College Admissions Essay: A Passion For Internal Medicine

At three in the morning, the phone rang. A trembling voice relayed the news that my friend had fallen into a coma due to an inoperable brain aneurysm. A few days later, her family decided to stop life support after confirmation that she was completely brain-dead. The fact that nothing could be done for her in this day and age, despite all our technological advancements, was a great shock to me. In addition, the fact that she was younger than me made me realize how short and precious each life truly is. Her death inspired me to pursue medicine so that one day, others in similarly hopeless situations, would have a chance to survive. My dream is that one day, I will contribute to bringing medicine one step closer to curing someone with a

Unlike other medical students, I never had one particular defining moment that changed my life but from a very young age I had set myself to becoming a doctor, but not just any doctor, a surgeon. Therefore, instead of just one determining event, many events helped propel my dream, with medical school being the beginning of much more I hope to achieve.

“What are you even doing here? I have never seen such flawed technique in all my years as a choreographer.” The words echoed throughout the medical college auditorium. Impelled by the admonishment in front of my peers, I persevered in my endeavor to improve upon my dancing prowess and by the final year of medical school was leading the college dance team. The above mentioned undertaking further spawned an interest for the discipline of Latin Ballroom which lead to participation at the national level. The unwavering focus and persistence even in the face of unfavorable odds is more broadly reflective of my approach towards learning, both academic and extracurricular. This has been instrumental in achieving stellar academic outcomes including being ranked nationally in the top 0.0004 percent in the premedical test and the top 0.6 percent in the common aptitude test for management training.

After beginning medical school, I quickly realized that for every one question we could answer there were about a dozen that could not be answered. I delved even deeper into my studies, determined to learn all I could to help my patients to the best of my ability. Suddenly, two of my close family members died, and with this my determination to find answers increased again. Something else awoke within me during the morning of these loved ones, as well. I truly understood what families were going through while watching their loved ones suffering, and my empathy, compassion, and bedside manner became even stronger.

I believe that the medical profession is an important and valuable career field and it is very important to the society. I have been fascinated by the workings of life and the complexity of the human body ever since I was young and this has strengthen my philanthropic approach to life, in that I could be trained to help people get better. This, I consider rewarding. I have hoped to develop excellent skills, such as research, communication, teamwork and problem solving. I believe this program will give me the opportunity to further improve these skills and have great chances at professionalism.

Growing up, people would always ask "what do you want to be when you grow up?" as a young child my answer was always “a princess”. Eventually, I realized this dream of mine was unrealistic and began to lean towards a profession in the medical field. The world of medicine enthralled me, even as a child. Flash-forward to senior year of high school where the most common question asked became “where are you thinking of going to college?” As time went on, I had a solid idea of what school I wanted to attend in the fall. When I was accepted to all of my top choices, the decision became a challenge. Strangely enough, Xavier University of Louisiana was the last school I applied to. In fact, it was nowhere on my radar until I did my research.

I remember being four years old in my preschool class and a little boy coming in one day with a bandage over his ear, because his ear drum had ruptured. I just remember having this overwhelming feeling to make sure that he was okay. So much so that during nap time, I made sure that my nap pad was right next to his, just so that I could make sure that he wasn’t hurting or in pain. Since that instance, I have always been a person that has been compelled to help people. It’s a part of my internal genetic code. The older I became, the more I realized that going into the field of medicine was easily my best platform to be in a position to help people. When I think about being a doctor, I get filled with an overpowering feeling of excitement. I get to be the person that someone trusts with their care, a person that someone trusts to treat their ailments with respect, a person that can use their mind

Being involved in clubs throughout high school has taught me how to work with people coming from different backgrounds. One of my main goals in life is to create an organization for poor communities in order to teach them how to eat right with their own resources and motivate people to make the world better for everybody. I feel passionate every time that I help people, knowing that they feel healthy and happy is very important for me.

September 11, 2001, a day in American history known throughout the world, immensely influenced my new life as I immigrated into the United States 15 days later. With no previous experience with the American culture or language, I was oblivious of the circumstances I was placed in as I enrolled into a public elementary school. As days progressed, I noticed the distinction in quality of treatment I was given by my peers and teachers, however unable to articulate my speculations. For this, my learning suffered, my grades reflected it, and my motivation deteriorated.

My interest in the medical field dates back to my childhood, where I was intrigued by the combination of knowledge and passion. I spent many days in the hospital with my mother, often wandering the hallways while the nurses visited her. My mother was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, along with the discovery of polyps on her colon, which we would later find had a high chance of becoming cancerous. There was a vast number of medical personnel I would encounter over the next several years. I paid close attention to each one—their appearance, the questions they asked, and the equipment they used.

I quote a man who has been accepted by the general populace to be accurate in his observations of society: “Every civilization is, among other things, an arrangement for domesticating the passions and setting them to do useful work”, Aldous Huxley is known to have said. I know not the purpose of life, but I know of passion, and mine lies in medicine.

At this point in my life, I was not completely behind the idea of me attending medical school so I began exploring the idea. I ensured my schedule could accommodate the few missing courses before I graduated and starting looking for ways to further my interest in healthcare such as volunteering. Throughout college, I volunteered at an emergency department and intensive care unit to gain an understanding on what it means to be a medical professional. These events did increase my interest in becoming a physician, but due to the limited nature of volunteering did not solidify my decision. Going into my senior year of college, the idea of medical school still did not feel natural to me so I began focusing solely on the rigorous internship I was about to embark on. It was during this internship at Sanford that the idea of applying to medical school became mine. This was accomplished by immersing myself in the hospital setting and discovering my intense interest in correlating patient test results with their conditions. After graduating with a degree in Medical Laboratory Science, I began working at Sanford where I quickly became the Hematology Education Coordinator for the laboratory. I took this

Sometimes I wonder what I would do if I decided to be something other than a doctor. My imagination has been plagued with thoughts of my future since I’ve been born. I was a small unsuspecting little girl. Who could have conjured the thought that I’d be pursuing medicine?

Where do you think you will be doing in 10 years? In 10 years I at least want to be in medical school. I know it is a lot of school, but I will go through it to help people. If one day I could help someone through cancer or something it would make me feel amazing. I don't care about money or anything I care about the person's life. Some people don't end up with a job they love. I am willing to go through anything to be a surgeon. I am sure a lot of people are willing to go through anything to have the job they want. Being a surgeon is a lot of work and responsibility. The only way I won't become a surgeon is if I don't try and I will try until it happens.

True-born caring person, with an open heart, and a deep sensation of satisfaction after helping people. I was less than 10 years old when my mother used to call me “ the mother of the family” because I was already caring for my siblings, making myself available to those in need.