As a minority and first generation student and daughter to immigrant parents, I am fully aware of the injustices, large and small, that occur around the world. For one, as someone who identifies as a woman of color, I know just how important representation matters. Though I specifically want to pursue a medical career, both medicine and law have historically been dominated by white males. Although I am highly grateful for the educational opportunities available to me in the 21st century, I know that this has not always been the case for women and people of color, which is why I value my experience and education even more. There is room for everyone here to contribute and share their knowledge with not just the community in the medical field, but the world at whole as well. The way that I would like to positively impact the world is by advocating for people that are personally affected by health disparities. Just like me, there are many women of color that do not get the same treatment from medical staff in comparison to white and/or male counterparts. There have been numerous studies done to prove this. One that has always stuck with me is that in the 21st century, black women are three times as likely to die from childbirth compared to white women. Not only is that statistic devastating to see, but even worse is the fact that since slave times until the mid 20th century, it was widely taught and even accepted that black people naturally had higher pain tolerances than white people. This wrongful teaching has allowed for the medical mistreatment and improper care of black people for centuries. This false narrative, on top of the racism that already exists, continues to affect black people, particularly women in labor. Most importantly, it is important to have people of all backgrounds and genders and races participating in the same field because all of our unique experiences and insights can make monumental contributions to science and society. By being inclusive and diverse, science and medicine can continue to move farther.

Camille Grullon. Both two syllables. Both 7 letters. Both containing 2 L’s sandwiched between vowels. I love my name. I always thought it was unique growing up for those patterns I noticed. But for this essay, I would like to call special attention to my surname, Grullon. At first glance, it is not easy to pinpoint where my name may be from. There are names that are glaringly obvious where they originate from, like Smith from the UK or Patel from India. But my name is unique because only the people of one particular region in just one country would recognize the name; and this would be the Cibao region in the Dominican Republic. To me, my name is a perfect example of individuality and freedom. The reason why I say so is because although I am very proud of my Dominican heritage, I used to wish I had a more common Hispanic last name, like Hernandez or Rodriguez. I thought then it would be easier to fit in with others who also identify as Hispanic. With time, I realized that not only was “fitting in” something I no longer gravitated towards, but I also felt even more prideful in knowing how unique my last name was, and in turn how unique that made me. I am proud to have a surname that originates and exists in only one ethnicity. Furthermore, my surname contributes to my family’s history since to this day, Grullon is a name that is heavily concentrated in the northern Cibao region of the country, where my family has been for generations prior to my parent’s arrival to the United States. Just as I strive to create my own identity and not mold myself to fit typical hispanic norms or identity, I grew in appreciation for my surname.

What do you want to be when you grow up? This was a common question asked by elementary school teachers that I was unsure of how to answer. From a young age, I loved school, and getting recognition for hard work motivated me a lot. But I wasn’t sure what to answer when teachers asked us what we wanted our careers to be. I honestly can’t remember what I told them. Did I tell them the same thing every time? Did my answer change from year to year? Nothing comes to mind. Although I didn’t know the specific job title or salary at my ripe elementary age, I knew I wanted to help people. My name is Camille Grullon. Currently I am an undergraduate student, my future plan is to pursue education in medicine and healthcare, preferably a doctoral degree. I am a first generation American, born to Dominican immigrants. From a young age, I would annually visit my parent’s home country. It was beautiful and full of culture, and I enjoyed seeing my family members, but it also made me aware of how good I had it coming from a suburban American town. In some areas, I was witnessing a level of poverty and disease that I was sheltered from. These areas were often far from cities and had very little modern infrastructure. For that reason, I specifically want to cater my career to helping and treating underrepresented groups. I believe that proper healthcare and equitable treatment is a right for all, regardless of factors like economic status or race. In order for me to make a difference in the world, my education is the first step. Money can come and go but education is the foundation to making permanent differences for a better world. Another thing that made me realize that it was the right career path for me has been watching videos and using websites with reliable information. Youtube is a wonderful resource that I find useful for when I want to see what doctors do. Although I also use websites and articles to read about what they do and what their personal experiences have been, I enjoy watching videos a lot because I can physically see what their lives look like, especially if they are able to vlog at their workplaces. By both seeing and reading, it piqued my interest in the medical field even more and made me more enthusiastic about my career goals. Another specific website I recalled using prior to college was Naviance. Although it was heavily used to track college applications during our senior year, it was highly beneficial for assessing and matching us to potential careers. The abundance of online resources that are available have provided a lot of assistance to me and my educational journey.

