For Allisun Mutz, graduation from the University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources was both an end and a beginning. Her degree in hand, she now starts her journey toward her dream of entering veterinary medical school.

Little did she know during her undergraduate education that learning a new language would open up the door to an exciting internship that would help in her career path.

Mutz, an animal sciences major, began taking classes in the Mandarin language. Gary Allee, a professor in swine nutrition, suggested that she take this skill to the Novus International Trading Co., for a summer internship. Novus, based in St. Louis, is an animal nutrition company that has expanded into China, a large consumer of pork.

Mutz got the opportunity and found that interning in China gave her the chance to experience a new culture and immerse herself in the language she’d grown fond of.

“It was an incredible experience,” Mutz said. “It definitely shaped the way that I would like my career to go.”

In addition to helping with research projects, Mutz traveled around China visiting different cities and towns where she gave lectures to swine farmers. “It was neat to meet people from the big cities and the people on the farms,” Mutz said.

Back in the states, Mutz now works at an exercise physiology lab for pigs, where she runs pigs on treadmills. Next fall, Mutz will enroll in the MU College of Veterinary Medicine. She also hopes to be accepted into the Veterinary Public Health Master’s program.

“The internship really helped me decide that I’d like to do something with public health,” Mutz said. “I’m just so grateful for the experience and that I was a part of CAFNR.”