Although it is not a long journey for everyone, my process of finding what I love took many years. All of the previous posts on this blog have been about writing or general productivity tips but I am hoping to include some more of my love for biology and medicine.
"Many people die with their music still in them." This quote is from Oliver Wendell Holmes and for years it petrified me because I believed that I would be one of these people. When I applied for college in 2011, I had looked through all of the majors and found not a single one of them interesting enough to do for the rest of my life. I want to say to anyone reading this that is unsure about what they want to do that it is okay and you will not necessarily "die with your music still in you."
I was accepted into UCF as a mechanical engineering student but before orientation I switched to a biology student. Around my sophomore year I decided that I would go to graduate school for physical therapy. Throughout all of these decisions, I wasn't happy with any of them. I did enjoy my biology classes but I didn't know if they would lead to a satisfying career. I didn't really enjoy physical therapy, especially once I started shadowing, but I saw it as the least awful option for my future.
Looking back now, it is incredible that I stuck my pre-PT track for so long when it was obviously not for me. What I did enjoy was my classes in biology, medicine, and physiology. I loved learning about the human body, the cells, the processes, the pathways. The only problem was, I didn't know what careers out there related to these besides doctor or professor.
By the end of my junior year, as I was preparing to take the GRE and looking at physical therapy school, I finally came across biomedical engineering. It was the perfect fit. The more research I did into the job, the more excited I was. It combined my love of biology, physiology, and medicine, and it added in an extra component of engineering that made it so I wasn't just researching but could also find cutting-edge applications for my knowledge. This semester, I was accepted into the graduate programs of Boston University, Carnegie Mellon University, and the University of Pennsylvania.
For anyone out there, whether you're still in high school or you're undergrad, or even if you've already graduated, don't settle. If you're not happy with what your current plan is, then keep on looking. It took me many years to find what I love but I'm glad that I never settled for anything less. All you have to do to find what you love is keep searching and eventually you'll find something that "speaks" to you, something that makes you excited.
"Many people die with their music still in them." This quote is from Oliver Wendell Holmes and for years it petrified me because I believed that I would be one of these people. When I applied for college in 2011, I had looked through all of the majors and found not a single one of them interesting enough to do for the rest of my life. I want to say to anyone reading this that is unsure about what they want to do that it is okay and you will not necessarily "die with your music still in you."
I was accepted into UCF as a mechanical engineering student but before orientation I switched to a biology student. Around my sophomore year I decided that I would go to graduate school for physical therapy. Throughout all of these decisions, I wasn't happy with any of them. I did enjoy my biology classes but I didn't know if they would lead to a satisfying career. I didn't really enjoy physical therapy, especially once I started shadowing, but I saw it as the least awful option for my future.
Looking back now, it is incredible that I stuck my pre-PT track for so long when it was obviously not for me. What I did enjoy was my classes in biology, medicine, and physiology. I loved learning about the human body, the cells, the processes, the pathways. The only problem was, I didn't know what careers out there related to these besides doctor or professor.
By the end of my junior year, as I was preparing to take the GRE and looking at physical therapy school, I finally came across biomedical engineering. It was the perfect fit. The more research I did into the job, the more excited I was. It combined my love of biology, physiology, and medicine, and it added in an extra component of engineering that made it so I wasn't just researching but could also find cutting-edge applications for my knowledge. This semester, I was accepted into the graduate programs of Boston University, Carnegie Mellon University, and the University of Pennsylvania.
For anyone out there, whether you're still in high school or you're undergrad, or even if you've already graduated, don't settle. If you're not happy with what your current plan is, then keep on looking. It took me many years to find what I love but I'm glad that I never settled for anything less. All you have to do to find what you love is keep searching and eventually you'll find something that "speaks" to you, something that makes you excited.
