Despite both of my parents being lawyers, I've had this internal pull toward healthcare my entire life. Due to my mother's ongoing oral health issues, I have been surrounded by medicine and healthcare since I was young. After caring for her after surgeries, monitoring her pain, and giving her the correct medication dosages, I became confident that I would go into the medical field later in my life. I felt the urge to help people suffering the same way my mother was. I was so sure of my career path that in 8th grade, I even made my classmates call me "Dr. Lax." In high school, I involved myself in every healthcare activity I could - I volunteered at Mount Sinai Hospital, set up a donation organization called "Project Healthcare Heroes NYC" for healthcare workers at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and more. In the classroom, I excelled in the sciences. I got myself an incredible research opportunity at the Bartolini Lab, a neuroscience laboratory in Columbia University's Department of Cell Pathology and Biology. The summer after my sophomore year of High School, I was holed up in the laboratory conducting various experiments on mice DRG cells, exploring the characterization of the contribution of tubulin and microtubule damage to the onset of peripheral neuropathies such as Alzheimer's and nerve damage due to chemotherapy. All the meticulous pipetting, staining, and blotting left me more satisfied and excited in a way I never felt before. That summer, I solidified my love for science and passion for research. I am now at New York University, double majoring in Global Public Health and Biology, which combines my two passions: healthcare and science. I am involved in the various clubs at NYU, including the American Chemical Society, the Pre-Dental Society, Bioethics Club, the Pow(h)er Collective, and more. Next year, I am starting a research job in a lab at NYU, researching a similar idea as the lab I previously worked at Columbia University. My career goal is to go to dental school to become an oral pathologist. I want to research ways to cure and prevent oral cancer and other oral diseases. I have seen my mother endure so much pain and suffering, and she is lucky to have access to incredible healthcare. I want to help those less fortunate and have less access to care. I plan on becoming a Certified Pharmacy Technician over the summer to work in a pharmacy and familiarize myself with pharmacology before going off to dental school. I am excited about learning the science behind these drugs and creating the medications myself. Overall, many factors have inspired me to go into dentistry and oral pathology. From caring for my mother's oral health condition, my love for research, my passion for public health, and my excitement for science, this career path only makes sense, and I'm loving the journey so far.

Despite both of my parents being lawyers, I've had this internal pull toward healthcare my entire life. Due to my mother's ongoing oral health issues, I have been surrounded by medicine and healthcare since I was young. After caring for her after surgeries, monitoring her pain, and giving her the correct medication dosages, I became confident that I would go into the medical field later in my life. I felt the urge to help people suffering the same way my mother was. I was so sure that in 8th grade, I even made my classmates call me "Dr. Lax." In high school, I involved myself in every healthcare activity I could - I volunteered at Mount Sinai Hospital, set up a donation organization called "Project Healthcare Heroes NYC" for healthcare workers at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and more. In the classroom, I excelled in the sciences. I got myself an incredible research opportunity at the Bartolini Lab, a neuroscience laboratory in Columbia University's Department of Cell Pathology and Biology. The summer after my sophomore year of High School, I was holed up in the laboratory conducting various experiments on mice DRG cells, exploring the characterization of the contribution of tubulin and microtubule damage to the onset of peripheral neuropathies such as Alzheimer's and nerve damage due to chemotherapy. All the meticulous pipetting, staining, and blotting left me more satisfied and excited in a way I never felt before. That summer, I solidified my love for science and passion for research. I am now at New York University, double majoring in Global Public Health and Biology, which combines my two passions: healthcare and science. I am involved in the various clubs at NYU, including the American Chemical Society, the Pre-Dental Society, Bioethics Club, the Pow(h)er Collective, and more. Next year, I am starting a research job in a lab at NYU, researching a similar idea as the lab I previously worked at Columbia University. My career goal is to become an oral pathologist to research ways to cure and prevent oral cancer and diseases. I have seen my mother endure so much pain and suffering, and she is lucky to have access to incredible healthcare. I want to help those less fortunate and have less access to care. I plan on becoming a Certified Pharmacy Technician over the summer to work in a pharmacy and familiarize myself with pharmacology before going off the Dental School. I am excited about learning the science behind these drugs and creating the medications myself. Overall, many factors have inspired me to pursue a degree in STEM. From my mother's oral health condition, my love for research, my passion for public health, and my excitement for science, it only made sense that I major in Global Public Health and Biology at NYU.