Faces of NLU: Meet Maria Giuliana
A US Navy veteran and first-generation college student learns to trust in her own abilities while earning her doctoral degree at NLU.
One of the things we take pride in at National Louis University (NLU) is our commitment to military and veteran students, providing them clear pathways to degrees and professional success. Maria Giuliana is one such student—a US Navy veteran—who took advantage of opportunities at NLU to achieve her educational goals. As a veteran and first-generation college student, Maria has had to carve her own unique path to success while earning her Doctorate of Education in Counselor Education and Supervision. Now in the final stages of her program, Maria reflects on her educational journey and the unexpected circumstances that led her to NLU:
“I transferred from Argosy University after they [...] closed. NLU offered the best option of accepting all of my credits and additional financial scholarships to assist with tuition. Also, a few of my professors and advisors moved over to NLU, making it a smooth transition.”
Along with the generous credit transfer and financial aid help, Maria says NLU has provided a place for her to grow. She says the obstacles she’s faced during her doctoral program have served as opportunities for her to improve:
“There are many obstacles along the way. Each one gives us an opportunity to step into the next, best version of ourselves.”
She describes one particular instance in which she was unsure of how to submit a conference proposal. Maria relied on fellow students to learn this new skill:
“Part of my CES [Counselor Education and Supervision] program requirements was to submit training proposals and present them at professional mental health organizations. I had no idea how to do that in my first year (2017), but during one of my first classes, all it took was hearing how a fellow student submitted a proposal for the upcoming American Counseling Association Annual Conference. If she could do it, so could I! So I started submitting my own proposals to any professional counseling organizations that were seeking submissions [...] Since then, I've presented professionally 18 times, locally and nationally. The next one coming up is in February 2022 at the Florida Mental Health Counselors Association Annual Conference, where I'll be presenting a 3-hour educational session on ‘Best Ethical Practices for Working with Military LGBTQ+ Veterans.’"
Embracing and overcoming challenges at NLU, Maria says, has led her to “trust in [her] ability to achieve [her] educational goals.”
Maria’s future plans include securing a professorship at a university and helping master’s-level counseling students prepare for their future careers. She also wants to “continue to contribute [her] leadership skills in professional mental health organizations to assist with the advancement of the mental health field.”
As far as advice that she’d give fellow first-generation college students, Maria encourages them to “Just take the leap and go for your dreams. We can always recalibrate and refine along the way.”
Explore National Louis University’s graduate programs in Psychology and Behavioral Sciences. NLU also provides special programs, scholarships, and support services for military and veteran students. You can contact an Enrollment Specialist online or call (888) 658-8632 to discuss your educational and professional goals.
