Biochemistry Personal Statement

876 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Personal statement doctor

The first time I stepped foot in India, I was about eight years old, and it terrified me. I wanted to run straight back to America. There were stray dogs, cows, and all sorts of wildlife roaming the streets like they owned them, and the roads were hidden under piles of trash. I was shocked to see beggars at every corner, homeless children and adults asking for money. I saw the rudimentary conditions they were forced to live in. However, the worst thing I saw were broken arms or legs barely wrapped in cloth and untreated infected wounds. With every trip to India, I saw no significant improvement in living conditions or the accessibility of healthcare to the underserved population. On one hand, seeing the realities of life for the poor in India …show more content…

I have always been a hardworking student, and I am very assertive when it comes to understanding new material I am presented with. However, there came a point in Organic Chemistry II that I just wasn’t ready to master and that led me to perform below average. That led me to also not do well in Biochemistry, due to the lack of understanding of the essential knowledge from the previous class. Disappointed in my performance, I realized I needed to work on my foundational knowledge in the sciences before moving on to medical school and so I started researching graduate programs. The Anatomical and Translational Sciences Masters program at George Washington University will equip me with the skills and knowledge in order for me to be successful in my career as a physician. I am very interested in this program because of its many opportunities to volunteer and give back to its community, as well as the academic courses offered which will prepare me for the rigor and workload of medical school. Additionally, I hope gain some new and interesting experiences by participating research and obtaining more clinical exposure through shadowing and volunteering in the Washington D.C. …show more content…

One of the most impactful experiences I had in college was my trip to Madagascar. It is one thing to see the disparities in healthcare from afar, especially the accessibility of it, and another to actually experience what someone else goes through in their search for medical care. Our group of three students and our professor decided to trek an hour up a slippery, heavily inclined, and narrow path barefoot climbing the mountain. Not only was this experience absolutely terrifying, it was completely eye opening. There were many people that inhabited the top of the mountain and in speaking to some of them, I realized that the closest doctor was at least an hour away. In Madagascar, there was no such thing as urgent care. Through this experience, I gained an increased awareness and different perspective of the issues in the accessibility of healthcare to rural populations. This further justified my desire to not only go on medical missions, but also to set up clinics in rural parts of India. Furthermore, it helped me solidify my desire in becoming a

Show More
Related

  • Analysis Of David K. Shipler's At The Edge Of Poverty

    648 Words  | 2 Pages

    A couple of my teammates accompanied me and we drove to Lyari. We had to park our car outside as the roads in the city were too small for a car. As we entered the city we noticed that people lived in small homes. Homes with thatched roofs and walls made of manure and sticks. Generally, majority of the town was uneducated, without proper shelter, no electricity, no vehicles and no access to clean water. It was so moving to see how these people had so little in material things and yet they seemed to be at so much peace with their life burdens. There were young children everywhere either completely naked or just in their underwear but what stood out the most were the smiles on their faces while playing in the same dirty water used for washing clothes and showering themselves. They were completely incognizant to what was going on around them. Such an environment made us realize that all we care about in life is having fun, while those in other countries are just trying to stay alive. Me and my friends gave the little children some money and gave our jackets and shoes to those children. The young poor children considered our donation as a great act of kindness and would never forget this day. We never realize how simple things to us could mean the world to other children less fortunate. Poverty to us is when our parents are not able to buy us the latest shoes and clothes in

    Read More

  • Poverty Dbq

    1185 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Malnutrition, neonatal diseases, diarrhoea and pneumonia are the major causes of death. Poor rural states are particularly affected by a dearth of health resources.”(doc V) Those who live in rural areas are unable to receive proper health care because of the lack of health resources. This is a sign of discrimination because the rural states are particularly affected, compared to wealthy states are less affected by the illnesses which torment the poor, yet they are still the ones that receive the most help. The government is not building enough health resources and those that are built are not put in the poor rural areas. The poor are denied health care and hospitals simply because they are poor. And without hospitals to cure the sick and impoverished, they fall deeper into poverty. “Life in an Indian slum was never easy, but for Hiraman Ram, a migrant construction worker, it has recently become a lot harder. 5 months ago, the father-of-three was hospitalised with an intestinal infection, and had to cover the expensive treatment from his own pocket. He has since been unable to work, and the family has been pushed deeper into poverty. "We now survive on borrowed money and other people's goodwill",” Hiraman Ram’s sickness caused his family to go further into poverty. The family had to spend all of their money on treatment and all of their time on taking care of the father. They

