Yukino Nakamura: How to Successfully Navigate Between Profession and Passions
By: Olivia Hines
Her Profile:
DEI Committee Member
Inclusive Classrooms Co-Lead
People Serving People Grant Writer
Karate Enthusiast
Yukino Nakamura is a senior student at the College of Science and Engineering (CSE). Currently, she’s on the pre-med track with a major in chemistry, and hopes to become a doctor. Over the last several years, Yukino has conducted research on senescence, a condition or process of deterioration of age, to better understand its implications in aging and age-related diseases.
Both on and off campus Yukino has worked several different positions that have helped hundreds of people. Most notably, she worked for Hennepin County to redesign a youth research page to be better accessible. She’s worked as a grant writer for a homeless shelter through People Serving People. As a co-lead for Inclusive Classrooms, Yukino was tasked to develop resources for inclusive classrooms so all students can reach their fullest academic potential. And, she’s on the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) committee within the chemistry department.
One of her most important contributions to the community has been karate. Yukino Nakmura began learning and developing her karate skills from a young age. In our interview, she said, “It’s something that I felt like there was a lot of growth from me, so I continued it.'' She's competed nationally and internationally. Once college started, she was unable to continue practicing and applying for competitions, so she redirected her efforts towards teaching karate to children. Using her knowledge and skills, Yukino has taught kids karate at summer camps for the past six years, and plans to continue teaching karate in the future. Read more about Yukino Nakamura’s involvement at the U of M below:
O - What motivates you?
Y - I practice delayed gratification. So, I am totally fine with working hard now, because I know that my future self will thank me later. But also, another thing is reflecting on why I do the things that I do. It’s easy to lose sight of what your goals are when you are bogged down with other commitments.
O - Who is your role model?
Y - There is a couple that come to mind, all of whom made huge impacts in my life, but I have to highlight my significant other. I’m empowered to continue doing the things they do, because they are always in my corner. I aspire to be like them every day.
O - What are your goals for the upcoming year?
Y - I haven’t thought too much about next year, but I can talk about my goals this year. I have two categories; the simple goals and the more complex goals. My simple goals are relearning Spanish, to read more, and put more effort on saving. My complex goals are evaluating my values and being open to different perspectives, being intentional about what I spend my time on and with who, and focusing on a growth mindset
I think I’ve had a fixed mindset for a long time. If I can't do something, I’ll attribute it to oh, it’s because I’m this, without thinking it’s something I can learn and grow from.
O - What are some qualities of a good leader?
Y - Taking action when the majority hasn’t, taking risks, and being first. I try to work on that with myself. Things are time-sensitive so it’s important to come forth and put yourself out there.
O - What are some qualities of a good member of the community?
Y - Be engaged, and be involved. Put yourself out there in the community to better understand the needs of the community, and find your role.
O - Any advice for first-year or incoming students?
Y - When you first come to university, you are still figuring out yourself. Don’t be afraid to take on different opportunities, even if you think intentionally it’s something you can’t see yourself doing. You’ll be surprised by how things actually are, and you’ll only know that by applying yourself and being open to new opportunities.
O - What is one thing about the community that you would like to change?
Y - Have more empathy. I think there are a lot of traumatic and tragic things that happen because of a lack of empathy. There are things that could be prevented if people thought about how their words and actions and how they affected people.
O - How do you stay motivated to keep fighting for the issues you care about?
Y - Being engaged in the work in multiple capacities. The more involved, the more aware and more salient injustices around me become. I become encouraged to find a role in fighting injustices and extending work beyond campus. I’m involving myself, the more I’m learning not only about the issues themselves but my own biases and ignorance. The more I want to work to address those things. At this point right, I realize the gravity of issues such as racism, disability injustice, mental health — the nuance impacts of intersectionality. There are unique issues with marginalized identities as we all are navigating the same system. You aren’t doing this because of self-satisfaction or altruism, but because it’s the right thing to do.
O - What are some challenges you have and how do you overcome them?
Y - Burnout. I’ve experienced this several times throughout my undergraduate career. I have to take breaks. For someone who is just go-go-go, it’s hard to fit that break in because you feel this is time you could be using for something else, or you feel guilty. I’ve tried to rewire my mind in thinking that breaks are normal and it’s not sustainable to keep going go-go-go.
I also deal with Imposter syndrome. I took a year off after my first year because I was going through a lot of stuff. Because of that I sometimes question myself. Do I deserve to be here? Do I belong here? Something that helps me, is talking to other people with different backgrounds and creating a community where we can all uplift each other, validate our experiences and validate our existence.