Kristen Wargin

As Truman graduate Kristen Wargin completes her first semester of graduate school at Washington University, she takes a few minutes to share with you some highlights of how her successful career at Truman is paying off.

Kristen graduated cum laude in May 2004 with a B.S. in Exercise Science Pre-Physical Therapy and is currently pursuing her Doctoral degree in Physical Therapy at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. There is no doubt that attending a graduate program in  Physical Therapy that is ranked 2^nd in the nation would be slightly intimidating to any undergraduate, but Kristen quickly realized Truman prepared her for any challenge she may encounter.

“My study habits and appreciation for learning have been greatly enhanced as a result of my time at Truman,” she said. “More importantly, at Truman I learned how to apply what I learned in the classroom to real life working situations. This has already proven to be beneficial in my first semester.”

Like many students at Truman, Kristen also gained real world experience during a summer internship. For Kristen, spending a summer working at PS Kids, a pediatric physical therapy home-health clinic in St. Louis was all she needed to solidify any future plans to pursue her DPT at Washington University the following year.

"I really enjoyed the opportunity to work with the pediatric population. To me, it is more challenging than working with adults because you cannot tell kids to do a certain exercise. You actually have to 'trick' them into doing the exercises. Had this internship not been a requirement at Truman, I may not have had this wonderful experience."

Truman recently finalized an articulation agreement with Washington University’s Physical Therapy Program resulting in automatic admission for selected Truman students. Because such institutions are continually impressed with the performance of Truman graduates in their programs, graduates are given special consideration upon applying to the program. Similar agreements are also in place with Creighton University and the Arizona School of Health Sciences  

Involvement in professional organizations such as Phi Epsilon Kappa and volunteering at Northeast Regional Medical Center added additional experience to Kristen’s academic resume while attending Truman. Phi Epsilon Kappa, the exercise science honor fraternity,  provides exercise science majors valuable insight in their career choice through presentations, guest speakers and national conferences.

Some of Kristen’s best memories from her years at Truman involve the wonderful friends she made while involved in a variety of organizations on campus. Through her participation in a social sorority and the varsity cheerleading squad, Kristen got involved in many campus events such as Homecoming, sports events and additional philanthropic events throughout the Kirksville community.

“The thing I miss the most about Kirksville is having all of my friends living in the same city. It didn’t matter what we were doing we always managed to have a great time together,” she said. “I will always cherish my memories of Truman. It is a good thing I have so many pictures to help remember those times!”