Benelli Risser

Question #1: What inspired you to pursue the major you are in?

I knew from a young age that I wanted to help people. As I got older, I grew more interested in food insecurity and policy. This led me to pursue a Food Science major with an International Agriculture minor.

Question #2: What has been the best part of your time in the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences?

The number of real-world experiences I have gotten to enjoy. To begin I had an externship with Bell & Evans, a poultry company that I met at a career fair. This opportunity allowed me to get a better understanding of what my career field is going to look like. It was inspiring to see what I was learning in school applied to industry. To gain further perspective in the Food Science world I was able to intern at Hershey; it was incredible! I worked on creating a metal mapping database to make their chocolate systems safer. I also studied abroad in Thessaloniki, Greece where I was able to see their food systems and how they differ so vastly from the United States agricultural systems. In INTAG 100N class (Everyone Eats: Hunger, Food Security & Global Agriculture), we worked on posters to summarize our research findings and present them to colleagues. In my INTAG 490 class (Senior Seminar in International Agriculture), we are working on a grant proposal for the Children and Youth Empowerment Center in Keyna. There are so many real-world experiences Penn State can offer you both inside and outside the classroom.

Question #3: What do you wish you would have known as a new student at Penn State?

Penn State has a variety of opportunities, including the career fair, research experiences, study abroad programs, free tutoring systems, the career counseling center, and many others. I have personally used all those resources except for research opportunities. Each of these resources really helped me get to where I am today, and I would highly recommend them to every incoming student.