We had a chance to chat with Layan Ibrahim (20C) about her pre-health journey at Emory.
What are your long term pre-health goals?
My long-term pre-health goal is to pursue an MD/Ph.D. to become a physician-scientist. On the Ph.D. side, I want to do research at the intersection of neuroscience, psychology, and public health with a focus on healthcare disparities. I want to look at why African-Americans have higher rates of different neurological and psychiatric disorders and look at the biological mechanisms behind these disorders. In terms of MD, I have a lot of different interests, but I'm leaning towards emergency medicine and particularly in pediatric emergency medicine. I'm also interested in neurosurgery or general surgery. These options are very different and I'm still trying to figure out what I want to do.
What is your current spot in your pre-health journey?
I'm currently a senior planning to do 1-2 gap years before pursuing my MD/Ph.D. During my gap year(s), I plan to do research or perhaps pursue an MPH. I will be graduating a semester early in December and spending the spring semester studying for my MCAT. Currently, my main focus is just getting ready to graduate from Emory!
How have things changed or not changed with COVID-19 in terms of preparing for med school?
Geographically it is very different because I'm living in Kenya right now, which puts me seven hours ahead of EST. A lot of my classes are at night, so I've become nocturnal. In terms of research, my research is virtual and I mostly do data analysis and a lot of literature review. My summer plans obviously got canceled. I was supposed to go to South Africa for about two weeks with the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life. I was also supposed to do a research experience in Nepal. In place of these opportunities, I completed the EDGE internship through Emory as well as two virtual research opportunities. The first one was through the Mayo Clinic called SURF (Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship). After modifications with COVID-19, the program was then called SFIR (Summer Foundation in Research) Program. The second opportunity was the American Physician Scientists Association (APSA) Virtual Summer Research Program (VSRP) which I am continuing through this semester. For VSRP, you were matched with a mentor and I was matched with a woman who worked at the University of Pennsylvania in a hematology lab. The majority of my research involved bloodwork and looking into ITP (Immune thrombocytopenic purpura; bleeding disorder) literature.
What was the most difficult part of your pre-health career?
Definitely switching majors on top of completing pre-med prerequisites. I came into Emory wanting to be a CSS and Math double major. After my first year, I realized that wasn't the path that I wanted to go down. I took an anthropology class in the spring semester of my freshman year that got me thinking about switching majors. I wanted a major with a pre-med focus but also involved anthropology. I stumbled upon Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology. It was a mix of psychology, anthropology, and neuroscience, which I really like about the NBB major because it offered a lot of diversity. The difficult part was me not knowing what I was going to do for a while, but thankfully it worked out for the best.
What do you wish you knew five years ago?
Five years ago, I was a junior in high school, starting the IB (International Baccalaureate) program. If you completed the program or know anything about it, you know it's a bit stressful (an understatement). One thing that I would tell myself is to not stress too much. To focus on school but also balance my academics and social life. I would've told myself to relax more, enjoy my friends, and enjoy the moment because everything will fall into place.
If you could start over, what would you change?
I'm a firm believer in the idea that everything happens for a reason. There isn't anything that I would change about my journey. Even though I made mistakes here and there, those mistakes helped me to learn and grow. Without them, I would not be where I am today.
Did you have a specific mentor that inspired you to get to where you are now?
Dr. Claire-Anne Gutekunst. She's an associate professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at Emory as well as my current research mentor. Her mentorship style is very invested and super hands-on. Her focus was not only on my success in the lab but outside the lab as well. She taught me a lot about research and is one of the reasons why I am pursuing an MD/Ph.D. program rather than just an MD program. She is truly an inspiration for me.
Dr. Eladio Abreu. I took Introductory Biology and Biochemistry with him, but my first interaction with him was through STEM Pathways. He always emphasized the importance of finding a mentor in college. For me, he was such a great mentor because he really was invested in my success as a student both in and outside the classroom. I would talk to him about concepts I was struggling with, and he would make me write everything out on his whiteboard in his office. He would then make me teach those concepts back to him and other students that went to office hours with me, which helped me solidify the material. I was also able to express my concerns about other classes aside from his and talk to him, so he has really impacted my time here at Emory.
What challenges did you face? How did you overcome them?
It was challenging to explain to my parents that I was planning on taking a gap year. At first, they were very skeptical about me taking a gap year and were curious as to why I wasn't just going straight into med school. After explaining my plans and how common it is among medical students, they started to become more open with the idea. They know I'm hard-working, but I had to explain to them my passions and my plans for them to be able to understand my choice.
What is the best advice you could give someone pursuing the same track as you?
Each person has their own journey, so don't compare yourself to anyone else. Admission committees don't want to admit the same person; they don't want a robot. Do what makes you happy and don't feel pressured by those who surround you. Be yourself, be happy, and you should be good!