College Admissions Essay: How Poverty Changed My Life

“Never be a doctor if you’re going to have any loans to pay back.” “Don’t do this to yourself.” “You’ll never have a family if you go to medical school.” “The two worst jobs in America belong to physicians and teachers.” Without even soliciting their advice, physicians noticed my “Pre-medical Volunteer” nametag, and immediately approached me with words of discouragement. I participated in a volunteer summer internship at St. Mary Hospital in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, following my sophomore year of college, in an effort to gain more experience in the medical field and solidify my lifelong desire to become a physician. Throughout the eight weeks, I spent mandatory hours in both the Emergency Room and the Operating Room, made contacts with physicians in specific areas of interest, and spent time shadowing them. In addition, each of us in the program attended weekly business meetings in which administrators of the hospital and local physicians spoke to us about their particular positions and experiences. Unlike the many years of high school I spent volunteering at a hospital and a nursing home, where I was limited to carrying around food trays and refilling cups of water, I was able to gain hands-on and more intimate experience. Initially uneasy at the site of the blood gushing into plastic sheets draped around the orthopedic surgeon’s patient in the OR, it took only a few days to grow accustomed to the images on the television screen during a laparoscopic procedure and the

“The staff here at Frances Slocum is very grateful every day for the selfless investment of time that the mentors give,” she said. “Many of these students have no other positive adult in their lives. For children in poverty, a significant relationship outside poverty may be the link to a better life.”

The Stritch school of medicine is an institution that allows the intersection of research, compassionate care to all members of the community and academic excellence while keeping the patient first. For this reason, I am certain that being a part of this program will challenge me to widen my horizons and increase my exposure to different perspectives. Furthermore, the emphasis on serving others, especially those from the underserved population aligns with my future aspirations as a physician. The ASPIRE program has invaluable resources for me to broaden my depth of knowledge about health care disparities, team dynamics in medicine, and the significance of healthcare professionals that are willing to implement change.The combination of academic

In a community of low-income families and few successful people it can be challenging to look forward to a bright future. With students being set up for mediocre careers and few expectations it may not be easy to imagine yourself as a doctor, lawyer, or entrepreneur. My community may not have the necessary funding to provide out of state field trips or new uniforms for school teams, but if I am optimistic enough to see the glass half full the possibilities are endless. With free education at my finger tips, I have the necessary means to do well in school, participate in clubs, and give back to my community. On the other hand, as the oldest of three girls I have learned countless lessons from my family due to comprehending and living with distinguishing

Columbia offers numerous communities, such as Camp Kesum, a supportive program for children whose parents have cancer, as well as Columbia Youth Adventurers, a program allowing children who come from families very similar to mine to foster self-esteem and learn to love education. I wish to join as many of these programs as I can manage, and to make a positive impact on children’s lives that will last a generation.

Last Saturday, November 18th, I attended the Region IX Student National Medical Conference at the City College of New York. This was my first medical conference so I did not know what to expect going in. Upon arrival, I was amazed at the sight of doctors, medical students, research presenters, pre-med students, and even high school students gathered together to gain and share knowledge and make connections. The conference consisted of a host of enriching events, of which I attended six: “Unique Journeys to Medicine”, “Demystifying Medical School Admission”, “How to Become An Excellent Applicant”, “Standardized Patient Encounter”, “New MCAT Test-takers Panel”, and “Embodying Black Female Physician Excellence: Panel Discussion”. While I am

Medicine is more than simply helping others, it’s about becoming a leader in the community as well as guiding society towards a more enlightened path of enriched education and health. As aspiring physicians, we have a great deal of leverage in our communities and can influence people towards a greater good, but in order to become influential, we must become knowledgeable ourselves and learn to become prominent leaders. This is why I’m applying for this position to become a DO liaison for the sports medicine club at Midwestern University. I truly believe that is a perfect stepping stone towards becoming a better leader and a prominent member of the sports medicine community.

When life gives you the opportunity to be successful, you take it. So, out of every let down or every time you ever ask yourself, “was it worth it?”…, you say “definitely”, persevere, and continue seeking greatness. When I got that opportunity, I hit the ground running. I was hungry to become successful, hungry to graduate from college, hungry to even hear my dad say, “I’m proud of you”. Maybe I could have taken a different route but hey, growing up in a small town like Mullins SC with a high unemployment rate, don’t get you too far. I couldn’t find myself falling into that statistic. Working temp jobs, wondering how I would pay for college…, it was rough, definitely some humble beginnings. This by no means is a message for sympathy.

