As a pre medical student, internships are extremely difficult to find. Tons and tons of students from around the country apply to the select number of internships offered. Acceptance rates for the average pre medical internship can rival Ivy League undergraduate acceptance rates. But fear not, it is possible. After applying to about 10 internships, I finally got one. And it wasn’t just any internship, it was one in which I’d work under the coolest, smartest, most driven doctor I’ve ever met. I couldn’t believe it when I was offered a position to work under Dr. Martin-Schild, one of the most published persons at Tulane, in the Tulane University Stroke Research Program (TUSRP).
But like almost all pre medical internships, it was unpaid. After spending countless hours studying in the wonderful rooms of the Newcomb House last semester, I found out about NCI’s internship funding and decided to apply. Honestly, I was not that hopeful that I’d receive the grant, which only made the amazing feeling of achieving it even greater.
As a part of the internship, I create 5 goals that I plan to (and will) accomplish by the end of the summer. Those goals also happen to be based off my weakness or areas in which I do not have a lot of experience. Below, you can find my list of objectives and a little bit about each of them:
- Learn all I can about the pathophysiology of stroke
- Attend weekly neurology conferences at Tulane Hospital
- Master the ability of writing a journal article
- Submit and revise documents via IRBnet
- Refine the structure of the paper to best match the target journal
- Apply new knowledge about stroke pathophysiology
- Reaffirm my drive to be a doctor
- Interact with doctors, medical students, and other interns to ensure that this is the right path for me
- Develop confident speaking skills
- Be able to readily converse about journal articles and a novel research
- Reduce my slight fear of incredibly intelligent and powerful people
- Further my organization and time management skills
- Stay ahead of all required tasks and then some
- Manage my time correctly as you cannot bring work home due to HIPAA
The Newcomb Institute’s mission focuses on the success of women today. Women, in fact, are disproportionately affected by strokes. Due to pregnancy, preeclampsia, oral contraceptives, and hormone replacement therapy, women are at an especially high risk. In fact, it is the 3rd leading cause of death among women. Furthermore, nearly 50% more women die from strokes each year. With deeper research into the clinical effectiveness of how doctors treat strokes, doctors can reduce the cost burden and perfect treatment options.
To prepare for what is to come, I am currently researching stroke pathophysiology in order to develop a solid base knowledge. I am also looking into journal articles that members of TUSRP have already completed. Given both of these, hopefully I can come up with a new idea in which I can research, which is easily the most thrilling part.