Personal Statement

People who know me typically find out pretty quickly that next to my passion for medicine, I am actually one of the world’s hugest computer geeks. In fact, when I first entered college, I toyed with the idea of studying computer science before I realized that the study of the human body was so much more exciting because it allows me to combine my fervor for computers and merge it with my interest in medicine.

Once I began medical school, I started to see the human body like the hardware of a computer system. For example, the nervous system - the midbrain is the CPU and the cortex acts as RAM. The spinal cord acts as the motherboard, creating a system for impulses to travel back and forth. The eyes and ears act like the mouse and keyboard, sensory inputs for the body. Most importantly, like the different components of a computer system, each organ of the body has an individual purpose and works with all of the other organs in concert to make the system function effectively.

Nevertheless, a computer cannot function without appropriate software to direct the hardware. My experience in software programming has ignited my desire to solve complex problems. A programmer is responsible for determining and developing a plan of action in which to accomplish a task, known as an algorithm. Quite often during the programming process, he will encounter “bugs” – areas in the algorithm that cause the program to fall short of its objective. The debugging process becomes just as essential and meticulous as the algorithm development process. As a programmer, coming up with the algorithm and debugging to see my finished product in action was a satisfying feeling that I experience through my encounters in medicine. The problem that a patient giv...

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...e to spend the summer in Taipei, not only teaching English to high school students but to also glean my Chinese. Now, with ability to speak not only Mandarin, but also Cantonese and Spanish, I have become more comfortable in listening to patients express their stories and helping them comprehend their illnesses with a much higher understanding. In addition, my expertise with computers has allowed me to not only quickly familiarize myself with any electronic medical record system, but also use available technology as a tool to learn, teach, and most importantly treat all my patients.

In summary, I am a diligent and exceptional individual with a clear vision for a career in Internal Medicine specializing in Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism. Both my personal experiences and training have reinforced my dedication to the fascinating and exciting field of medicine.