After graduating from Notre Dame on May 18, 2025, the Class of 2025 will go their separate ways, becoming forces for good in the world. To celebrate, we checked in with six seniors representing each of Notre Dame’s six colleges to share their future plans.

Gabriel Biondo

Major(s): Neuroscience and behavior, Italian studies
Hometown: Troy, MI
Residence Hall: Former resident of Knott Hall

What are your plans after graduation?

I will be attending NYU Grossman School of Medicine in Manhattan. I was accepted into an accelerated program where, over the course of the next seven years, I will complete my medical degree in three years and do my residency in neurology for the following four. As part of my acceptance at NYU, my tuition is also free.

What will you miss the most about Notre Dame?

I will miss drinking espresso and conversing alongside faculty and students in the Italian Center every day.

How did Notre Dame help you prepare for your post-grad journey?

Over the past four years, ND has challenged me academically and supported my personal goals for college. Entering college, I was determined to bridge my passion for the refugee crisis in Italy with my desire to become a physician.

Collaborating with Notre Dame Rome, I was able to connect with several Italian refugee organizations, including Donk Humanitarian Medicine in Trieste, with which I volunteered for two summers and developed the research for my thesis. Through the Center for the Study of Languages and Cultures, the Glynn Family Honors Program, and the Rovarino Family Grant, I was able to receive funding to teach Italian to refugees, volunteer in a free clinic for migrants, and conduct research on the population.

The personally meaningful opportunities in both service and medicine that Notre Dame provided me have made me feel incredibly prepared to perform well in medical school, residency, and beyond.

What is your advice to incoming students?

Do not feel pressured to take part in every club or activity that you see. Take time to adjust to college life and discover what you enjoy. Pursue a few activities that align with your interests and invest more time into them.

Katherine Huang

Major(s): Accountancy (Business Honors Program), Economics
Minor(s): Data science
Hometown: Rochester, NY
Residence Hall: Ryan Hall

What are your plans after graduation?

I will be working in accounting/corporate finance for Glenair, an aerospace manufacturing company in Los Angeles, CA!

What will you miss the most about Notre Dame?

I’m going to miss the community of people who push me to be better every day! It has been an amazing privilege to live and learn alongside peers with such unique talents, who are so dedicated to their faith, and have a strong sense of purpose.

From our insightful class discussions to beautiful walks across campus and late-night laughs in the dorms, ND has been a constant learning journey that I get to enjoy alongside the best friends and professors.

How did Notre Dame help you prepare for your post-grad journey?

ND has provided me with the skills to be successful in a post-grad career, with a lifelong network of support and the inspiration to orient my future endeavors towards making a meaningful impact.

Learning alongside such intelligent classmates and from knowledgeable professors has taught me technical skills and ways of thinking that prepare me for the working world. The friendships made on campus and with alumni are connections I’ll lean on and grow forever.

Finally, ND empowered me to dream big and aspire to more than I ever thought was possible. The opportunities provided by the University have shown me that we can channel our passions to meaningfully do good in our future careers and everyday life; that is something I strive towards, now and after graduation.

What is your advice to incoming students?

Even though college can be chaotic and stressful, it is so important to make time for reflecting on how ND is shaping you and the impact you have on others here at ND. We go through many challenges and triumphs during four years of undergrad; learning from everything along the way will help you maximize your time at ND and prepare for whatever’s next.

Challenge yourself to discover what you’re truly passionate about, and allow your perspective of the world to be molded by the incredible education we receive here. Don’t be afraid to stray from the path that everyone else seems to follow, and try to leave the pockets of campus you’re part of better than you found them!

Bryan Fok

Major: History
Minor: Italian Studies
Hometown: Summit, NJ
Residence Hall: Former resident of Knott Hall

What are your plans after graduation?

I will be obtaining an M.S. in environmental and international affairs from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. As someone passionate about environmental policy, I thought that it would be a good idea to supplement my major in global affairs with a more technical background in environmental policy before starting my career.

What will you miss the most about Notre Dame?

I will miss the Notre Dame community the most. Everyone here has been so helpful and supportive of my goals. I will also miss the football games in the fall and hope to come back soon to watch one of the games!

How did Notre Dame help you prepare for your post-grad journey?

I feel like the academic rigor and research opportunities at Notre Dame have prepared me for grad school well. At a recent admitted students day, a representative from one of the schools that I was considering explained the difference between undergraduate and graduate school: undergrad classes are more lecture-based while graduate classes are more seminar-based, where you tear apart each other’s ideas. I realized that at Notre Dame, I had already been doing what grad students usually do through my seminar classes. I've had multiple classes with less than 10 students, giving us an opportunity to express our ideas.

In addition, there are so many research opportunities at Notre Dame. Every student should be able to find work in an area that interests them, and there is minimal competition for research spots from my experience. I was able to conduct archival research in Italy, examining Black American soldiers in Italy after WWII, and I also researched the intersection between the environment and conflict through the Kellogg International Scholars Program.

What is your advice to incoming students?

Take advantage of all the opportunities that Notre Dame has to offer. There are so many funded opportunities on campus that nobody knows about and participating in them will be so rewarding. For example, I took advantage of a fully funded weeklong trip to the Netherlands and Belgium to meet with diplomats, a fully funded summer service opportunity in Milan, Italy, and a fully funded D.C. career trek.

Kaitlyn Leshak

Major: Chemical engineering (concentration in biomolecular engineering)
Minor: Engineering corporate practice
Hometown: Lansdale, PA
Residence Hall: Former Vice Presidence of McGlinn Hall

What are your plans after graduation?

I will be working in pharmaceutical manufacturing back home in Philadelphia!

What will you miss the most about Notre Dame?