My favorite study strategy is to make friends. It sounds odd and maybe even counter-intuitive, but making friends in each of my classes was a major academic advantage for me. In doing so, I was able to create study groups where we could review and even reteach each other the material that our professors had taught us that week. I found that working in groups helped a lot, especially when there were exams coming up, because each person had their own insight and materials to contribute to the study session. Another thing that worked surprisingly well for me was watching Youtube videos. Sometimes, the professor and even the textbook aren't able to explain something in a way that is easily comprehensible. On Youtube, there are so many reliable creators and channels that are dedicated to providing crash courses and reviews on specific educational material. I find that when I don't understand something someone has taught me, often times it helps to hear this information rephrased by someone else. Additionally, I am a very visual learner, so the combination of someone else's words and the animations that go along with it are very helpful to me. The last study strategy I would recommend would be to review the notes taken everyday in class. A majority of people don't do this until right before the exam, which makes it very hard to recall weeks of information in just a single study session. By reviewing chunks of information every night, it keeps the information in the forefront of your memory so by the time the exam comes, it will be much easier to recall. These are my top strategies that helped me succeed.

What do you want to be when you grow up? A firefighter. A model. A police officer. A rockstar. Picture an elementary classroom full of eager young children excitedly answering their teacher’s question as to what they want to be when they are older. Kids are loudly talking over each other, hands are shooting up in the air with hopes of getting called on, and then there’s me; quietly but nervously contemplating my answer in my seat. From a young age, I loved school, and getting recognition for hard work motivated me a lot. But I wasn’t sure what to answer when teachers asked us what we wanted our careers to be. I honestly can’t remember what I told them. Did I tell them the same thing every time? Did my answer change from year to year? Nothing comes to mind. Although I didn’t know the specific job title or salary at my ripe elementary age, I knew I wanted to help people. Of course that sounds very generic. A lot of people want to help people. But how do you want to help? And what motivates you to do so? I can answer all that and more for anyone who asks, especially the person reading this essay. But before I get into that, I would like to introduce myself so that you can get to know me better and understand my motives. My name is Camille Grullon. I am an undergraduate student from New Jersey studying biology. With that degree, I plan to pursue further education in medicine and healthcare, preferably a doctoral degree. Now that you know where I stand in my education, I can tell you more about my identity. I am a first generation American, born to Dominican immigrants. Although my first language was English, I have been speaking Spanish since I was six years old. I consider myself lucky and privileged to have resided in Wyckoff, New Jersey all of my life. From a young age, I would annually visit my parent’s home country. It was beautiful and full of culture, and I enjoyed seeing my family members, but it also made me aware of how good I had it coming from a suburban American town. In some areas, I was witnessing a level of poverty and disease that I was sheltered from. These areas were often far from cities and had very little modern infrastructure. After some time, I realized that their problems, particularly health-related ones, were being fueled by ineducation and lack of access to adequate care. There were things that were obvious to me about health that evidently weren’t to people of lower socioeconomic status. This is not just an occurrence in this small island country, but this is something that prevails in areas all over the world where there is a lack of public health education. Without the knowledge or resources to get better, one will be forever stuck in the same place, unable to move forward. For that reason, I specifically want to cater my career to helping and treating underrepresented groups. I believe that proper healthcare and equitable treatment is a right for all, regardless of factors like economic status or race. In order for me to make a difference in the world, my education is the first step. Money can come and go but education is the foundation to making permanent differences for a better world.