Narrative Pre-Health Journal

Pre-Health Student Stories | March 9th
My interest in public health started when I happened to be writing for a grant to fund environmental concerns around a sport I did back in high school (dragon boat). I didn’t know it then, but this would lead me to research how occupational hazards of our dock could be related to public health. The more I went down this rabbit hole, the more I began to explore a field I’ve never really heard of. It was eye-opening as I had thought I was constrained to only working in traditional, medical roles. I eventually entered UC Davis as a Global Disease Biology major in hopes of learning more about public health. My experience as an eager first year had its challenges. With struggling through my first year of courses, I found myself lost with the possibility of changing majors. But with the help of GDB advisors, I realized that my coursework would give me the freedom to dabble among the intersection of disease dynamics, community health, and research, which would truly make me happy. So during my first year, I was excited to join Global Perspectives Initiative, a public health club aiming to present topics often not covered in introductory STEM classes here (e.g, marginalized communities in medical spaces, stigma, mental health, etc). This experience gave me the space to work on myself, fueling my passion for public health while working alongside other students who understood the successes and challenges that come with this field. Outside the classroom, I work as a student assistant to a team of cancer health educators, learning how to facilitate community-based prevention to various counties surrounding Sacramento. Because of this, I’ve enjoyed researching cancer, particularly lung cancer, which came full circle when I learned a family member was affected by it through a health disparity. There is still a world of unanswered questions surrounding cancer and disease and I hope to one day inspire others to keep asking, especially when the resources are not always there. I plan to pursue a Master’s of Public Health with an interest in chronic diseases, turning that full circle moment into a new lifelong commitment to public health.