Santanna Rocha
My name is Santanna Rocha, and I graduated from Providence College in 2020. I doubled majored in philosophy and sociology where I was able to analyze the profound connections between philosophical doctrines and the formation of societal patterns/trends. I’m ultimately very grateful for PC’s liberal arts style education because it fostered my interest in both of these disciplines concurrently, subsequently influencing my decision to pursue graduate level studies.
Currently, I am a second year dual degree candidate at the University of Connecticut School of Law pursing a Juris Doctor and Masters of Social Work. I will graduate with both degrees in August of 2023. My professors at PC, particularly in the philosophy department, always encouraged genuine critical thought of our values, our ideologies, and the ways in which we organize society. As a law student now, I find myself analytically picking apart discriminatory or prejudicial laws and policies that have stood strong in the United States for so long. This interest in socio-legal studies has pushed me in the direction toward a concentration in human rights law or immigration law in my future career as an attorney.
- Favorite professors: Anthony Jensen (one of my mentors and I was his summer research assistant) & Edmund Dain.
- Favorite classes: Late Modern Philosophy, Philosophy of the Mind, and Contemporary Existentialism.
- Advice for certain philosophy majors: Take as many philosophy electives as you can!! Some of the electives outside of the major course requirements are fascinating to say the least. Taking a wide range of classes will really help you to narrow your interests for your career or grad school or whatever you chose to pursue.
- Clubs/sports: I played women’s club lacrosse while I was at PC.
- Awards/certifications: Phi Sigma Tau International Philosophy Honors Society; recipient of 2020 Joseph P. Cassidy award for excellence in research in moral philosophy.
- Volunteer work: I currently do pro bono volunteer work with the Greater Hartford Legal Aid organization in CT. We’re working on a “pardon” project helping convicted individuals ask the government for pardons of their crimes so they have better access to social welfare programs, jobs, and other resources.
