Student Spotlight: Emmett Rogman

Emmett Rogman

Curtis Baryla

Emmett Rogman is a senior from Poplar Grove, Illinois. He is currently a triple major studying applied mathematics, biochemistry and statistics. He does so while boasting a substantial 3.99 GPA, receiving only one A- in over 120 credit hours.

He found his passion for the STEM field at a very young age and used science and mathematics to his advantage to excel throughout his schooling career. After coming to NIU, Rogman catapulted his opportunities due to a high level of involvement across campus, the Honors Program and student organizations. He is currently the president of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS). While there, he received a chapterwide Star Status ranking as well as second in Most Improved Chapter Award. Rogman is also a frequent visitor of NIU’s Math Club and provides insight to younger students within the mathematics department. During his junior year, Rogman rushed both his social fraternity, Sigma Nu, as well as Alpha Chi Sigma, a chemistry fraternity. Rogman was elected scholarship chair for Sigma Nu during the 2021 school year and reinvented the position to streamline the process of collecting, analyzing and improving brothers’ academics. Over one semester, he raised the entire fraternity GPA by a whopping 0.497 across the board; those he was able to work with directly were particularly successful at raising their GPAs.

Involvement within the university is another reason why Rogman is an exemplary Honors student. Rogman did two years of professor-led research in computational chemistry, simulating protein environments to predict structure. This is a position usually only given to graduate level students. Afterward, he applied to be a teacher’s assistant (TA) to aid in the department of chemistry and biochemistry. He was hired and currently teaches an introductory level chemistry class to over 20 students of all ages and majors. To describe his experience while being a TA, he states that it is rewarding to be a mentor to all those interested in similar fields and looking to expand their knowledge base. One of his more distinguished accomplishments is being a McKearn fellow. Only five freshmen Honors students are selected to join the fellowship program each year. This achievement was primarily due to his impressive academic achievement, and especially his participation in important cutting-edge research alongside the chair of the Department of Chemistry.

Rogman’s favorite memory is receiving Sigma Nu’s White Robe accolade in his rush class. To him, it meant embodying the ideals of love, honor and truth while furthering the personal growth of each brother’s mind, heart and character. He has a strong recollection of first experiences within the fraternity and enjoyed meeting a large collection of high-achieving students like himself.

After graduation, Rogman hopes to enroll in graduate school and pursue his goal of working in the pharmaceutical sector. He would like to end up in a warm part of the country. While he doesn’t know exactly what position he would like to hold, he does know he wants to be an innovator involved in research, development and advancement of drug design.

Emmett Rogman, senior in applied mathmatics, biochemistry and statistics.