    Read More

  • Compare Poverty Between India And India

    895 Words  | 2 Pages

    Fifty percent of Indian people do not have proper shelter. More than seventy percent do not have access to toilets or clean water. We can imagine the huge amount of problems lack of sanitation can bring. How can people focus on trying to make money when they do not even know where they will lay their head down to sleep at night. Another interesting thing I learned was that a lot of India follows the caste system. The caste system is a class structure and it is determined by birth. It essentially locks into whatever situation you are born into. If you are born to a poor family, you will remain poor and if you are born to a rich family you will be rich. You have no room to improve your life economically. How can we get rid of poverty and improve people’s lives, if so many of them still believe in the old traditions they we born into. It seems to turn into a cycle that will be hard to break. Another big reason for the poverty in India comes from the lack of literacy especially in women. Our earning power is largely tied to our level of education, if people do not have access to that they cannot better their lives. I not only learned in previous courses but also from online research that the more educated a woman is the less likely

    Read More

  • Visiting a Third World Country and My Experience There

    528 Words  | 2 Pages

    When I was little, I heard stories of Third World countries where people lived in complete poverty. I would hear of how they had dilapidated domiciles, contaminated water, deadly diseases, and shortages of food. I was always told how blessed I was to live in a country where I was free of these situations, but I always took this truth for granted. I would go along every day, not worrying about where I was going to sleep or what I was going to eat, when people all over the world were facing these situations as problems. It wasn't until I was sixteen that I realized how blessed I was, when I was given the opportunity to visit San Jose, Costa Rica.

    Read More

  • What Can We Do About World Poverty?

    521 Words  | 2 Pages

    Most people in poverty deal with many terrible things. 21,000 people daily die from hunger related causes. Many individuals fall ill from lack of clean drinking water and then when they are ill can’t go to work and they also can’t afford the medication needed to get better. 28% of children in developing countries have stunted growth or are underweight. 72 million children worldwide don’t go to school at all. Because of this nearly one billion people can’t read a book or even sign their name. In most areas a family of four needs...

    Read More

  • The Piece I was Missing: Community Service

    908 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...epersonalized. Although not every patient is easy to deal with and doctors are under colossal pressure, by inspiring students with a possible future in the medical field to get involved with type of community service early we can ameliorate the distressing situation. Coming into contact with, speaking to, and intimately understanding these incredible individuals can dramatically alter one’s perspective and ensure treatment with self respect and dignity. I strongly believe in this notion of early involvement. My changed view coupled with my future medical training in college will allow me to be a figure to emulate and hopefully inspire others to follow this path. By embarking on this monumental journey mankind has the opportunity to shape history and enrich the lives of others while personally experiencing the most rewarding of all endeavors: helping someone in need.

    Read More

  • Why I Want To Be A Physician Assistant Essay

    808 Words  | 2 Pages

    Many people rush through their daily life without contemplating their actions, thereby missing vast opportunities for achievement. They waste valuable time engaging in frivolous matters instead of putting their energies towards more productive and meaningful purposes. In the words of the Dalai Lama: “Life is not about acquiring money and other facilities; it is about dedicating your life to helping others as much as you can.” The immeasurable value of helping others has been engrained in me since childhood. As a result of my own difficult family circumstances, I have become more sensitive, kind and mindful towards others and their own situations. I have developed a passion for helping others, which, in combination with a proclivity towards medicine has lead to my descion to become a Physician Assistant. I want to live a life where I can provide healthcare and aid to anyone who needs.

    Read More

  • Rafting In Madagascar Essay

    1634 Words  | 4 Pages

    ince then, scientists have theorized how the lemurs would have successfully crossed a large body of water, the Mozambique Channel, to inhabit Madagascar. One argument was that ancestors rafted from Africa on a “floating mat of vegetation” in a storm (Gunnel 2013, p214). If there was a strong enough wind, it could have pushed them away from the coast and let them float towards the island. One problem with this theory is that there is a long distance to be traveled from Africa to Madagascar which does not provide any freshwater or food for the animals (McCall 1997, p663). However, some lemur species can undergo torpor which lowers the metabolism placing them in hibernation-like state (Schmid 2000, p175). If their ancestor could also go into a torpor state as well, they could have survived a trip lasting several days without food. Another argument against rafting as a means of travel is that today’s ocean currents

    Read More

  • Public Health Science Personal Statement

    713 Words  | 2 Pages

    Having been born and raised in India gives me a wide understanding and perspective of the plight of the undeserved and vulnerable population. I moved to the US only in 2003 and have spent all my life in India prior to that. My own personal experience makes me very familiar with the different tropical diseases and how poverty and the lack of infrastructure affect the treatment of these diseases in those countries.

