V: Hi Katie, so glad to have you featured on Females of Filadelphia. I see you are so focused and motivated and I want other girls out there to see what they are capable of accomplishing themselves. Why don’t you give everyone a little run down on yourself before we get into the questions?
KATIE: Hi, I’m Katie Bishop. I was born and raised in Pittsburgh- my whole family is from Pittsburgh and they’ve all lived in Pittsburgh ever since they came off the boat. I am the first person in my family to actually go away to college; everyone else either commuted to Pitt or other local colleges. But when it was time for me to go to college, I decided to pick econ [as a major] and I decided to apply only to schools in big cities on the East Coast. I wanted a place that had more diversity and bustle than Pittsburgh because Pittsburgh is a cute ‘small town’ city. So that’s how I’m here. In high school, I ran cross country and trained for a marathon and half marathons. I was surrounded by really great people in my high school. I really love my high school friends and my family back home but I have been here [in Philly] ever since!
V: I should really go visit Pittsburgh myself! But first I want to know what led you to economics?
KATIE: I have always been super passionate about human rights, specifically inequality. And when it came time to pick a major, I was considering women and gender studies or racial studies because I have always wanted to study what inequality is, why it happens, where it happens and how we can fix it. But my dad wanted me to pick a more concrete major, something preferably in business school. And so I started reading about more majors and realized that the roots of many of our problems with inequality come from economics. When you are not economically equal, it is so hard to be equal in education, it is so hard to be equal in housing and clothing and food and health. So, I decided to become an econ major so that I could better understand the American and international economic systems and what makes some people thrive in certain systems and what makes some people get left behind.
V: Okay, wow. I know you told me before this interview that you were also thinking about going into law school. So why do you want to go into law?
KATIE: My dad actually always wanted me to go to law school. And I think that got stuck in my head plus you know I’m the oldest child so I’m always a parent pleaser. But also, they say your reading SAT scores show how well you can do on the LSAT, and I did well on my reading scores so I started thinking about it more seriously after that. It’s when I realized it might not just be something my dad wanted me to do, but something I could be good at. And as I started studying econ more, I realized that economists know about inequality and they understand it and do the best that they can. They write papers, they make podcasts, they make documentaries, they go out and speak to people about inequality. Economists are doing awesome. I think the problem is when it comes to putting laws into legislation. In engineering degrees, law degrees, medical degrees and even business degrees, women are underrepresented and there is a lot of inequality. And I believe the best way to solve inequality is not all about getting a specific degree, at least not for me, but getting a degree that allows me to dive into the laws. And that’s when I get to say “this, this and this is what is holding us back. Here is where we need to change. Or let’s add this law or remove this law.” There needs to be a much more hands on approach to fixing inequality. And that is why I decided I wanted to go to law school and I would like to focus on human rights. Specially basic human rights such as education, housing, food, water and other things that people should obviously have a right to.
V: Can you explain the path to law school for those readers that are younger and may be interested in it?
KATIE: So you can be any major and still apply to law school. You just have to have a college degree and you have to take the LSATs. So right now, I am currently studying for the LSATs and I just study a little bit every day. It’s tough but I think it’ll be worth it. And your LSAT scores stay relevant for five year so if you don’t feel like going to law school right after college, you’re still good.
V: Wow I didn’t know that! Speaking of your LSATs being effective for five years, you mentioned that you wanted to take a different route yourself after your undergrad, into the Peace Corps. Which I find absolutely remarkable! Explain why the Peace Corps?
KATIE: Actually, when I was in third grade I read a book called Three Cups of Tea and it’s about the education system in the Middle East, and how a lot of women are barred from that education. This was in third grade, so it was the first time I realized that other kids, just like me, didn’t get to go to school. And I’ve always been a huge nerd and I have always loved the learning part of school. So it was insane to me that if I would have been born in the Middle East, I wouldn’t go to school. Ever since then I’ve wanted to go to the Middle East and Africa and help girls who were born there and probably have higher intelligence than me, get the opportunities I had. That’s one reason I decided to learn more about the Peace Corps. But also, one of my best friend’s mom did the Peace Corps and their house was filled with beautiful knick knacks from Bolivia, where she was stationed. And she has such great and inspiring stories from her time and that’s what I want to do. I want to build my life in such a way that another country has given me a new perspective and appreciation on things- things as simple as running water or as complex as art.
V: Wow I love that because I think giving back is so amazing! I think it is important for readers out there to know that after college there are so many options. Most people think it’s all about, oh I’m out of college let me get my dream job now. But I think it is truly inspiring to see you do what others aren’t planning to do. Speaking of traveling, I know you went to Costa Rica this summer so tell me about your summer and why you went to Costa Rica?
