PreHealth Spotlight: Laurel Banach

Class year: 2014
Major: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Psychological & Brain Sciences

There is no one road to get to medical school. But being passionate and genuinely interested in making medicine better will make it easier.

Vitals

MD candidate, UMass Medical School

My first step was paying for college, because I had no shot at becoming a physician if I did not have a college degree. I worked a few tutoring positions in the athletic resource center and library Learning Commons to make ends meet. I honestly feel that working on top of taking 20-credit semesters made me a stronger person and more resilient.

The next step was finding an educational path that was both tailored to a career in medicine but, more important, was interesting. I began as a Biochemistry major because my dad said that after graduation I could at least get a job in biotech, although I was not at all interested in that field. I loved the chemistry and biological applications so I stuck with it but added a second major in Psychology so I could study people a bit more. Since I had AP credits, I decided to push myself to earn a dual degree, which required completing requirements for both majors with at least 150 credits. I mapped this out to be done in seven semesters, which I am aware is crazy, but certainly doable if you like to take a lot of classes and stay busy.

Then I got involved. I joined the club lacrosse program to stay active and healthy while learning to cooperate with a team amidst hectic schedules. I was a TA for entry-level biochemistry courses and an upper-level psychology course in order to build my relationship with faculty. I also experienced the challenges of teaching on a larger scale than one-on-one tutoring. Every summer I worked and volunteered at a YMCA camp; I did this and other volunteer opportunities in order to stay involved in the communities in which I lived.

Early on at UMass Amherst, I joined a research lab studying something I really loved—and stuck with it. Once I found my niche, I developed it and became an active member rather than someone that just went through the motions. In this lab I completed my honors thesis on the development of face-scanning patterns during infancy, which boosted my love for research, improved my methods of scientific communication, and advanced my ability to use science to convey clinical ideas.

Clearly, there is no one road to get to medical school. But being passionate and genuinely interested in making medicine better will make it easier to find a spot in a medical school class.

Published November 2015