UMass Boston student Morgan Berg could very well be the next Miss Massachusetts. First, however, she must be crowned at the upcoming Miss Boston and Miss Cambridge pageant held Sunday, Feb. 10 at Boston’s Park Plaza Hotel.

“Honestly it’s not even about winning the title,” said Berg, who believes the competition is truly about meeting new people and volunteering in your community. “I’ve met one of my best friends through the organization,” she added.

Berg said she would love to run her own local pageant after she’s done competing. In her opinion, a huge part of the Miss America organization is giving back.

“Every time you run in a pageant there is an opportunity for scholarships, which is a huge motivating factor for a lot of the girls that compete,” said Berg. Fundraising efforts support a large amount of the scholarships offered. 

After competing for Miss Boston last year, Berg went on to win the title for Miss Collegiate Area. This win qualified her to compete for Miss Massachusetts, where she finished in the top nine.

Berg became interested in pageants after winning a local scholarship pageant in her hometown, Lakeville, MN. “After that experience I knew I wanted to be a part of the Miss America organization,” she said. 

Berg’s primary focus is to become a nurse. She said, “I knew I wanted to be a nurse before high school.”

Given her interest in a career in nursing and Boston’s great reputation in the medical field, it was a no-brainer for Berg to apply to UMass Boston.

“Once I got accepted, I knew I had to come,” said Berg, who moved to Boston in August of 2010.

Having been in the nursing program for over two years now, Berg recently began a clinical at Boston Children’s Hospital. According to Berg, working at Children’s Hospital is her dream.

Besides competing in pageants and studying to be a nurse, fitness plays a large role in Berg’s daily life. All three of her interests tie in with each other. “Fitness and health is a big part of my life being a nursing major,” said Berg.

Berg runs on a fitness platform for her pageants. One of the ways she promotes her platform is with a blog titled “FIT for Success.” She posts healthy recipes, different workouts and anything to help motivate people to be healthy.

Berg plans to stay in Boston, where she’ll finish school and possibly attend graduate school in order to become a nurse practitioner. In between all of this, she may also become the next Miss Massachusetts.