Why did you choose graduate school at IUPUI?
I originally started here as a post baccalaureate student in the IPREP program where I worked in the lab of Dr. Fletcher White in the Stark Neuroscience Institute. As someone who is very interested in neuroscience, working in that building allowed me to observe the various neuroscience research ongoing here. Also I really enjoyed life in Indianapolis. I moved here from Alabama where we do not have any major professional sports teams – having teams downtown really appealed to my extracurricular interests. These interests summated to applying to the MD/PhD program as I saw that the program, school, and city provided an environment that I felt would help me most develop personally and career-wise. I was accepted and I am currently a first year medical student.
What has been your favorite academic accomplishment since you’ve been here?
Aside from matriculating into the Medical Scientist Training Program (MD/PhD) here, I was very excited to be included as third author on a publication from the White Lab. Being my first time included on a research paper, I took this accomplishment as an acknowledgement and reward of my hard work in the lab.
What do you enjoy most about life in Indianapolis?
I really enjoy the downtown area with its sports teams and restaurants. I live ten minutes from downtown and am still very close to the shopping centers and restaurants of suburban Indianapolis. One thing I often tell my friends in Alabama is how close Indianapolis is to other big cities (Chicago, Louisville, etc). I also really enjoy the canal.
Please provide some details about your work/research as a graduate student and/or any activities you are involved in.
I started working in Dr. White’s lab as a member of the IPREP program and continued working in the lab through my first rotation of the MD/PhD program. The projects I worked on in the lab ranged from potential treatments for chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) to reducing pain through electro-acupuncture. I presented some of the work at the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS) in Seattle, IU research Day, and VA research day as part of IPREP or IU MSTP. Additionally, my contributions helped earn co-authorships on a couple research papers.