The UNR School of Medicine stands on Feb. 19, 2018. A new club, Minority Association of Premedical Students offers programs to minorities looking to study pre-med.
The Minority Association of Premedical Students is a student run organization that offers a welcoming and educational program for minority premedical students.
Their goal is to offer a community to help minority students connect and create an inclusive learning environment. They also make efforts to bring awareness to health inequalities within the community. The first meeting will be held on Monday, Oct. 7 at 6:30 p.m. in Davidson Math and Science, room 110.
Alejandra Rodriguez is a second-year student who is majoring in biology and pre-medicine at the University of Nevada, Reno. Alejandra is the co-founder of the organization and Vice President.
The mission of the Minority Association of Premedical Students is to represent future underrepresented medical students. Rodriquez said the strive to receive adequate resources needed for our members to gain confidence in their field as well as the capabilities to make a difference in their communities.
Rodriquez said the Minority Association of Premedical Students is an important asset for any university to have to raise awareness and representation for minorities in the medical field. It allows ambition to run free with the appropriate resources needed for students to succeed in their path to medical school. She said the organization is important to UNR in order to show the students of our own community that there is a way to get your voice heard as well as receive the guidance needed to achieve your goals as a pre-medicine student.
She believes representation means everything so to be able to show our community that there is a away of establishing that individually and as a group, it ignites a sense of hope for the future.
Rodriquez said by becoming a member of the association, it will encourage students to gain more confidence and help them academically through the help of their community. She believes connecting with other minorities and gaining a level of trust with each other extends a helping hand in creating study groups and reaching out for other resources to help students succeed academically.
“Never be afraid to be the smartest person in the room,” Rodriquez said. “Always let your ambition be your biggest drive in wanting to be the best possible person you can be. It is so important to always let your voice be heard no matter what the situation is.”
Julia Bell can be reached at tkjohnson@sagebrush.unr.edu or on Twitter @NevadaSagebrush.