Student Success Stories: Beth Bouche
Meet Beth Bouche, a senior at UW Oshkosh pursuing a major in Human Service Leadership and plans to graduate in May 2021. Despite being a single mother of four children, Beth has been greatly involved on campus. “For older students, it’s hard to connect on some of the normal things that students who are younger connect on, especially in a social type setting, like, I’m not going to the college parties or doing those kinds of things,” Beth said. “So, I decided that, to feel more connected, I needed to be involved in the student organizations. Plus, it gives you great experience, like how to network, collaborate and all those kinds of career skills, really.”
Throughout her time at UWO, Beth has worked as an OSA Non-Traditional and Transfer Student Representative, as well as a Peer Violence Prevention Educator. She is also a member of the Women’s Advocacy Council and SPARK Task Force. As part of the Human Service Leadership program, Beth has volunteered for 30 hours at Habitat for Humanity, and is currently completing 280 hours as an intern for the Women’s Center. “These experiences have definitely made my college experience feel more well rounded, and I feel more connected,” Beth said. “As an intern at the Women’s Center, they help us look at things through an equity lens, a social justice lens and making inclusivity a high priority which not every place does, and it has definitely helped me grow in that area.”
As part of the Women’s Center internship, Beth is currently working on a parenting initiative and with a planning committee that also works with REACH, Planned Parenthood and the Sexual Assault Crisis Center. Her most recent initiative included a panel called Single Mothers Success Stories. “We had campus leaders who are also single mothers come in and asked them questions,” Beth said. “We just had a pretty casual talk about what it’s like to work on campus and be successful in your career while also navigating being a single parent. It was so informational and inspirational because as students, we got to see what all this hard work we’re doing is going to help us be in the future.”
Beth has also utilized the services provided by the Career & Professional Development office to help prepare for life after graduation. Besides using Handshake to check for jobs and explore potential opportunities, Beth has also taken advantage of mock interviews and resume building activities. “The more practice you have, the better you get at interviewing and, at least for me, the less nervous I will be when I do it for real,” Beth said.
In five years, Beth said she hopes to be working in a governmental or city position that oversees equity and inclusion policies — either writing the policies or implementing them. The biggest piece of advice she would give other students is to get involved as much as you can. “Getting involved is really what connects you and brings you into campus life,” Beth said. “It helps expand your knowledge, meet other people and you can find different passions that maybe you never even knew that you enjoyed.”
Congratulations, Beth, on all your achievements! We wish you the best of luck moving forward!