Emily Jacoboski

Emily Jacoboski is currently pursuing a dual degree in Pre-Veterinary Science (B.S) and Management (B.B.A). Emily entered UMass as an Animal Science major and a member of the Commonwealth Honors College. Her love of animals had led to an interest in veterinary medicine from a young age, and the introductory Animal Science courses only confirmed that this was the right path for her.

As a freshman, Emily participated in a First-Year Research Experience within the Department of Environmental Conservation. Under Dr. Adrian Jordan and Julianne Rosset, she studied the spawning habits of alewife fish in New England bodies of water. Based on data she collected through an independent research project, Emily presented a poster titled “Analysis of Alewife Young of Year in Pentucket Pond” at the 2014 FYRE Conference. Emily enjoyed the research enough to continue working in the lab through the spring of 2017, where she assisted several graduate students on their thesis research.

Emily also had the opportunity to participate in the Poultry Management course during the fall of her freshman year. During her New Student Orientation, John Balise, the chief undergraduate advisor for VASCI, suggested she enroll in this course, an opportunity she jumped at. Emily’s involvement in poultry management has fostered her love of chickens and other types of poultry. She apprenticed for a Teaching Assistant position during the spring of 2017, and currently works as a full time TA alongside two other students. She has attended the Northeastern Poultry Congress and smaller poultry shows as a spectator since freshman year, when it was suggested as a great opportunity to expand her knowledge of poultry. In addition, during the summer of 2015, Emily received her own flock of chickens as a birthday present. Since then, she has expanded her flock to five hens and a rooster, all of which are very spoiled.

During her sophomore year, Emily realized that she wanted to develop her business skills so that she would be able to successfully run a veterinary practice someday. She decided to apply to the Isenberg School of Management during the spring of 2016 and was fortunate enough to be accepted as a Management major on the Sustainable Business Practices track. Emily has found her business courses to be incredibly applicable to what she is learning in her Animal Science courses, and she feels even more prepared for her future career interests. During the spring of 2016, Emily competed in NESA, an agricultural quiz bowl and participated in the Bay State Livestock Classic, where she learned how to show Belted Galloway Cattle and served as the Fundraising Chair. She is looking forward to running the Bay State Livestock Classic in the spring of 2018.

During the summer of 2016 before her junior year, Emily completed an 8-week marketing internship at Pepsico Shanghai to complement her Management major. She worked on a consumer insight project within the Lays department and studied Mandarin Chinese at SISU in her free time. Although she studied Mandarin for four years in high school, Emily really enjoyed enhancing her conversational skills and character recognition. During junior year, Emily became a Residential Assistant in Southwest residential area. Although the position was challenging at times, she learned valuable communication and crisis management skills.

The summer before her senior year, Emily interned in the Bird Department at the Southwick’s Zoo. At the zoo, she was able to assist in educational shows, train birds using positive reinforcement, and learn about the very intensive care regime exotic bird species require. She was even lucky enough to meet the zoo veterinarian and observe a few procedures. This internship reinforced her love of exotics, particularly birds, and she hopes to focus on these species in vet school.

During her senior year, Emily works as a Residential Assistant in the Orchard Hill residential area. In addition to her TA position and her responsibilities for the Bay State Livestock Classic, Emily also continues to be involved in NESA, and is very excited to compete in the spring of 2018. After graduation, Emily plans to take a gap year, where she hopes to get more clinical experience before applying to veterinary school.