Personal Narrative: A Career As A Pre-Medical Student

At the young age of five I had my first introduction to the field of medicine. At the time, my father was a radiological technician at the local hospital. If my father was on call for the radiology department and my mother was also working, he had but no choice to bring me to the hospital when called. I clearly recall being intrigued by the real skeleton that hung in the office. It excited me to watch the X-ray slides come out of a machine and yet show human bones. I also remember seeing a patient being wheeled by with a bone protruding from his leg. This was the first medically-related experience that I recall. Throughout my childhood, I was exposed to similar situations. As I became older, it was out of curiosity, and not necessity, that I went to work with my father.

As a pre-medical student, I initially felt out of my league since the other volunteers were graduate education students. I was responsible for designing a summer reading program for fifteen children, ages five to nine and implementing my program at the Little Falls YMCA where the children were daily. I encountered many obstacles such as what material would be appropriate for each child, children who announced their dislike for reading, and the struggles of instituting a daily lesson. Despite these factors and my unfamiliar setting, I began to feel confident in myself as I thought of new projects to get the children to enjoy the program. Also, several of the children needed emotional support in addition to assistance with their reading, and a personal factor evolved in my relationship with the children. By the end of the summer, I felt that my program was successful since each child had shown interest and improvement in reading. I value this experience for various reasons. I feel that reading is fundamental to education and all children should have an opportunity to excel. Additionally, I feel fortunate to have been able to work with