A former varsity soccer player for Bartlesville High School, Sophia Atkinson, is now a sophomore at Wichita State University majoring in biomedical engineering. The former Bruin played soccer and ran track and cross country. She was also a member of National Honor Society, National Technical Honor Society and was president of her local HOSA chapter. After graduating, Atkinson decided to attend college, but the pandemic forced everyone home thus creating an issue for Atkinson. She joined the National Guard for practical reasons and while serving her country she would receive the college tuition benefit from the National Guard.

“As much as I want to say that I joined out of a desire to serve my country, I did it for completely practical reasons. I was in my third semester of college when COVID-19 caused all my classes to move online. I was unhappy with the fact that I was paying more money for less instruction, so I decided to take a semester off and use this time to learn skills at BMT (Basic Military Training) and AIT (Advanced Individual Training) that I would otherwise not learn through college,” said Atkinson.

She currently serves as a 68W or combat medic.

“I’m using the educational benefits to finish up my last two years of my bachelor’s degree and hopefully towards a graduate program. Since I’m currently attending an out-of-state school, I plan to transfer to a university in Oklahoma so that I can use the In-State Tuition Waiver,” said Atkinson. “The National Guard is the right fit for me because it allows me to still live my life on my own terms. The time commitment is not as demanding as active duty, and I’m still receiving all the benefits of military service. I think it’s great that I can explore my interests in the military without having to sacrifice my education.”

Atkinson is serving with the HHC 1-279th INF unit and offers this advice to anyone looking for a way to pay for college.

“My advice to anyone thinking about joining the National Guard is to set up a meeting with a recruiter if you have any interest at all. My recruiter was extremely helpful and made the process less intimidating. There’s no commitment involved in meeting with a recruiter, so there’s no reason not to see if there are any opportunities for you,” said Atkinson.