My 10 Year Plan- Dr. Lauren by Lauren

My 10 Year Plan- Dr. Lauren by Lauren - March 2020 Scholarship Essay

I have always loved to plan. Whether it be a to do list for a productive Saturday morning or planning a banquet for my team, I find planning allows me to stay motivated, dedicated, and determined, the kind of mindset I need to achieve my goals.
My 10 year career plan begins with year 1, when I will start my freshman year at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. This aspect has already been solidified, as I have been accepted to Cornell’s Class of 2024 for a major in Biology & Society under the College of Arts and Sciences. This is a unique program where I can study biology on a premedical track as well as the sociological, large scale applications of the science, including the spread of diseases, epidemiology, medical ethics, genetics, biostatistics, environmental issues, and healthcare politics. Research has always been a goal of mine, and research opportunities were a factor I considered strongly when choosing a school. At Cornell, I believe I will be able to get experience in research that has impacts beyond a lab, even if I am not curing cancer, maybe I could play a role in developing a possible treatment for a specific type of cancer. I have volunteered at a local hospital, an experience I truly enjoyed despite the challenges, so I want to find similar volunteer experiences in my college years, to gain exposure to the medical field and have a chance to do fulfilling work with patients. As I close out college, having solidified my career path, I want to dedicate time to studying for the MCAT﹘the entrance exam for medical school. Known for the hours and weeks of studying this test requires, I will have to plan out my study schedule carefully and balance my classes and extracurriculars carefully, similar to how I prepared for the SAT. However, I am confident I will be able to study well and obtain a competitive score on the MCAT.
Years 5-9: Medical School. From what I’ve heard, this will be the most difficult part of my academic career, and begin my real-life career. Medical school students need to dedicate time to studying outside of class, preparing for exams by memorizing anatomy and analyzing hypothetical cases. By my third year in medical school, I will begin rotations through local hospitals in different fields of medicine, different specialties, from surgery to dermatology to emergency medicine. I am excited for every single one of these specialties, to gain experience and see how each department works, what a typical day is like, and the responsibilities of a doctor. I will use these years to narrow down my decisions for my field and then apply to residency programs.
Year 10: Residency. This is the next step in the long process of becoming a physician. Residents spend three to five years in a program at teaching hospitals where they learn medical skills and become independent physicians while preparing for the medical board exams. After passing the boards, they become board certified and can practice as attendings. Ideally, I would want to complete my residency at Boston Children’s Hospital, as I grew up in the Boston area and have gone to doctors there for years, with nothing but positive experiences. As someone who wants to work with children in a pediatric field, the number one children’s hospital in the country is a clear goal. My specialty is where my career plan becomes a little less certain. I have lots of interests at the moment, and without experience in many fields I cannot put a choice in stone, but I am thinking about otolaryngology or surgery. Otolaryngology is a slightly less common field, and its doctors are known as Ear, Nose, and Throat doctors (ENTs). The reason I’m interested in it is because I myself see an ENT due to being deaf in my right ear. Not only is the anatomy of the head and neck fascinating, but I also would love to be able to give kids the chance to hear﹘hearing is such a vital part of communication many overlook. I feel I would do well in a surgical residency as well, as I work well under pressure and would enjoy the different work everyday.
As I complete Year 10 of this plan, I envision myself as a working physician myself, seeing patients and even doing public health work. However, I did not always want to pursue medicine. The thing that sparked my interest in it was actually very superficial: my middle school self loved Grey’s Anatomy. I saw the action and the drama and I was hooked: I wanted to be a surgeon. I know that TV is not an accurate representation, but it got me researching the career for myself and I became interested in medicine itself. The complex cases I saw on Grey’s were similar to real cases, and I liked the idea of challenging myself with new cases every day. Doing work that actually impacted people’s lives with immediate, visual results and meeting people I could connect with was an attractive idea.
I know I cannot see the future, and my goals may change slightly, but I am confident that by continuing to visualize my future like this and prepare diligently, I will be able to achieve my goal of becoming a physician in 10 years﹘might as well start calling me Dr. Lauren.