Emily Beeland studied German all throughout high school and wanted to continue her studies at Wake Forest. She credits Grant McAllister for encouraging her to declare a German Studies Major, she had originally only intended to complete a minor, but he pushed her to double major with Sociology.
When asked about her accomplishments at Wake Forest, there doesn’t seem to be an end. Beeland is part of both the Sociology and German Honors Societies, Alpha Kappa Delta and Delta Phi Alpha. She is a guest blogger for the Daily Deac, a blog to help keep parents and families up to date with campus activities and news. She participates on both the Archery and Rock Climbing teams. Beeland is also a tutor for student-athletes, and if you have ever wondered who plays the bells in Wait Chapel every Friday, Beeland is one of the student carillonneurs.
When asked what she’ll miss most about campus, Beeland smiles and reminisces about afternoons spent in Campus Grounds and walks across the Quad on a glorious fall day. However, she describes the relationships she has within the Wake Forest community as the thing she’ll miss the most.
She talked about how people would often question her choice of majors, questioning their relevance.
“People would ask me, ‘Well ,what are you going to do with that?’” she said. “Ultimately this is what I love, and it got me where I am today.”
Beeland is gearing up to start her dream job with the Walt Disney Company in Orlando, Fla. Starting in June, Beeland will be a fully-fledged Cast Member. It’s been a dream of hers to work for them since her childhood.
“I’ve been wanting to do it since middle school really,” Beeland said. “I’ve always known I’ve wanted to work for them someday.”
After coming across some open positions on their website, she decided to give it a chance and apply.
“I decided to just apply, and see what happens. I didn’t think anything would come of it. Just go after your dream kind of thing,” she said.
Even her professors are jealous.
Professor Alyssa Howards said, “I can offer that I have come to love her resilience, her perpetually sunny attitude and her intellectual eagerness. But I’m also a bit envious of her, because she will be working at my dream job at Disney World.”
Her job will rely on her degree in sociology, specifically with looking at how guests interact with attractions and how to better manage that.
Her ultimate goal would be to go into the social research side of things with the company.
