Alumn Profiles

 

After graduating in the summer of 2005, Jon Kristian van den Akker left the University of California with a dream: he was not sure how, but he knew that he was destined to obtain his PhD. Having just successfully completed his senior thesis (Law, Society, Economics and Power), for the next year and a half Jon would independently investigate the phenomena of social consciousness. "It was then that I began to realize just what it meant to take on this kind of an endeavor - and then everything change...everything."

Looking at a 50% dropout rate for those attempting the doctorate in the United States and with less than 2% of the population in possession of the coveted title, the odds were not in his favor. But Jon had an even bigger problem. "When I began I wasn't even sure what I wanted to study, exactly, or even how I would do it," adding, "but the freedom I was given in ISF taught me that the path was out there - I just needed to focus and find it."

He summarized his experience as follows: "I reviewed the statistics, weighed my life and experiences and decided that this was what I was meant to do - it's what I'd always been meant to do...what I'd been doing all along." Mr. van den Akker is now defying the odds and pursuing his dream in Boston where he studies psychology at Harvard University.

When asked to comment on his impression of the East vs. West dichotomy he chuckled saying, "well, there's just a completely different attitude out here - it's not a better or worse kind of thing, per se; just a very, VERY different vibe. I do miss the Bay Area, though and Berkeley will always have a special place in my heart - wherever I might be."

Grandson of a Dutch immigrant, this self-proclaimed political independent remembers his time at Berkeley as a form of boot camp. "Looking back from where I am now, I can see that I was in training - that Berkeley was molding me...forging me into an intellectual sentinel." An appropriate statement as this Cal grad is now engaged and crossing swords with the academic elites and world renowned scholars of Harvard.

"Once I achieved success at Berkeley I realized anything was possible - sky's the limit - it was an epiphany; after I found the target, I just needed to zero-in...and go for it."

So, if you don't find Jon buried in the stacks of Widener Library or out taking data to support his book and numerous articles, you'll likely bump into him doing laps at Blodgett or doing yoga somewhere in Cambridge. "Graduate school leaves time for precious little else." But whether at the pool, shrinking heads, or propped up in warrior-pose it's clear that Jon is on his way; yet another ISF graduate out conquering the world.

"Without a question, the faculty and staff of ISF are the sine qua non of my success."

Congratulations Jon - and GO BEARS!

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I lived on the 8th floor of the Unit 3 dormitories my freshman year at Cal, and half of the students on my floor were pre-med, myself included. I wasn't one of the "hardcore" pre-meds; along with Calculus and Chemistry, I took modern dance, a couple of De-cal classes on health, seminars on poetry, and joined a pre-med student organization. The following semesters continued on a similar pattern of enrolling in one or two pre-med classes while indulging in classes like Sociology of Culture and Medical Anthropology. The College of Letters and Science eventually came knocking on my door demanding that I declare a major. At this point, there was no return; I made my way to Campbell Hall.

I was unsure about committing to Cell Biology because my interest in the hard sciences slowly dwindled after being in classes that were monotonous and uninspiring. I was pre-med, but to commit to studying science in college, and at UC Berkeley of all places, I'd be missing out on some of the greatest professors Berkeley has to offer. I had heard of the ISF major but did not know exactly how it would prepare me for the real world, and I thought to myself, "How would I explain this to an employer or to medical schools?" But I left Campbell Hall ready to explore my new identify as an ISF major at UC Berkeley.

I had no problem creating my concentration: Cultural Perspectives on Health and Illness.

My interest in health was rooted in sociology, psychology, public health, and Chicano studies. This included a graduate course titled "Cultural Competence in Public Health" that I took in my junior year. This class became the foundation for my senior thesis and later my inspiration toward pursuing a graduate degree in public health. Every class I took for my major was indispensible to understanding culture and health at my own pace and through my personal interests. ISF allowed for academic liberty and created a very unique group of students, some of the most talented and inspiring I met at Cal. Most importantly, the ISF major made it possible for me to venture out and sample the academic culture at Berkeley.

My well rounded academic background has become a valuable asset during job interviews and during my journey through graduate school. I'm finishing the second year of my Masters in Public Health at USC, in the Health Communication track. I'm currently working on a project to disseminate health information to the Hispanic community in East Los Angeles, by way of health "soap operas". An understanding of this community's attitudes and beliefs about health issues is critical to delivering effective health messages, and I often source some of the readers from the classes I took as an ISF major. Additionally, the ISF major was a great topic of conversation during interviews. Unlike many recent grads, I've found that ISF majors have had great odds in finding very rewarding jobs soon after graduation. I'm currently working at the UCLA Department of General Internal Medicine, doing research on decisions of cancer screening between patients and doctors in primary care clinics of Los Angeles.

The interdisciplinary aspect of my undergraduate education has definitely carried over to my professional goals, and I still aspire to become a doctor but one with a wider scope in understanding medicine.