Passion for sports meets drive for healthier world through nutrition consulting
Karly Miller, MS ’25
Nutritional Sciences
Karly Miller, MS ’25, has known since elementary school that she wanted to help people live happier, healthier lives through informed nutrition.
Miller developed an interest in nutritional sciences after her babysitter’s mother passed away from colorectal cancer, a type of cancer highly associated with diet.
“I watched my babysitter turn her whole life around using diet, and she intuitively did it with a very balanced approach, keeping the foods that she loved, but also incorporating new foods that were more nutritious into her diet,” she said. “I was so young, and it stuck with me. That’s how I’m here now.”
Miller also developed an interest in nutrition as a volleyball player and later a coach, understanding how nutrition impacts athletic performance.
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They were so responsive, so kind. I knew Michigan Public Health was the school I needed to go to. Everyone is great and on top of their game.”
After studying Food Science and Human Nutrition with a minor in Kinesiology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Miller’s drive for public health and passion for sports led her to the University of Michigan School of Public Health, where she found an outpouring of support from program directors.
“They were so responsive, so kind,” said Miller, who is graduating with a Master of Science from the Department of Nutritional Sciences with a concentration in Dietetics. “I knew Michigan Public Health was the school I needed to go to. Everyone is great and on top of their game.”
Miller highlighted Susan Aaronson, a lecturer in Nutritional Sciences and the director of the Dietetics Program, as a strong source of support throughout her time at Michigan.
“She has just been the rock of my degree here,” Miller said. “Every time I've had a challenge, I've reached out to her, and she's offered me opportunities to achieve the goals that I've wanted. She was very supportive when I was seeking out graduate student instructor (GSI) appointments and finding different ways to support myself here, whether it was academically, financially or personally."
To support herself while she pursued her degree, Miller worked as a GSI and received several scholarships.
“I would apply to every scholarship I found, and every GSI appointment I could,” she said. “Eventually, I landed the things that I wanted to, but it took a lot of effort—and it was well worth it.”
At Michigan Public Health, Miller was supported by the Walter Block Scholarship and the Segal Family Internship Fund. She also was named an M. Wyman Scholar by the Center for the Education of Women+ for the 2024-2025 school year, and received support from several other scholarships and awards outside of the university.
During the first year of her master’s program, Miller’s internship with Michigan Athletics put her on the frontlines of battling nutritional misinformation transmitted on social media.
“A lot of athletes have questions regarding the different things that they're seeing online,” she said. “As an intern, I was able to work with dietitians to help provide different food options and watch their DEXA scans to monitor body composition.”
Continuing her work with students as a second-year student, Miller is a GSI for Metabolism of Vitamins and Minerals, taught by Young Ah Seo, associate professor of Nutritional Sciences. Miller also works as a grader for three other public health courses.
“It has been a very fun and rewarding experience to work with the first-year master’s students who are in Dr. Seo’s class,” Miller said. “They are extremely intelligent people who ask great questions, and they keep me on my toes at all times.”
Through both years at Michigan, Miller has continued to coach volleyball, now for a group of 14-year-olds at the Huron Valley Volleyball Club.
“This is probably the most crucial year of their volleyball experience,” Miller said. “So the way I deliver the message is how they're probably going to think about volleyball for the rest of their lives.”
Audience-driven delivery has also been a valuable lesson in her nutrition training.
“I want to bring that to my work in nutrition, being able to deliver a concise and clear message,” Miller said.
Miller further developed her communication skills as the president of the Nutritional Sciences Student Association, where she acts as a liaison between the first and second-year students and faculty members to make class schedules more accessible, plan events and build community within the Nutritional Sciences program.
“Being a part of something that’s growing has been very rewarding,” she said. “I’ve seen how professors have adapted their approaches and everybody around them has been so supportive. We want to make sure that everybody feels appreciated for all the hard work they’ve done for the past two years and that everybody knows they have a voice.”
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I’m very thankful for the opportunities that Michigan Public Health has offered me. I’ve been able to mentor and be mentored by so many. I’m thankful to have worked with such a diverse group of people and to have grown so much professionally. I feel comfortable and ready to enter the real work world, and I really do owe that to the University of Michigan.”
Miller explored her interest in oncology in her thesis. She wrote about the associations between diet and chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CPIN), a common side effect of cancer treatment where chemotherapy drugs damage the peripheral nerves.
She learned that in a small sample that a greater intake of foods high in Omega 3 fatty acids found in eggs, fish, nuts and seeds may be protective against nerve degeneration, and is excited for another graduate student to continue the investigation.
Miller will start her clinical rotations in May and take the RD examination to become a registered dietitian in the fall. She aims to determine whether she would like to pursue oncology in a clinical setting or a role as a campus dietitian. She loves the campus setting and working with college-age students, whether she’s teaching cooking classes, stocking athletic “fueling stations,” or organizing food sampling events.
“I’m very thankful for the opportunities that Michigan Public Health has offered me,” she said. “I’ve been able to mentor and be mentored by so many. I’m thankful to have worked with such a diverse group of people and to have grown so much professionally. I feel comfortable and ready to enter the real work world, and I really do owe that to the University of Michigan.”
As Miller reflected on her time at Michigan Public Health, she emphasized the broader significance of her chosen field.
“Nutrition is at the center of our lives,” she said. “It’s what brings the community together. People come together to eat almost every time there's a gathering.”
Beyond its social importance, Miller recognizes nutrition’s critical role in public health.
“Nutrition is so correlated with our health and the way our bodies function,” she said. “The way we perceive and communicate about food significantly impacts the well-being of the individuals in our community.”
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