The passion that people bring to this place and learning about how each individual is looking to be a force for good in the world in their own way.

I think that the unique set of skills and interests that each person has at ND and the fact that we are randomly placed into these residential hall communities that we cultivate for three to four years is what makes it such a unique place!

How did Notre Dame help you prepare for your post-grad journey?

Notre Dame showed me a way to take my passion for serving others and combine it with the skills I’ve been given to work in the healthcare field.

I think that Notre Dame gives engineering students a unique perspective by having us take core classes in theology and philosophy that remind us that there is a cause or mission we are fighting for through our work—even in an industry that is so analytical and provides us with black-and-white answers.

Notre Dame helps to find that gray area that brings in ethics and striving to live a life that makes a change in the world, which I think will be really helpful in guiding me through my career.

What is your advice to incoming students?

Immerse yourself in the spirit of Notre Dame. Go to every performance you hear about, sign up for every service opportunity you have time for, and take part in every football tradition. Take a random class that you are interested in, even if it doesn’t count toward your requirements.

You will never again be in a place where you can try anything and fail with relatively little consequence and the more you try and learn, the easier it will be to find what it is that makes you happy! This is such a special place full of people you can learn from, so make the most of it!

Irene Chinchilla

Major: Architecture
Minor: Resiliency and Sustainability of Engineering Systems (Glynn Family Honors Program)
Hometown: Tegucigalpa, Honduras

What are your plans after graduation?

I’ll be working for an Architecture and Planning firm in Washington, D.C.

How did Notre Dame help you prepare for your post-grad journey?

ND not only helped me actually get my job through their extensive network and career fair but also helped in preparing me with the mindset and skillset needed to be a designer for good.

What are you most looking forward to about post-grad life?

The ability to put into practice everything I’ve learned these past five years while getting to explore such a beautiful city like Washington, D.C.

Peyton Marrone

Major: Political science
Minor: Computing and digital technologoes, philosophy
Hometown: Arvada, CO
Residence Hall: Former resident of Lyons Hall

What are your plans after graduation?

I am pursuing a Master of Science in Cybersecurity at the Johns Hopkins University Whiting School of Engineering. I applied to this program without all of the prerequisites, so I will complete those this summer and fall before fully enrolling. I want to pursue a career that combines my interests in national security, cybersecurity, and digital forensics.

What will you miss the most about Notre Dame?

I will miss the people at Notre Dame. Within the Notre Dame family, I’ve been fortunate to find multiple circles of friends—each a special part of my journey. I admire my friends for their bravery, discipline, and compassion. I will miss living so close to them.

When I transferred to Notre Dame at the start of my sophomore year, I hit the "random roommate lottery," and my circles of friends expanded. In the summer of 2023, I studied abroad in Jerusalem, where our cohort arrived as strangers and left six weeks later as close friends. Almost two years have passed and we still find ways to reminisce on our time in the Old City.

Through the Notre Dame International Security Center (NDISC) fellowship, I met lifelong friends who share similar academic and career interests as me. NDISC was one of the highlights of my Notre Dame experience and I’m grateful that these relationships will continue to grow when I eventually move to Washington, D.C.

How did Notre Dame help you prepare for your post-grad journey?

First, what stands out most about Notre Dame is that professors and peers genuinely want to help you succeed. A moment that embodied this support was when I visited the Keough-Naughton Institute for Irish Studies on campus seeking international contacts for my senior thesis.

Through Keough-Naughton’s partnership with Queen’s University Belfast, I was matched with an advisor in my field and spent a month living alone and conducting fully-funded research in Belfast. Their unexpected generosity blew me away.

Second, Notre Dame has equipped me for post-grad life through its professional development opportunities. The NDISC fellows program has been instrumental in this: offering internship support, research funding, specialized coursework, experiential learning trips, and mentorship.

Through NDISC, I’ve had the opportunity to travel to Japan, the Indo-Pacific Command in Hawaii, and participate in a D-Day Staff Ride to the UK and France with Navy ROTC and midshipmen from the U.S. Naval Academy. NDISC provided me with once-in-a-lifetime domestic and international experiences.

Third, Notre Dame’s emphasis on a well-rounded education encouraged me to explore new interests. In August 2024, I began interning at the St. Joseph County Cyber Crimes Unit as a Digital Forensic Investigator. A dozen of my peers and I are sworn-in law enforcement officers—an opportunity you likely won’t find elsewhere. Notre Dame’s commitment to the South Bend community is special and it is rewarding to give back.

What is your advice to incoming students?

If I could talk to my freshman self, I would tell myself to say “yes” more. Say yes to meeting a new friend for coffee, joining a club or extracurricular, and stepping outside your comfort zone by taking challenging classes, studying abroad, or learning a new language.Y You never know what a single interaction or experience could do for your education, experience, or future career.

While saying “yes” more is good, it’s equally important to know when to say “no.” If you’re feeling overwhelmed, prioritize activities that help you recharge.

If you are unsure about your major, remember that pivoting is okay. As a freshman, all of the opportunities at Notre Dame can feel daunting and paralyzing, especially while adjusting to living away from home and finding a routine. Connecting with friends and building a support system is essential.

The most important thing to remember is that you get out of Notre Dame what you put into it. Only YOU control your education and experience. Also, try to put your phone away when you walk to class. People dream of calling Notre Dame “home,” and you're living that dream every day—cherish it!

Congratulations to the Class of 2025!

Read more of their stories here.

More Senior Stories:

• Maggie Enrietto '25: Bridging Business, Law, and Literature
• Economics Major Abbey Donahue '25 on her Research of Poverty Solutions in Notre Dame’s Lab for Economic Opportunities
• Levi Cherek '25 Pursues Chemistry Research at Notre Dame