Yasmeen Mustafa, ’24, grew up in Durham, North Carolina alongside her four siblings. Children of Palestinian parents who found each other in Kuwait after fleeing from war in the 1970s and 80s. The family later settled in North Carolina. 

“As the daughter of an immigrant Palestinian mother who worked tirelessly, often missing milestones just to keep food on the table, I grew up in the shadow of survival. Her sacrifices inspired me,” Mustafa said. 

Witnessing her mom’s work ethic, Mustafa’s first career path started during high school. During her senior year, she was placed in a culinary course rather than her chosen chorus class. She had more interest in chorus, so Mustafa tried to transfer courses to no avail. Ironically, the inability to switch courses would prove incredibly beneficial to her career and personal growth. 

“I ended up joining a culinary team and competed nationally, which opened the door to my life in food,” said Mustafa. 

It wasn’t long after she discovered her passion and talent for cooking that Mustafa began working as a hostess at an upscale Japanese restaurant. After begging the manager to allow her to work in the kitchen, he eventually did. The experience working as a chef solidified her dream of opening her own restaurant.  

Michelin-starred chef Brandon Sharp, who ran the restaurant Crossroads Chapel Hill in the Carolina Inn, recognized Mustafa’s potential. From her initial position in the kithcen, Mustafa worked her way up to chef de partie. Once Sharp got to know Mustafa and her work ethic, he asked her to help open his first independent venture, Hawthorne & Wood. 

Before her twentieth birthday, Mustafa had already carved out a promising culinary career. Yet she began to realize that the culinary arts wasn’t where her bigger career aspirations lay. The precision and composure she mastered in professional kitchens would serve her well as she pivoted her career path into health care.  

“I scoured the state for Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) programs,” said Mustafa. “When I finally found an opening, they said, ‘We start today’. I grabbed my chance — one month later, I was CNA certified, and I started working.” 

With her CNA licensure in hand, Mustafa began working in the emergency department at a hospital. Working so closely with nurses, she grew to greatly admire the work they did, especially having started during the Covid-19 pandemic in July 2020.  

During her early days working in health care, Mustafa began taking some prerequisite classes online classes at Wake Tech Community College. Once she was ready, she applied to the University of Northern Colorado (UNC) to pursue a degree in Nursing. Her acceptance marked a milestone, becoming the first in her family to attend university.

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While at UNC, Mustafa got involved in as many student groups as she could, participating in the McNair Scholars Research Program, the Student Nurse Association, Mortar Board and working as a supplemental instructor for biochemistry — on top of working the equivalent of a full-time job at Banner Health's North Colorado Medical Center. 

“UNC became the backdrop for a story I didn’t know I was capable of writing, one that speaks to the strength found in vulnerability and the limitless potential that arises when we refuse to let our past dictate our future,” said Mustafa. 

It has been a long and winding road for Mustafa, but this December she will officially earn her degree, crossing the commencement stage with hundreds of other UNC Bear grads. After graduation, Mustafa will begin working as a registered nurse in the Medical Intensive Care Unit at UCHealth Medical Center of the Rockies. This hospital is a Level I trauma facility, meaning they can take the most critical patients, allowing Mustafa to get incredible, hands-on experience caring for those most in need.  

Mustafa hopes that as she works, she will build her skills in the field and gain clarity on what she wants to specialize in. Planning on enrolling in graduate school to become a certified registered nurse anesthetist or an intensive care unit nurse practitioner, Mustafa can’t say for certain where her career will ultimately take her, but it will surely be focused on serving the health outcomes of her community.