Athabasca University Convocation | #AthaU21
Convocation Countdown: Day 15—Jiun-yi Zullo
To celebrate the #AthaU21 Convocation, we are profiling some of our amazing graduates. Athabasca University (AU) is so proud of everything they have accomplished and we are excited to celebrate each and every one of them at this year’s virtual convocation!
Not only is Jiun-yi Zullo an AU learner, a mother, a Master of Nursing (MN) graduate, and an ER nurse, but she is also the winner of AU’s 2021 Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Competition.
And, if that repertoire isn’t impressive enough, on March 16, Jiun-yi successfully defended her thesis at from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., promptly went online to AU’s 3MT competition around 1:30 p.m., and then WON the competition—all while being 38 weeks pregnant with her third baby.
She’s pretty amazing.
Choosing AU
When she started out her program, Jiun chose AU because it best complemented the work life balance she needed.
“As a mother of two small children who is also a shift worker working full time, I had an unusual schedule and needed a school that allowed me to learn on my time,” she said.
She hopes to use her new MN degree to enter the second stage of her career where she is able to practice nursing by sharing her knowledge, contributing to creating new nursing knowledge, and conducting research in an academic setting.
Jiun emphasized that her support system has had a significant impact on her success—from colleagues who completed a task for her during nightshifts so she could finish writing a paragraph for an assignment, to her mum who always asks, “How is your school?”
“Success is never in isolation. There have been numerous people along the way who have contributed to my success, in both small and great ways.”
– Jiun-yi Zullo, Master of Nursing graduate
“I must extend a heartfelt thank you to my husband, Bobby, who has always allowed me infinite time to complete assignments or study without question, and a second heartfelt thank you to my thesis supervisor, Dr. Lynn Corcoran, whose expertise and kindness has guided me through these years. I can only dream to achieve the level of her excellence one day.”
And while Jiun’s last four years with AU have been busy, exciting and eventful, she mentioned that her favourite memory occurred very recently when she successfully defended her thesis.
“It was the culmination of many, many years of hard work,” she said, of her MN degree.
A life transformed
“My degree will elevate me professionally and will help me to enter a second stage of my career where I practice nursing by sharing my knowledge, contributing to creating new nursing knowledge, and conducting research in an academic setting,” Jiun said.
Jiun emphasized that she is grateful that she chose AU, and plans to use her MN to help elevate her career and step into her very birght future.
To learn more about the MN program at AU, visit the program page.
