New things I’ve been up to in starting this term of third year

Classes 

Like last time, I’m enjoying my three year-long courses in pharmacology, physiology and neuroscience. This term, I’m taking a course in Darwinian Medicine which involves a ton of reading and thinking about what pressures may have led to the natural selection of some traits.  My project partner and I chose to do our project on evolution and myopia, and I got to read a bunch of interesting research papers. I’m also learning Greek and Latin medical terminology which is SO helpful.

Vision Health Volunteers

Since the very beginning of the school year, our team has been hard at working organizing our (hopefully impactful) initiatives to promote a more accurate depiction of individuals with vision loss and some top secret initiatives to achieve other missions. Stay tuned!  Our first event is next Thursday at 5:30 pm and it will feature a guest speaker who is navigating pharmacy school with vision loss. I hope that we can dispel some misconceptions by showing that while vision loss can definitely make some activities very challenging, individuals with vision loss should not be looked down upon because they are just as capable of pursuing challenging studies and careers.

Integrated Sciences Peer Mentoring Program

Since November 2017, I have been a mentor to 3 students. I enjoyed meeting them in person. I created guidelines and timelines to assist mentees to achieve their goals. I answered their questions regarding course selection and extracurricular activities, and provided editing and guidance on their degree proposals. If I could not answer their questions, I connected mentees to other experts. I recommend becoming a peer mentor as a way to give back to students who were just where you were only a short while back.

Speaking at the Operation Med School conference

I was invited to be a guest speaker at a  conference that will have ~ 350 attendees aiming to inform and inspire high school students aspiring to become the next generation of healthcare providers. At first, I was felt really doubtful about myself with thoughts such as “I am not a medical student and so can’t answer questions about medical school. What can I even say?” But I’m glad I pulled out some courage and accepted their kind invitation. If you’re a high schooler, this looks like a pretty well-organized event and the Dean of Medicine and the Dean of Medical Admissions will be Keynote speakers. So, check out Operation Med School Vancouver on February 10, 2018.

Becoming Science Fair Judge   

On January 30, 2018, I’ll be judging Life Sciences-related projects by grade 8, 9, 10 students at the Point Grey Secondary Mini School Program Science Fair. I’m an alumna of Point Grey Mini School and grateful for the opportunity to apply what were we learning in class to projects and field trips.

These are some blog articles that I liked recently.

My blogger friend Cindy Wei is travelling all Asia. This is her most recent post about Cambodia.

Hoping for a better sense of self? Maybe applying to residency will help  is by a blogger that I really admire for her ability to achieve a great balance between the stress that is medical school and applying to residency and living a full life .  Ada is #goals.