KATIE: I knew I wanted to go to Latin America and I wanted to learn Spanish at a basic level because I think Spanish is a great language and I wanted to have that skill. And I wanted to work with farming, specifically sustainable farming since there are a lot of unsustainable farming practices happening in the U.S. which are ruining our land, our water supply and creating health issues for people. So I wanted to go and see how it was done in other countries. So I went through a program called WWOOF. It allows you to look at farm listings in other countries and then apply to the farms. If they have room and they have need, they’ll ask you to come down. You buy your plane ticket and once you are there you are housed and fed for free, as long as you do the work. It was an awesome opportunity. I went to Arenal, Costa Rica, right at the base of an active volcano.
V: Oh my goodness!
KATIE: It was super cool! I lived twenty minutes into the rainforest, in a tent with no electricity. And it was so gorgeous- the prettiest place I’ve ever been. I worked on the farm with people from nine different countries and there were four different languages spoken. We learned how to plant yuca, coffee, cacao, banana trees, and how to compost and harvest. We learned stuff that you know people do, but you don’t necessarily know how to do firsthand. And I absolutely loved it. It was such hard work somedays. There were days I went to bed at 7 o’clock and I was exhausted. But it was amazing. I felt super connected with nature. It was so great to see the farm-to-table process and how it brings people in a community together. So I spent a month there. I was supposed to spend two and a half months there, but I got a little adventurous. So I decided to pick up a waitressing and cooking job in another part of Costa Rica. Bahía Drake is beautiful and it takes an hour to get there by boat (that’s the only way to get there) so all the food has to shipped by boat. I worked at a hostel there. I still lived in a tent but this one had electricity!
V: Wow if I was your parent I would freak out! How do you just go and live in a tent in a foreign country?? This sounds like straight out of a move!
KATIE: Yeah, but it was the most gorgeous place ever. And you can’t build anything unless it’s five miles back from the beach so it’s just dense jungle and the beaches are very natural. You can be on the beach for hours and not see a single person. And I made a really great friend there from Argentina and we teamed up, and did a trip through Panama and back up through the Caribbean side of Costa Rica. But Panama was beautiful; I got to climb Volcan Baru and see the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea at the same time. It was definitely the best experience of my life yet. I really think travel, especially after a hard year, brings you back to who you really are and I was just feeling super adventurous.
V: Wow I am so blown away. You are so adventurous! I wish I could be like that. Do you think you’ll go back?
KATIE: Yes, definitely, I want to go everywhere, but Central and South America are definitely at the top of my list. Hispanic culture has a special place in my heart and I want to see as much of it as possible.
V: You are just so admirable. I love it! Okay so now for the question I need to ask basically everyone because I want people to feel inspired after reading this: What advice would you tell people reading this blog (regardless of their gender/background/etc.)?
KATIE: My advice consists of three things. The first would be to read as much as possible. I honestly think that I never would have had the courage to go to Costa Rica without reading other great women’s stories and being inspired by them. I think reading things out of your comfort zone, that you think might be above your reading level or that you wouldn’t think to read at first, are the things that usually impact me the most. The second thing I would say is to have a deep sense of appreciation. Something I notice a lot in college is that a lot of the problems we all have stem from not appreciating what we do have. A lot of times we don’t treat people the way we should because we don’t appreciate what they have done for us. And we don’t appreciate the education we are getting because we are too busy complaining about homework. And college is tough but sometimes we get stuck in a cycle of just complaining about it. And that has very negative impacts on our health and our relationships with people. You cannot truly love others or yourself unless you start appreciating yourself and others and simple things like nature and food and health. And my last thing is to surround yourself with great people. I had such a rarity of growing up with amazing women- my best friends from home that were so girl positive in every way. Even to this day if I text them something where I sound a bit off, I get three phone calls asking if I’m okay. Having those people, goes so far, but also being that person. So surround yourself with good friends but also be a good friend. Because you can’t really have good friends if you’re not a good friend.
V: LOVE IT! I feel like everything you are saying I can connect with, so I hope the readers feel the same way. Okay quickly because time is of the essence: What is your current favorite Netflix show/movie and why?
KATIE: Okay so this isn’t even on Netflix but I love Sex and the City so much! It’s actually perfect for this because it’s a show about women who support women- through bad boyfriends, through bad jobs, through bad family situations, through bouts of depression. Women who are there for other women. And they are going after their career and falling in love and not falling in love; not in cliche rom-com ways but in relatable ways. It pictures women as strong career women and shows them falling in love which a lot of people view as being weak. But the show did a great job of showing that falling in love is not weak. It’s not weak for a woman to fall in love but it’s not necessary for a woman to fall in love- it’s human and it happens.
V: Well I haven’t watched that yet but I will put it on my list now! Thanks for letting me interview you, it has been such an honor! Thanks for reading Females of Filadelphia and stay tuned for my next interview. (Make sure to follow @femalesoffiladelphia on Instagram to see when all the new exciting things happen!)
Xoxo, V