As a child, living in a developing country brought me closer to some of the stark realities of life. The existence of a village right across a posh locality as mine was a constant reminder of the presence of rampant inequality in the economy. Having seen child labor firsthand, I was made aware of the desperation, miserliness and suffering of the poor. A deep sense of pity would run through me whenever I would come across someone belonging to a less privileged section of the society. However, wanting to do more in the benefit of the impoverished, then, I could only sympathize.

I come from a fairly average family. Fortunately, I reside in a suburb of Round Rock in a fairly wealthy neighborhood. Both of my parents have college degress with my father having graduated from A&M Corpus Christi and mother from UT Austin. They are employed and have well-paying jobs and are able to provide a great deal of things to me. From this, I have had not to sustain any job aside of just doing my one job: performing well academically. While my life may not seem extraordinary by any stretch of the imagination, it is the one person in my life who has helped me have such privileges, my mother.

My past experiences in Asian Pacific Health Corps serving those in the San Gabriel Valley and Kids Come First Community Health Center serving those in the Inland Empire have inspired me to become a physician who is dedicated in making a difference amongst medically underserved populations. These experiences have exposed me to the unique health issues those in Southern California are facing and introduced me to the diverse population I want to ultimately serve. I am excited at the potential to further develop this passion at a medical school committed to service, as I have seen medical students from WesternU-COMP volunteering their time to perform osteopathic manipulative treatments at APHC’s health fairs. I look forward to volunteering as a student leader in organizations at WesternU-COMP, such as Pomona Homeless Outreach Program, and encouraging my classmates to get involved with community service projects to extend their learning beyond the classroom. WesternU-COMP’s innovative curriculum, early clinical experiences, supportive environment, and state-of-the-art facilities will prepare me to be a well-rounded leader in the ever-evolving field of medicine. With a reputation of graduating students matching into their residencies of choice, I can be assured that WesternU-COMP will help me to reach my career

I have had the good fortune to have read an excerpt from Savage Inequalities within the last few years, though I cannot quite place when or why. Being a rather emotional elephant, it draws me in quickly, picturing the innocent faces in the filth of East St. Louis, imagining what they have to face every day when they go to school. A place that should be a haven for them, nearly sanctuary in the poverty, sludge and smog they live in; rather it is another reminder of how little their community has to offer them. Growing up in a fairly rural setting with clean air and decent schools filled with plenty of teachers, I feel rather spoiled. I find it hard to connect in my head how we as a country could turn away from our future, no matter where they live or how bad their circumstances. Safir Ahmed, the journalist Kozol rode through East St. Louis with, spoke of how people refer to getting off the highway in East St. Louis as a nightmare, but “the nightmare to me is that they never leave the highway so they never know what life is like for all the children here. They ought to get off that highway.

A child born into poverty in Houston has a 70% chance of remaining in poverty throughout their life. The power of education is not always available to the poor; there are communities in this city where a high school education has been attained by only 34% of the people. Despite these tremendous roadblocks I have seen determined people make the decision to overcome the odds. Daniel enlisted in the military immediately upon graduation from high school. Kimberly sought help to find scholarships to enroll in a physical therapist school. These exercised their will to escape a life of poverty. Not all made decisions that would break this cycle. Milton dropped out of school to take a minimum wage job. Eduardo is a father at 16 years of age. My heart breaks over the decisions these children have made.

My ultimate career goal is to become a Pathologist. In order to achieve my career goals, I independently seek opportunities that will increase my healthcare knowledge. Last summer, I attended the National Youth Leadership Forum on Medicine through the Envision program. In addition, I have shadowed in the Pelham Medical Physical Rehabilitation department, observed a cat vasectomy, and interviewed

I teach math at a Title 1 middle school. 100% of my students receive free lunch and many students are given bags of food to take home over the weekend. My students are living in poverty. Their parents are working two jobs just to barely make it, this means many of them have spent their evenings/weekends at home alone or taking care of their younger siblings. When my students arrive at school in the morning they arrive hungry and thirsty. Education in my school calls for more than just attention to academics; I must pay attention to their physical, emotional, behavioral, and social needs as well. We are second parents. I am called to care for their whole being, to make sure they are able to succeed in academics, by making sure they are not burdened