Breaking Barriers: My Journey to Becoming a Physician Assistant In the United States, Black women represent only 2.5-3.5% of physician assistants (PAs). This stark underrepresentation has profound consequences: Black and minority women face disproportionate health disparities due to systemic biases, inadequate care, and a lack of providers who share their lived experiences. As a Black woman pursuing this career, I am driven not only by my passion for medicine but also by the urgent need to dismantle these barriers My love for healthcare began in childhood, inspired by the strong women in my family—my mother, grandmother, and sister—who dedicated their lives to serving others. At six, I dreamed of becoming a pediatrician; by middle school, I was drawn to sports medicine. At fourteen, the documentary series Nightwatch ignited my fascination with emergency medicine, leading me to volunteer with local paramedics. Later, in high school, I earned my Emergency First Response certification and became captivated by trauma nursing. Life, however, had other plans. Financial challenges and the COVID-19 pandemic delayed my education, but this period of reflection clarified my purpose. I shifted my focus to cardiovascular technology, discovering a new path toward becoming a cardiology PA. Now, as a student at the University of South Carolina, I am relentlessly pursuing this goal. The healthcare field’s lack of diversity is not just a statistic—it’s a matter of life and death. Black women are three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than white women, often due to implicit bias and inadequate care. When patients see providers who look like them, trust and outcomes improve. Yet, systemic barriers—limited mentorship, financial hurdles, and institutional inequities—keep the PA profession disproportionately white. As an underrepresented minority, I’ve felt the weight of these challenges. But they have also fueled my resolve. I refuse to let disparities define our future. Instead, I aim to be the representation my community lacks—a provider who combats biases, advocates for equitable care, and inspires other Black women to enter this field. Financial obstacles have already interrupted my education twice. This scholarship would alleviate the burden of tuition, allowing me to focus wholly on my studies, clinical rotations, and networking opportunities. More importantly, it would empower me to become a catalyst for change. With this support, I can dedicate myself to mentoring aspiring Black Pas, volunteering in underserved communities, and ultimately closing the gap in healthcare representation. 2.5% is not enough. I am determined to join—and expand—that percentage, ensuring minority women receive the compassionate culturally competent care they deserve. This scholarship isn’t just an investment in my education; it’s an investment in a more equitable healthcare system. Together, we can turn representation into revolution.

Growing up I watched my mother and grandmother work in a healthcare setting. My grandmother working as a CNA and my mother working as a dialysis technician. In 2009 she passed away due to complications from lung and breast cancer. After her passing, I realized my passion for healthcare. As I got older, I accompany mom to her job, where I had the opportunity to shadow her and the nurses. They allowed me to take patients’ vital signs and clean machines before the start of the patient’s treatment. In high school, I spoke with my guidance counselor about my dream of becoming a Cardiovascular Technologist and, eventually, a Cardiology Physician Assistant. Together, we created a plan to help me work toward that goal. Throughout the remainder of high school, after turning sixteen, I worked to help alleviate some of the financial burdens my parents faced. I had a job at a restaurant, and my biweekly checks went towards my phone bill, gas, groceries, and other small expenses to make my parent’s life a little easier. We didn’t have much growing up by my mother did her best to provide for me. During my first year of college, I worked two jobs—one as a patient transporter and the other as a supervisor at a department store. Working both jobs was the only way I could afford to continue my education. As a Black woman and the first one in my immediate family to attend college, I had limited knowledge about higher education resources. Finding scholarships was difficult, and financial aid only covered so much, so I relied on student loans to help pay for school. At the end of my first year, COVID-19 started, and I was furloughed from both jobs. My bills became increasingly difficult to pay. As a result, I took a gap year during my second year of college to save money and cover expenses. In 2021, I was able to return to school and graduate from my technical college. That summer, I worked as much as possible before beginning the Fall 2022 semester. I moved into my first apartment in Columbia, SC, about 100 miles away from home, to attend the University of South Carolina. I found a job in Columbia to afford my rent and tuition, but balancing work and school became increasingly challenging. Most of my energy was spent maintain my apartment so I had a place to stay while attending university. A few weeks before my Spring semester, I discovered that I owed $8000 in tuition to maintain my enrollment. To cover the cost, I had to take out a $10,000 title loan on my car adding another financial burden. After completing the semester, I took a year-and-a-half-long gap year to work and save money. Fortunately, I found a higher-paying job, and with my mother’s help I was able to resume my education in Spring 2025. This semester has been going a much better than the previous ones, but the financial strain of higher education remains a constant concern. That’s why this scholarship will be an incredible help into fulfilling my dreams. It would alleviate the anxiety of affording my education and prevent another delay in my journey. Receiving this $5000 would play a crucial role in my future success as Physician Assistant.

Books, language, and writing are powerful tools that can lead a person to great success and knowledge. The endless themes presented in books and writing can change the lives of many and inspire one to achieve more than what is expected of them. Books have changed my life. Growing up, I would read often. There was hardly ever a time when my nose was not in a book. As I got older, and became a teenager and young adult, my relationship with books grew further apart. In 2023, I was experiencing one of the toughest years of my life. I was struggling financially. I had trouble focusing on school, my health would falter immensely, not to mention the struggles with my mental health. As a young black woman in the South, I found it hard to prioritize my mental health as well as speak about it, so silently, I struggled with my anxiety and depression. Towards the end of 2023, it seemed like my struggles became personified, and it got hit by a semi going 80 miles per hour. I was out of work due to an injury, I could not attend school due to financial struggles, and my relationships with some family members started to fizzle. In November of that year, I was blessed with an opportunity I didn’t think would come. I landed a job in the Heart and Vascular department of a hospital near my hometown. This was a huge sign since I am majoring in Cardiovascular Technology. This job opportunity was the catalyst to my current success. In 2024, I was doing better and working towards my goal of reattending school. However, I still was struggling internally with things I did not understand. I felt like I lacked knowledge and experience. One day while working, I had something trigger my memory of when I was younger and my love for reading. Later that evening, I decided to rebuild my relationship with books. Back then, it seemed as though that relationship crashed and burned and became unrecoverable. I started going online and finding pieces of work that I thought I would enjoy reading again. The first book I decided to read was When No One Is Watching: A Thriller by Alyssa Cole. This book had a thriller aspect that made my heart race while also touching on the struggles in Black America that made my heart ache. What does my reclaimed connection to books have to do with what I learned from them? And how will it help me make an impact on the world? Well, to me, I believe that I’ve learned to be free and not hold back. I’ve read books that have inspired me to work hard for what I want in life, to be a helping hand even if that same kindness might not be shared with me. I’ve learned to prioritize my mental health and build a strong relationship with my family. I’ve learned to empathize with people who may be struggling with things I have never had to struggle with. I’ve learned, I’ve gained knowledge! That sentiment alone gives me the opportunity to use that knowledge to hit the world hard with my light and comprehension. I can become impactful by using themes from the books I’ve read surrounding racism, trauma, identity, medical bias, self-acceptance, and many more. I credit gaining that wisdom to authors like Alyssa Cole, Alex Michaelides, Kristina Forest, Tigest Girma, and many more. And I hope to become more impactful as I continue to read.