Editor’s Note: Nguyen uses she/they pronouns, both are used in this article.
Uyen-Nhu Kristine “Kwinunk” Nguyen (she/they), who serves as the senior marketing coordinator, is a first generation Vietnamese American and second generation University of Oklahoma student with a major in biochemistry and a minor in anthropology.
“A fun fact about me is that I write and record my own music,” Nguyen said. “I work with one of the old competitive directors of OU Esports to produce it.
As a massive fan of Avatar: The Last Airbender and Percy Jackson, her descent into video game culture was inevitable; however it did not start with “fun” games.
“My introduction to video games was playing educational games on DVD on my dad’s work laptop,” Nguyen said.”Then he got us a Wii, which we got to play most of the games that I remember.”
From playing games like Webkinz and Cooking Mama, Nguyen was able to explore the world of video games after her father gifted them a Nintendo DS. One of Nguyen’s favorite games to play was MySims Kingdom.
“You had this magic wand that you built stuff for people,” Nguyen said. “It was like a puzzle.”
OU Esports
Nguyen took over as the marketing director for OU Esports and Co-Curricular Entertainment for the 2022 and 2023 academic year in April 2022. They are in charge of social media posts on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
The previous director, Zach Satz, convinced Nguyen to apply for the role–one that she has transformed throughout the year. It isn’t uncommon for Nguyen to be lurking throughout the OU Esports Discord channels
“It’s been very fun,I have really enjoyed the people that I’ve met through Esports,” Nguyen said. “I’d say that they’re some of my favorite people at the university now.”
Nguyen serves as a friendly face for those joining the community and has been able to interact frequently with others.
“I have such a good support system through the people that I’ve met through Esports,” Nguyen said. “While a lot of them are like my study buddies, a lot of them are just people that I meant to have fun with.”
Not only has Nguyen’s role at OU Esports allowed her to connect with others outside her major, but it has also taught them valuable lessons and growth as a person.
“It reminds you that school isn’t always about learning. It is about taking care of yourself (and) learning who you are as a person,” Nguyen said. “I really had fun playing games and meeting people through Esports.”
Life Post-Graduation
As a biochemistry major, Nguyen plans on using their degree to go into the medical field. They are taking a gap year after graduating in the spring to start the application process for medical schools.
“In that gap year I have an internship in a pharmaceutical lab in St. Louis over the summer, so I will be there for the summer,” Nguyen said. “I’ll be coming back to Oklahoma to work and just have time to breathe.”
Nguyen recalled always being interested in her pediatrician’s career as a small child, but her focus in medicine has shifted.
“I’m currently leaning towards orthopedic surgery, which is laughable when you are 5 foot and tiny, but I have had a really good mentor in that aspect of orthopedic surgery,” Nguyen said. “Initially, I wanted to go into pediatrics, but I really have enjoyed my experiences in orthopedic surgery.”
While Nguyen can’t pinpoint the exact reason she decided on the medical field, her passion for helping others is clear to anyone who has met her.
”“I really like helping people. I feel like if I have the capability to help someone, then there is no reason why I should not do my best to help someone. I believe that with the privilege that I have had growing up in the United States in an upper-middle-class income family, then why should I not try to help other people?”
