Almeida’s passion for her areas of study was sparked by her interest in discovering how an entire operation works. The financial aspects of a company are what makes the gears turn, along with coding, which she found a love for during her first year at Quinnipiac.

While this path wasn’t an immediate choice, as soon as she chose her majors, she knew it was the best decision for her career.

“I'm really excited about these two majors just because there's a lot of different ways that they could intersect,” said Almeida. “So, I'm interested to see how that takes me into the future.”

In her recent courses, she acted as an equity analyst and worked with peers to provide free IT consulting to small businesses. The work in these classes has inspired her and fueled her commitment to the field. She has gained a deeper understanding of emotional intelligence from her academic and professional experience which will only propel her forward in the years to come.

Aside from her academics, this Bobcat dove into campus involvement during her first year of college. The Student Government Association (SGA) has singlehandedly shaped her Quinnipiac experience for the past three years. She was motivated by the concerns she heard from fellow classmates and decided to step up and make a difference.

“A friend had told me that ‘if you think that there are things that you want to change and see that other people want to change and you're not finding that people are doing it, then you should go try to change them yourself,’” said Almeida. “So, I ran and thankfully I was elected, which was really exciting for me.”

After being elected as a first-year senator, she took it into her own hands to advocate for accessibility on campus. With time and hard work, she was able to push for additional seating on the Quad, which supported those with accessibility issues and developed a more engaging, friendly environment through these spaces on campus.

In her second year, Almeida led an ad hoc committee focused on student safety. This team served as the voice for the physical and mental safety of Bobcats around campus. She was able to make a true impact through this first internal leadership opportunity at SGA. Some of her work included running an educational campaign about health resources at Quinnipiac, holding an event regarding active-shooter training and working with administrators to bring attention to student perspectives.

Her final influence on SGA was made possible by her service as vice president for operations this past year. She was given the privileges of overseeing the student organization budget, learning more about financial management and expanding the student electoral body.

“Joining SGA helped me to become a better listener, advocate and leader,” said Almeida. “I think I started to focus more on the Quinnipiac experience as a whole, rather than just my own. I got to hear a lot of different people’s stories which helped me to feel like I was doing something for others more than just for myself.”

She also served in Quinnipiac Spirit as the vice president for communications and the vice president of finance to boost school pride — and even got the chance to dress up as one of the iconic Teletubbies at a men’s ice hockey game.

In order to prepare herself for the business world, the graduate served as the marketing director for the International Business Society and worked with the M&T Bank Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship as well. These roles have supported her studies and given her the opportunity to grow her knowledge on the field to prepare for her future.

“The more I said 'yes,' the more doors opened for me,” said Almeida. “I have learned so much about myself and how I work with others.”

While she waves goodbye to many of her classmates and professors, her time at Quinnipiac isn’t quite over. Almeida will be returning as an MBA candidate next year and looks forward to what lies ahead.

“I feel secure in what I have learned during my time as an undergraduate, and genuinely prepared to take on whatever comes my way in the future,” said Almeida.