From Passion to Profession: How Gilman Senior Encounter Shapes the Class of 2025

As the Class of 2025 moves through their last year of high school at Gilman, they are heading to another stage of their life—college. However, college isn’t all studying; it’s also a crucial phase in which you can discover a future career path. To support this transition, Gilman’s Senior Encounter program provides seniors with hands-on internship opportunities that allow them to explore potential careers and passions, gain real-world experience, and make informed decisions about their futures.

In order to graduate from Gilman, seniors are required to participate in an encounter to prepare them for their future careers. Afaan Younus ‘25 is interested in civil engineering, a domain for people interested in building things, like maintaining infrastructure and fundamental buildings.. Two years ago, college counselor Ms. Follensbee connected him with Luke Richmond ‘05, who is a project manager at a Whiting-Turner, civil engineering company. Afaan had access to the immersive experience of working in this domain, as he noted, “I scheduled a day visit with him in the summer [two years ago] and really loved the few hours I spent there.” In turn, when it was time to decide on his Senior Encounter, he went back to Mr. Richmond and Whiting-Turner.

As a participant in Senior Encounter, Afaan is excited about the opportunity to explore his passion. He noted, “Before entering college and deciding my major to be civil engineering, I could see what it means to work a day in the life of a civil engineer. If I enjoy my time during the Encounter, I believe I will have found the field for me. And if I somehow really hate it, I'll be glad to have tested it early on in my life.” 

Jonny Li ‘25, on the other hand, is planning to pursue an internship focused on biology for his Senior Encounter. Jonny knew what he would do before he chose his Senior Encounter, which made his decision more of an opportunity to deepen his knowledge of his intended field. According to Jonny, he started by cold-emailing researchers he was interested in working with and attached a resume that would show his interest in the project.  Jonny is grateful that this process helped me to “develop networking and communication skills.” Eventually, Jonny will be more prepared for his prospective field as he hopes this Johns Hopkins internship will give him another perspective to explore how “algorithms and AI can be used to help identify the source of diseases and cancer.” Jonny also suggests that Senior Encounter is a perfect opportunity for high schoolers to try new interests, as he encourages others to be open-minded.

Whether it’s reaffirming a long-held passion like Jonny or discovering a new one like Afaan, Gilman’s Senior Encounter program helps empower students to take meaningful steps toward their future. As the Class of 2025 prepares to take the next step, Senior Encounter serves as both a mirror and a map—helping students see who they are and guiding them toward who they want to become.