Evan Trump entered college with a guaranteed spot in graduate school—giving him the freedom to explore: his interests, his major, and even the Appalachian Trail.
He started at Pitt as a biology major, unsure whether graduate school was the right path—but the academic safety net gave him confidence to shift directions and dive into data science. After graduation, he took a gap year to hike the Appalachian Trail—a five-month, 2,200-mile journey from Georgia to Maine.
“Back in high school, graduate school felt like something so far off—something for people who are much older than me,” he says. “Having the Guaranteed Admission Program in my back pocket gave me peace of mind. I knew it was going to work out fine. I could just focus on what I was doing.”
The Guaranteed Admission Program, or GAP, allows qualified Pitt undergraduates to secure a future seat in select graduate or professional programs before even starting college. Students apply as high school seniors and maintain eligibility by meeting GPA and coursework requirements as undergraduates.
Evan eventually pivoted from biology to environmental engineering, graduating from Pitt’s Swanson School of Engineering in late 2022. While his time in the lab deepened his appreciation for research, it was the data—more than the pipetting—that captured his interest.
“I realized that I really liked the stage of analysis—when you have the numbers in front of you and you can figure out what they’re saying,” he explains. “That’s what led me to biostatistics [at the School of Public Health].”
He is currently completing an internship with Thermo Fisher Scientific, supporting cancer and vaccine development by analyzing complex datasets in the lab. He also recently worked with the school’s Vice Dean Jeanine Buchanich, PhD, associate professor of biostatistics and health data science, on a large-scale data project comparing Allegheny County mortality rates to similarly sized counties across the U.S.
“It was very different from my internship,” he says. “That work was about public health at the population level—age-standardizing, comparing years of life lost. It gave me a broader view of how data can tell a story that shapes public policy.”
His sense of perspective also deepened during his months on the Appalachian Trail.
What began as a solo adventure turned into something much more. Evan connected with fellow hikers and embraced the rhythm of the trail, where solitude and community intersect.
The trail, often called “the green tunnel,” surprised him with its ever-changing terrain and ecology—from glittering mica in North Carolina soil to the rolling peaks of New England. “If you’re paying attention, it’s constantly changing,” he says. “You just have to slow down enough to notice.”
That attentiveness carries over into his professional work and his personal interests, including volunteering at Pittsburgh’s National Aviary and birding.
For Evan, the journey has never been linear—but it’s always been grounded.
“One of the things that really amazes me about the world is the interconnectedness of everything,” he says. “I feel like my experiences have made me into a well-rounded individual, and I’m open to whatever comes next.”
-Clare Collins