Sarah Jenkins
Sarah Jenkins plans to work as a dietitian for the NFL or open her own practice after she graduates. When she isn’t studying, Sarah likes to hammock, hike, and watch the Green Bay Packers.
Get to know Sarah
- Major: Dietetics
- Minor: General business
- Class: Sophomore
- Hometown: Eagan, Minnesota
- Career goal: Dietitian for a professional football team, or own a private dietetic practice
- Clubs/activities: Dance Marathon, Student Diatetic Association, FSHN Ambassadors
- Favorite place on campus: Periodicals in Parks Library
- Most influential ISU mentor: Anne Oldham
- Favorite class: FS HN 167, Intro to Human Nutrition; CHEM 231, Organic Chemistry
- Why Iowa State: Noteworthy dietetics program, positive Greek community, not too far from home
Sarah Jenkins uses diabetes diagnosis as inspiration to study dietetics
Sarah Jenkins was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in high school, and she’s used the diagnosis as further motivation while she nears her future career as a dietitian.
“After I was diagnosed, I met with [a dietitian], who is also a diabetic. I look up to her and keep in touch still,” Sarah said. “Obviously, food is on my mind a lot — I need to understand what I eat. I turned that into a more positive thing [with dietetics].”
Sarah is a sophomore in the pre-dietetics program, in which she learns about the human body and how different sciences interact within it. By studying dietetics, Sarah is developing her professional life in a field that encompasses her lifelong interests.
“Dietetics and nutrition always interested me more than anything else. There are so many little factors in your body that happen after the decisions you make,” she said.
Family is a big part of Sarah’s life, and it also helped her find her path in dietetics. Along with a cousin who practices dietetics and inspires her as a future dietitian, Sarah has a family that has always been supportive of her goals. Most importantly, they support their favorite NFL teams. Sarah wants to connect her family members’ passions with her own to build a career that she loves by working as a dietitian for NFL athletes.
“My whole family growing up was centered around the NFL,” Sarah said. “It would be so cool to tie dietetics and the NFL together. It’s such a cool environment to work in.”
Though Sarah’s main interest is dietetics and nutrition, she is also pursuing a business minor to keep her on her toes. She said she appreciates the change of pace that learning business practices brings, and that it may provide her with the option to own a private practice someday. With all the options available to her, Sarah is eager to see where her studies will take her.
“When I first got diagnosed, I never would have thought I’d be where I am today,” Sarah said.
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