News
Grand Valley paves bright future for surgical technician
April 07, 2025
Courtney Myers grew up in Mesick and went to high school in Traverse City. After undergoing surgery on her hip at 16, Myers said she was inspired to go into surgery herself.
“I originally wanted to be a nurse. When I looked into health care programs at Northwestern Michigan College (NMC), the Surgical Technology program sparked my interest,” Myers said.
Myers enrolled in the year-long program at NMC, which consists of two semesters of class and two semesters of clinical assignments at the Munson Surgery Center or other affiliates. “The surgical tech program at NMC is very intense, but it’s like a stepping stone. It prepared me to go to Grand Valley,” Myers said.
Myers graduated from NMC in December 2022 with an associate degree. She wanted to continue her education while staying close to home, so she applied to Grand Valley’s Allied Health Sciences program.
“Grand Valley has a campus in Traverse City, and they accepted all of my credits from NMC,” Myers said. “Getting my undergraduate degree here was an easy choice.”
Because of her central location in Mesick, Myers had the opportunity to study in both Traverse City and Grand Rapids. She also filled in any gaps with online classes. This flexibility allowed her to complete her degree quickly on a timeline that worked for her schedule.
She said: “A lot of my classmates worked full-time or had kids. So, having the option for online classes was great for all of us.”
While a student at Grand Valley, Myers said she appreciated the quality of instruction and communication from faculty members, who were quick to answer any questions and often reminded students of approaching deadlines.
Myers earned a bachelor’s degree in allied health sciences in December. She currently has two jobs: one at NMC, where she works in the Surgical Tech lab, teaching students how to use a virtual reality program; and one at Copper Ridge Surgery Center. Myers plans on going back to school to help her achieve her career goals. “I’ve been working in surgery for a little while now, but I’m hoping to follow the path to become an engineer for things like medical implants and devices,” Myers said. Moving forward, Myers knows that her future is at Grand Valley. She plans to apply to Grand Valley’s Biomedical Engineering program, which accepts students from all STEM backgrounds. “I’m super excited for the future,” Myers said. “I can stay on the same path for medicine while also steering off into a different field.”
By Annie Pettit