COM Outlook Spring 2020

26 | DR. KIRAN C. PATEL COLLEGE OF OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE volunteering at CAPHIL and made it my life goal to work for the DPAA as an archaeologist.” Sometimes, however, life takes you on an unexpected detour. United Kingdom Diversion During the summer she turned 21, Reinsch celebrated her mile- stone birthday by taking a sightsee- ing trip to Ireland. Within days of arriving, she made friends with some Irish college students and invited them to visit her in the United States that same summer. During the next year, she began a long-distance relation- ship with one of the students she met overseas—a talented musician who was attending music school in Ireland. “Because he wasn’t as far along in college as I was, we felt the best way to bridge the distance between us was for me to pursue my postgraduate education in the United Kingdom (UK),” she said. “The easiest way for an American to move to England is on a student visa, so I applied for a few master’s degree programs in the United Kingdom and figured I would see if any of them had an interest in me.” Unfortunately, the geographic distance proved too difficult to overcome, and the two eventually ended their relationship. Reinsch earned her bachelor’s degree and was in the process of mulling her next move when she received an unexpected acceptance letter from Bournemouth University. “I was shocked,” she admitted. At the time, Reinsch was enjoying life and living with her godparents in their Jacksonville Beach condominium. “The beach was my backyard, my friends were all in town for the summer, and I worked a cushy job for my godfather that allowed me to make my own hours and work by the pool,” she said. Remaining true to her adven- turous spirit, Reinsch accepted Bournemouth University’s offer to study forensic archaeology in the UK. “The idea of moving to the United Kingdom on a whim was intoxicating and felt like a continu- ation of my summertime high,” she said. “I applied for a student visa and loans, packed my bags, and hopped on a plane. Although my decision-making process wasn’t necessarily the soundest, the decision itself was my most inspired yet.” During her time in the UK, Reinsch lived in a small coastal town called Poole near the university and pursued her postgraduate studies, earning her Master of Science in Forensic Archaeology in November 2014. “So much of who I am today is a direct result of my time abroad,” she said. “I met my best friend there, learned a great deal about archaeology, and experienced some of the most magical mo- ments of my 20s.” Archaeological Adventures Following her return to the United States, Reinsch found it difficult to land a job. As she soon discovered, there wasn’t much of a demand to hire a forensic archaeol- ogist who didn’t possess a Ph.D. degree, so she worked for her god- father’s company again while she widened her job search. Finally, Reinsch’s fortitude paid off. “I was researching archaeology jobs in Florida for what felt like the RISK EQUALS REWARD The Victorian house where Reinsch lived as a child was uprooted and split in half so it could travel to its new home on a plot of land along the Cedar River in Jacksonville, Florida. + “The idea of moving to the United Kingdom on a whim was intoxicating and felt like a continuation of my summertime high. I applied for a student visa and loans, packed my bags, and hopped on a plane.” —KELSEY REINSCH