1) Yes 2) Yes 3) 60,000 4) High school and Skills Maintenance and homemaker "Do you speak Spanish?" I asked as I walked into a resident's room. She smiled and immediately began telling me about her family. What started as a regular routine at my job as a Certified Nursing Assistant, it quickly became a moment of learning. Speaking with the resident in our shared native language allowed me to form a deeper connection and allow the resident to converse more comfortably. Moments like these have taught me that patients do not just remember the care they receive, they remember how they are treated and the connection that is formed. Growing up as a first generation Salvadoran American, I often translated medical appointments and medical information with physicians for my family as I barely understood the information myself. Later, living in rural El Salvador, I saw how easily access to healthcare shifts based on geography, resources provided, and training available for their medical teams. Witnessing these inequities in the United States and El Salvador fueled my desire to help rebuild these systems to ensure more communities are getting the highest quality of care. I desire to be a physician that acknowledges the struggles that patients face not only in the exam room but the burdens they face before they even step foot inside the room. Throughout my time at the University of Washington, I intentionally pursued opportunities that allowed me to serve others while growing as a leader. As a Certified Nursing Assistant and emergency department volunteer at Seattle Children's Hospital, I cared for patients during vulnerable moments and saw how speaking Spanish with patients and families fostered comfort, dignity, and trust. I also volunteered with Casa Latina, an organization focused on advocacy and justice, I was able to support immigrant workers by connecting them with employment opportunities that provided safe working conditions and fair wages. I was not only a translator but a person of advocacy, this position reinforced my belief that healthcare extends far beyond the walls of a clinic. My commitment to health equity drove me to partner with the University of Washington Medicine Equity and Diversity Office to develop an Equity-Centered Healthcare Language workshop for pre health students. Through this program, I presented information on how language influences patient experiences and clinical outcomes and created a scenario based activity. I've also had the opportunity to participate in research, where I investigate the mechanisms underlying neural tube defects that has been linked to disproportionally affect BIPOC individuals. I presented my research to my community at the Mary Gates Undergraduate Research Symposium. Both these experiences have strengthened my ability to bridge scientific discovery with community impact. As a participate in Kaiser Permanente's Health Care Career Pathways Program, I participated in virtual shadowing program which allowed me to explore a broad set of specialties and allowed me to build networks that as a first generation student has been difficult to find. Seeing providers who shared a commitment to equity reinforced my confidence that I could become a physician and someday mentor students from backgrounds underrepresented in medicine. As I prepare to apply to medical school, I hope to build a career grounded in service, advocacy, and service based learning. My goal is to provide compassionate care, contribute to research that improves health outcomes, and mentor future students who may question whether they belong in medicine as I once did. I hope to create a future where every patient feel empowered and in control regardless of the language they speak or the background they come from.