesting and interactive where we can discuss very important topics within conservation. I hope that my Unity College graduate degree can help shift my career from forestry into a role within wildlife conservation and management.”

“My Sustainability-focused MBA from Unity College gave me the foundation I needed to further my sustainability journey and my company’s sustainability journey. I wasn’t familiar with many of the concepts covered by the program, so I learned a lot. The discussions were extremely helpful in gaining additional perspective – they helped me think outside my box and apply what I was learning to unique situations.”

Unity College Alum, Eric Skrivseth, works with the Moshannon Creek Watershed Association.

“I was nearing the end of my career in management at a major railroad, and signed up for an introductory class in GIS at Unity College. I decided I liked the subject enough that I decided to pursue a Master’s Degree in GIS.

For my coursework I chose to study drainage and coal mining impacts. In western PA, there are substantial legacy impacts from this problem. I discovered that some of my co-workers at my railroad employer were heavily involved in the Clearfield Creek Watershed Association. I learned a great deal from them and they were generous in offering me access to their data. I also discovered that Moshannon Creek, probably the most mine drainage impaired watershed in Western Pennsylvania, if not the whole state, did not have a watershed association. One existed that disbanded in 2014.

“I chose Unity’s Master’s in Environmental Studies & Sustainability program because I wanted the flexibility to continue working as well as the opportunity to update my knowledge. Unity, recognized as a leader in the environmental field, provided the opportunity to deepen my understanding of how my work in conservation dovetails with broader environmental studies and sustainability issues. The program also allowed me to sharpen my skills and apply these skills through both my capstone project and work with my current organization.”

“There are so many opportunities in wildlife health, especially working in Florida. Between the whitetail deer, reptile species, and the Florida panthers, there is so much to learn about and how to better protect these species from a variety of raising issues. Following my degree, I will not only expand my horizons within wildlife health, but I will also try my hand at several certificate programs and looking into getting my prescribed burn license too! Through Unity College, I feel like I have been opened up to several different fields of study and want to keep that going by expanding my knowledge of the world around me!”

“Since earning my Bachelor’s degree in 2017, I had been working as an Aquatic Ectotherms Keeper at the Fort Worth Zoo. In 2020 I decided to leave and pursue a Master’s in Marine Science through Unity College because of its flexibility, curriculum, and the school’s overall eagerness to change the way we perceive sustainability and conservation. After completing this degree in December of 2021, I turned my dog walking side gig into a full-time thing and now successfully run my own pet care business! Unity College’s impact on my career is twofold: while courses like Strategic Management of Innovation and Communication for Environmental Professionals gave me the tools to create, analyze, and modify strategies for proper business transactions, other courses such as Sustainable Management of Marine Resources and Marine Mammal Rescue and Rehabilitation have given me the knowledge necessary to still pursue marine mammalogy on a volunteer basis!”

“An advanced Degree at Unity University has opened the doors to a myriad of experiences, such as photography publications (Spirits In Stone/Glenn Kreisberg/Cover Photo), as well as innovative new studies regarding the structure and cultural significance of alpine geo-morphologies in the peaks of Western Europe/United States (Stonestrider.com). John has also utilized his advanced education to Direct Sustainability and STEM Programs for School Age kids at The Boys and Girls Club of America and Bentley University, all of which made more possible through an advanced education at Unity. ”