    Read More

  • Public Health Personal Statement Essay

    690 Words  | 2 Pages

    I interned a cardiologist where I got to see the life of a physician as he went about his daily routine. I achieved getting my Certified Nursing Assistant license after assisting patients at a nursing home. I became a camp counselor for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, where I took care of a 10-year-old child during a summer camp. Through these experiences, I gained confidence in my character and purposefulness. Furthermore, I went on a mission trip to Kenya where I experienced life in a third world country. It was here where my eyes were opened to see a world that is in dire need of help. These people are malnourished, living in detrimental conditions without accessible health care. The experiences I had in Kenya reminded me to never take anything for granted. My engagement acting on all these opportunities fueled my perseverance to pursue my career in health

    Read More

  • My Pursuit of and Passion For Medicine

    881 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...the opportunity to act as a triage nurse taking weights and blood pressures of our 1600 patients and seeing first-hand how hard it must be to receive quality medical care in their country. Many walked for hours and then stood waiting to be seen in the rain. To them, medical care is more a privilege than a right. This also seems to be true in the United States where the uninsured are turned away from many hospitals to ones, which often lack the resources for expensive operations. This experience has inspired me to serve the underserved.

    Read More

  • Madagascar

    1881 Words  | 4 Pages

    Madagascar is known to the world as the Big Red Island at the end of the earth. It is separated form the African continent by the Mozambique Channel. According to the various sources I have read and reviewed it is the forth largest Island in the world. Madagascar is divided in to three regions the central highlands, the east coast, and the west coast. The people of Madagascar however are very poor; as a matter of fact it has been ranked by the World Bank as being among the 13 poorest countries in the world. The country is so deeply in dept that the International Monetary Fund has given it the lowest possible rating, on par with Zaire. Education and heath indicators, including literacy rates and life expectancy are at or below average. According to the National Institute for Statistics, over 70% of the population lived blow the poverty line in 2003. Agricultural productivity is low. Farmers relay on rely on traditional farming practices, often including slash and burn and adoption of new technologies occurs but slowly. Domestic markets function poorly and links to international markets are weak. Madagascar's economy posted a strong recovery in 2003 following a severe economic deterioration due to the eight-month political crisis in 2002. Growth has slowed in 2004, and the economy has suffered from two cyclones, substantial depreciation of the Malagasy franc, and rising prices for the petroleum and rice on the world market during the year.

    Read More

  • India as a Third World Country

    2134 Words  | 5 Pages

    Although only recognized as an independent country since August 1947, India has been widely known throughout history. Starting as early as the 27th century BCE with the birth of one of the world’s first highly sophisticated civilization, namely the Indus Valley Civilization, India has been recognized for its rich historical and cultural heritage. While it was only a lot later in its history, specifically during the rule of king Ashoka in the 5th century that the country started to unify; it was during the during the two hundred years of British colonization when this big mass of area in South Asia accepted a unified national flag and became the country that it is today. A country that is home to over 1.2 billion people. A country where its long history has left different layers of deposit that have neither totally merged nor ceased to influence the Indian people. India is one of the world’s most complex societies in which “centuries coexist”, however, this greatness in diversity and culture also seems to hinder development in this country. India has thus been labeled a “third world”, but before we go any further let us try and find out what that means. What is a third world country and how does a country like India fit the image? By 1921, about 84 percent of the world had been colonized since the sixteen century with approximately 168 colonies. During past two centuries the world has seen an increasing number of new nations being born due to the process of decolonization. As the numbers were increasing, especially after 1945, political theorists sought to find a term to categorize these new nations that were considered qualitatively different from older countries of Europe and Northern America and thus termed them as “Third World...

    Read More

  • Personal Essay: My Future Role As A Dentistry

    745 Words  | 2 Pages

    I participated in a mission trip to Mongolia after my first year of undergraduate studies. One of my mission team members was a dentist and provided free dental extractions to people in the town we stayed. I volunteered to help clean dental equipment and assist the team member while she performed tooth extractions. Although the work was arduous, the relief of having diseased teeth removed was clearly visible on the faces of those who received the procedures. I was very sad to find out the people chose to get rid of their teeth rather than receiving a simple restoration procedure because they could not afford to see a dentist. The trip to Mongolia reassured me of my passion for dentistry. Moreover, my respect for the dentist 's willingness to utilize her ability to serve others ignited the desire within me to serve those in underserved

    Read More

  • Personal Statement: My Journey In Public Health

    961 Words  | 2 Pages

    Even though I initially started my journey in public health after graduating from Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, I acknowledged my interest and enthusiasm when I was working on my research thesis during the final year of my college. I conducted a research study to evaluate the effectiveness of planned teaching program to control hypertension among adults residing in selected rural areas of Bangalore in India. It happened to be my first exposure to the field of public health where I had an opportunity to interact with Bangalore’s slum-dwellers and witness their lifestyle, their access to the basic needs such as water, sanitation, and essential nutrients which raised a serious concern on my mind. Upon completion of the research,

    Read More

More about Biochemistry Personal Statement

Open Document