College Admissions Essay: Humanism In Medicine

Volunteering at a community health center in my hometown, Santiago de la Frontera in El Salvador changed my perspective on choices. Growing up, I thought that people chose to not brush their teeth. At the age of seven, I immigrated to the USA and didn't have a chance to understand that concept in El Salvador. I went back last summer and assisted an orthodontist. This opened my eyes to realize that some families have to choose between a tooth paste and food. In life, we are not given the same advantages and therefor, we can not make the same choices.

The patience, compassion and encouragement of one person improved my family’s last years with its patriarch in countless ways. It was this improvement that inspired me to pursue a career as an

I began volunteering at the Hope Line Resource Center to assist those in the community. This way I could assist with helping people become healthier to avoid facing the same situation my mother was in. Furthermore, I volunteer in health fairs to spread awareness of the ways people can put their body in a healthier state with Urban Health Plan. I wanted to do this to increase the community’s knowledge of how they can take control of their health. I eventually became an intern in the clinic with Urban Health Plan to have a chance to get involved in the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) department and to collaborate with pediatricians to further understand the healthcare field. What happened to my mother motivated me to get involved, which eventually taught me that we all have the ability to take care of

University of California — San Francisco School of Medicine, located in San Francisco, was founded in 1864 as Toland Medical College, and in 1873, it joined the University of California. In order to apply for UCSF School of Medicine, a student needs to complete the required courses including one year of general chemistry with lab, minimum of a semester of organic chemistry, one year of physics with lab, and one year of general biology with lab or the study of vertebrate zoology. The student would be a better applicant if he or she attended a four-year university and obtained a baccalaureate degree. However, the minimum requirement is the completion of three years of college credit and it should be done by June of the year of entry. Also, Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) have to be taken by September of the year of entry.

“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.

My brain is filled with thoughts that race at a million miles an hour. I think about math equations and science experiments. I am constantly learning something and studying anatomy. My head is filled with memories, good and bad, that shape who I am. My heart is filled with passion about human anatomy and surgery. My heart doesn’t make a lot of my decisions as I try to be as level headed as possible however my heart still races when I solve a math problem or get to observe a surgery. I try my hardest in everything I do. I throw myself 100% into my work because I pride myself in getting good grades and pushing myself to be a better person every single day. I have rough days and good days but I still have to get myself out of bed every

Throughout High School, I led multiple philanthropic projects. As president of the Ignite Organization, I involved students to raise funds for, and volunteer at a pregnancy center. I assembled a team of volunteers, and initiated fundraisers. This effort transpired over a year and continues to affect my community. I also developed a supply-drive to assist Hurricane Sandy victims through benefit events. Furthermore, I volunteered at summer camps as well as at my Parish as a counselor.

Last July my family and I had volunteered at the Forest wood park in Ferguson Missouri. Through the nonprofit organization Convoy of Hope we had filled many bags of groceries to help feed the people of Ferguson. Through this experience I have learned a lot of things about myself such as my aspirations and goals. One day I desire to help many people that are in need. I hope to work for a nonprofit organization one day.

Two years ago I began volunteering at a summer CCD program called Radiant Joy. I didn’t expect much going into it, and I had only volunteered on a whim. My expectations going in were low and I wasn’t expecting the experience to be stellar. Looking back on it today, volunteering there was the best thing I’ve done the past four years. My time spent there has shaped me into who I am today and changed how I think about myself, others, and the world.

During the week in Chicago, I grew closer to God, learned how to be a better leader, and learned to put others before myself, which is what helped me become a better person. Serving others that had situations worse than I could imagine was life changing. The idea I could make such a tremendous change in someone’s life while doing activities I enjoyed, opened my eyes to the potentials of serving. After the week ended and I returned home, I wanted to do more for the people around me who were less fortunate. Going into freshman year, I made the decision to volunteer at Urban Vision. I help kids who have newly immigrated to Akron and the United States find items at a holiday shop for their families and themselves. Many of these kids went directly to the necessity aisle, (i.e. toilet paper, laundry detergent, and soaps) to get these items for their families, even though there were plenty of toys for the kids themselves. These kids helped me realize I should be grateful for everything in life, from shelter over my head to the clothes on my

By participating in the Juvenile Diabetes Walk and making sandwiches for the homeless, I learned about the importance of selflessness. Because there is no cure for diabetes yet, raising awareness and money for a cure is imperative. Knowing that I put those afflicted with a disease before myself and try to positively affect their lives in any way I can is truly a lovely feeling. I would get the same feeling when I would participate in the March of Dimes Walk, a walk for an organization dedicated to improving the lives of babies born prematurely. Preparing sandwiches for the homeless shifted my perspective.

That meaningful time when I put my own needs behind me and worked toward the greater good was for my school Club Friends of Fisher House. This club works with the local fisher house in Tampa, Florida, as a club, we use our time to volunteer and raise money and collect items for the Fisher House. The Fisher House is a place for the loved ones of veterans to stay for free while the veterans are receiving treatment in the VA hospital. This club is the only such high school club in the united states thus the road that is being pioneered is a new one for many. Our club allows for the use of student time to be used to gain money for the comfort items that keep the Fisher house feeling like home to the many families that stay there annually. Joining this club has allowed for me to see how the house works and meet some of the families that are helped by the Fisher House.

The following week, we spent most of our time in the poorest parts of the city. There we went door-to-door sharing the love of God and had Vacation Bible Schools for the kids. This is when I realized how blessed I truly was. For the first time, I got to see the privations and penury environment that the citizens of Third World countries had to endure. The unpaved streets were covered in trash. Many houses, made of tin sheets, had collapsed on themselves. The people had to share wells, where they drew their parasitic water. Men, women, and children sat on the sides of the roads begging for money, because they were sick, hungry, and needed money for food and proper medication. The site of these atrocious states of living broke my heart, and showed me how blessed I really was for not having to face these problems.

On one sunny day, I was helping my mom doing chores when she pulled me over to talk to me about something important. I was confused why my mom would want to me about something important, but I listened to what she said and followed her. What she told me was what her life was like back in Vietnam. She did not have much of an education. Instead, she stayed home with her mom to sell Vietnamese yogurt every day for a living. Since I was born in America, I never thought of life was like for others in developing countries like Vietnam. Hearing from my mom's experience, it stuck with me. I learned the importance of being grateful for what I have since they are a lot of people who do not have what we have in America and it made me want to help those who are in need. I was also inspired to do whatever I

Encarta Dictionary says that Humanism is a system of thought that centers on human beings and their values, capacities and worth. Encarta also goes on the say that, in philosophy, humanism is an attitude that emphasizes the dignity and worth of an individual. A basic premise of humanism is that people are rational beings who possess within themselves the capacity for truth and goodness. I see myself as a being a humanist through everyday life. I always try to see the good in a person when he/she makes me angry or sad, and say I to myself that maybe that person has had a bad day and living life is difficult at the moment. Socrates was even an early humanist of sorts. He can be quoted as saying, "to know the good is to do the