My desire to help others has been demonstrated by my involvement with volunteer work and experiences

that taught me that dedication and commitment to patient care are essential to becoming a good physician.
While on a medical mission trip to the Dominican Republic, I served a local population that had little
access to healthcare. The benefits of our services left an indelible impression on me and made me realize how
privileged I am. Through assessing symptoms, collecting vitals and evaluating patient history, I was able to work
closely with local physicians in helping diagnose and properly dispense medication to treat illnesses. By spending
time with patients and understanding their sufferings, I developed better patient-care interactions and became a
better communicator. These experiences helped cultivate my passion for the medical field and reflect my ability to
work well with both doctors and patients. By working as an assistant to primary care physicians in rural
communities, I hope to continue my work of helping in underserved, areas of Oregon.
The following summer, I visited a friend in Sri Lanka where I experienced a biking injury that left my
wound infected. Experiencing healthcare from a patient’s perspective help me realize how I take quality medical
care for granted and empathize with patients’ suffering. Through this humbling experience, I have become
committed to bringing compassionate care to my patients domestically or abroad.

Question 2 - What will be your greatest challenge in becoming a physician?

 Reuse EVMS essay

As a child, especially a daughter, I naturally looked to my mother as a strong, female role model to
emulate. Yet, I frequently found my mother in an almost comatose state in her bedroom. She was chronically
exhausted because she was a carrier of anemia called thalassemia. What I did recognize at an early age was that I
wanted more in life by becoming more independent and self-sufficient. By taking on responsibilities, I matured early
and learned to be more proactive. This will help me adapt to the multifaceted aspect of medicine that require quick
thinking to effectively address patient issues.
Being self-sufficient from a young age also taught me to become more financially independent and self-
sufficient. When I was 16, I secured my first job as an aquatics instructor and lifeguard where I worked throughout
high school. I later secured a job in college as a tutor and a resident assistant. It was through the experience of
working that I learned to appreciate the value of money and the amount of work it takes to earn a dollar. I became
more resourceful and conscientious about how to spend both time and money.
I believe my experiences have taught me how to better serve others, to be more resilient and responsible
and how to handle different types of situations. These life skills of time management, thinking independently, acting
responsibly, and being conscientious of the needs of others will serve well in a career as a physician.

Question 4 - Describe a time when you did not receive what you felt you deserved, and how you reacted.

I have always felt privileged and fortunate enough to grow up among a family that has the means to support
my basic needs, but growing up with immigrant parents resulted in intergenerational cultural dissonance throughout
my life.
By the time I was in high school, I longed to pursue athletics to be more well-rounded, despite deep-seated
resistance by my parents who wanted me to strictly focus on academics. I felt that I should have the support of my
parents in all of my endeavors. And now that I am older, I understand their perspective and culture of staying
academically focused to escape poverty.
Eventually, I persevered in my desire to pursue the sport of swimming. My ability to convince my parents
to see the benefits of sports taught me how to improve my communication skills and reason with them in a
constructive manner. Yet my struggle to excel both academically and athletically did not come easily. I faced the
challenge of starting the sport at a later age and had to work harder to catch up to compete at a competitive level.
Eventually, I learned to cope better with adversity, become more disciplined with my training, be resilient to failures
and to use these failures to learn. I came to excel in swimming and competed in a relay team. The path to becoming
a physician is tough and filled with many challenges, but the fortitude and diligence I learned from swimming and
work with fellow team members will help me overcome these new challenges and become a better physician.
Question 5 - Give an example of personal feedback in the last few years that was difficult to receive. How did you

respond?

As a resident assistant, we undergo an evaluation with our supervisor each semester in order to improve our
performance in the future to benefit our residents. During an evaluation, my supervisor stated that at times I seemed
“indifferent” and “disconnected” because I was busy with other extracurriculars and academics. This constructive
criticism inspired me to be more connected with my residents and put on a large-scale educational program with
fellow RAs.
“Kin’s Thrift Shop” was a program I lead to bring awareness to the needs of the local homeless population
and to encourage my residents to make a difference. After two months of planning, we set up a donation station at
the front desks where fellow college students could donate clothes. Afterwards, we set up a program to sell the
clothes and baked goods for donations. At its completion, we had enough donations to provide a sizable clothing
donation and provide over 700 meals to the homeless. Seeing the impact that I made by implementing such a
program gave me a tremendous amount of satisfaction and made me feel proud that I was able to successfully lead
and delegate my fellow RAs to create an interactive program that involved the whole community while also bringing
awareness and assistance to the local homeless population. For the following semester, my supervisor and fellow
RAs recognized the effort that I made into the RA job and had my program win as “Program of the Year” across the
entire campus.

Question 6 - Please discuss the diversity that you would bring to the OHSU School of Medicine and the profession of

medicine. Click here for OHSU's definition of diversity: Center for Diversity & Inclusion 2000 characters

Growing up as a minority in Corpus Christi, TX where Asians constitute only 1.8% of the population and
Hispanics over 60% allowed me to understand the Mexican culture, language, and heritage through both work and
school. Additionally, I was exposed to the public health issues of diabetes and obesity in my local community. As a
result, a group of students and I co-organized a non-profit organization to promote healthier habits by implementing
educational and exercise programs in the local elementary schools and creating an annual 5K run. This experience of
being an Asian American growing up in a distinctly Hispanic community provided me a uniquely culturally
assimilated childhood, and helped me cultivate an open-mindedness to other cultures.
Once I started attending university, I was able to independently subsidize my travels overseas to over 15
different countries, including to the Dominican Republic for medical missionary work, to Spain for a biological
study program, to Heidelberg, Germany for a medical internship, and to other countries to experience different
cultures. My trip to the Dominican Republic gave me the unique opportunity to set up medical clinics in rural
communities. Studying in Spain allowed me to immerse myself in the Spanish culture, while studying evolutionary
studies. I also witnessed the disparity in the quality of healthcare in countries like Sri Lanka. Currently, I am living
in Germany gaining first-hand insight and experience in the latest techniques in laparoscopic surgery at the
University of Heidelberg Hospital. Through these experiences, I have experienced people of different nationalities
and cultures, and come to an understanding of the universal need for healthcare. All of this has reinforced my desire
to become a physician. I believe I can use these skills to better serve my patients and to provide medical care in a
culturally sensitive environment.