An Interview with Rose Smith, Leader of CSU Global’s Student Veteran Organization

CSU Global is dedicated to meeting the unique needs of servicemembers and their dependents. In celebration and honor of Independence Day, we’ve interviewed Rose Smith, a CSU Global student, leader of the CSU Global Student Veteran Organization (SVO), and Senior Airman. Rose shared what the 4th of July means to her, what motivated her to continue her education, the benefits and resources she has found most useful during her time at CSU Global, and her plans for the future. 

As a person in the military, what does the 4th of July mean to you? 

Honestly, because I’m one of the few military members in my family, the 4th of July is not a big celebration in that sense; however, it is always a time that my family gets together, and that’s the best part. I travel a lot and am a bit of a workaholic, so it’s important for me to take the time off and be with them. I have a lot of gratitude that I am able to do so, since there are a lot of families that can’t. Not just those deployed, but those stationed overseas or just far away from their families. 

What is your favorite 4th of July tradition? 

My favorite traditions are fireworks, smores, and watermelon. My family will also always play “God Bless the USA,” and every time I hear it, I get chills. 

What motivated you to continue your education, and why did you choose CSU Global? 

While doing my on-the-job training through the Air Force, I was wondering what was next for me in my career ( I hate to be stagnate). After talking about different opportunities with the shop supervisor, I learned about the Medical Service Corps, which is medical admin officers. I always knew I wanted to lead, and I figured that since I was in healthcare already, it would be a good path to follow. That day, I started looking at schools. I chose CSU Global because it was a highly military-friendly school when doing my research. First off, they had the lowest credit cost, which allows me to pay minimal tuition out of pocket, using tuition assistance. Secondly, their courses run in eight-week spans nine times a year, which gives me flexibility to move classes around to more relaxed time frames in my schedule.

How will you use your education to support your future? 

I plan on commissioning after I get my degree to the Air Force Medical Service Corps and go active duty. It’s my hope to help redefine the stigma and culture that officers often get for “being against the enlisted.” I’m someone who loves to learn, so I plan to continue to learn for the rest of my life — especially if the Air Force is going to help fund it. My next goal is to get a master’s degree. I’m not 100% sure in what yet. In the last year, I have found a passion for connecting and working with organizations like Student Veterans of America. Unfortunately, this doesn’t have a whole lot to do with medical, so I’m waiting to see which industry I’ll like more. With that said, though, I’ve also considered getting a master’s in something that can be used universally, such as project management. 

CSU Global is honored to be a military-friendly university. What are the top three ways CSU Global has supported your military lifestyle? Which of our benefits and services have you found most useful?

1. The Student Veterans Organization has been a work in progress, but I am so happy to get to help shape it from the ground up. In addition to that, working with the faculty advisor, James Meredith, has been an amazing experience. He has really supported and mentored me over the past year. 
2. Low cost of tuition.
3. Consistent classroom environment — it’s less stressful knowing that no matter what class I will take, I have a weekly discussion, mastery exercise, and assignment. 

I think the most useful has been the SVO because it has opened a door of opportunities that have changed my life. Last year, I applied for a 10-week internship with the Washington Center in Washington DC. Here, I learned so much about professional development, as well as started creating my network. This led me to learn about the Student Veterans of American Leadership Institute, as well as their national convention, which I had the honor of speaking at on a panel. All of this began because I joined the CSU Global SVO and saw the opportunity for this internship. In these kinds of situations, and surrounded by these types of wonderful people, I feel very passionate. So passionate that I have even worked with a couple of brick-and-mortar SVO campuses to gain more experience. Because I gained so much, I was offered the position as a student veteran advisor at Century College in Minnesota — it’s something I hadn’t expected, but am so excited to pursue.