Dr. Johanna Sehloff graduated from Bethany Lutheran College in 2013 with a Bachelor of Arts in Biology. Today, she serves as a pediatrician at Seattle Children’s Hospital, where she works alongside dedicated colleagues to “make and keep kids healthy.”
Her passion for medicine is shaped by her love for children and a genuine enthusiasm for lifelong learning. “Working with kids is my favorite,” Johanna shares. “I think they best mirror my own personality, and so finding a career that allows for me to be a goof a majority of the time while also being a life-long learner myself has been a perfect fit.” She approaches her calling with both humility and conviction: “I want to be a confident and experienced pediatrician. It is a privilege that parents will trust me with the care and well-being of their children, and that is something I do not ever want to take lightly.”
Johanna credits Bethany Lutheran College with laying a strong foundation for medical school and beyond. “While Bethany is much smaller than most other colleges, I found that I was just as prepared for medical school as other students who had gone to much larger universities,” she says. “In addition to feeling prepared academically, I felt like the broad range of activities I was able to participate in at Bethany far surpassed what other students were able to do at their larger schools. I was able to act in plays, take piano lessons, work on the hockey broadcast team, play intramural sports, and study abroad for a semester.”
She also deeply values the relationships formed on campus and encourages current students to take full advantage of them. “Chapel is the best,” she says. “Also, the professors genuinely care about you and want the best for you—use them as resources, mentors, and guides when you need help both in class and for life in general.”
Her advice to students reflects her own joyful and grounded outlook: “Enjoy being a student. The ‘real world’ and your futures will come all too soon, so make the most of your time in college: hang out with your friends, try out for a play, pick up a new instrument, eat a lot of pizza, and try not to rush into anything. God has His plan and His own timing for everything.”
Johanna’s journey—from biology classes on Bethany’s close-knit campus to practicing pediatric medicine in one of the nation’s leading children’s hospitals—demonstrates how a faith-informed, liberal arts education can equip graduates to serve others with skill, compassion, and character.