“These are not your typical educational videos,” explains Professor Wayne Vogl, the nerdy-chic co-star in a set of 14 short neuroanatomy videos created by the UBC Faculty of Medicine, the brainchild of Claudia Krebs, a Professor of Teaching in the Department of Cellular and Physiological Sciences.

Telling a story for greater understanding

“I’ve watched videos of anatomists teaching anatomy, and it’s usually very dry: ‘This is the artery, this is the nerve, this is the muscle,’ ” Dr. Vogl says. “There’s no sense that there’s a bigger story to tell. We wanted to show that the upper limb’s anatomy is designed to position your hand in space to use as a sensory and motor tool. A student starting from that point would be in a better position to build into it all of the detail they need.”

Dr. Krebs produced the videos for UBC students, but they are now being viewed by students around the world – sometimes because their instructors have required it.

“This has been a career-defining project for me, and it has led to connections with colleagues around the world,” Dr. Krebs says.

Claudia Krebs with students in the “Brain and Behaviour” lab. Photo by Martin Dee

The videos began as part of a larger project undertaken by Dr. Krebs to transform the “Brain and Behaviour” block she taught for more than a decade.

Inspired by the trend toward “flexible learning,” she wanted to provide her students with more content before lectures and labs, so that classroom time could be re-oriented toward analysis and application to clinical cases. But to entice students to dive into such complex material on their own, she knew it had to be interactive, engaging, even stylized.

But Dr. Krebs didn’t find anything that reflected UBC’s distinctive approach to teaching anatomy, which emphasizes how everything fits together into a larger whole. Nor did she find anything that was very watchable.

So she teamed with Dr. Vogl, Zac Rothman, a video producer in the Faculty’s educational technology office, and a few eager graduate students to make some material of their own.

A debut, and then a sequel

The first set of nine videos, funded with a grant by UBC’s Flexible Learning initiative, was released in 2014. Anecdotally, Dr. Krebs noticed greater confidence among her students. That observation was confirmed by exam results from the first two cohorts: the bell curve distribution of grades shifted to the right, with the lowest-scoring students moving from the 60s to the 70s.

“Teaching is not so much about knowledge transmission, as it is about helping students understand,” Dr. Krebs says. “These videos set the tone by focusing on how things work, and how they fit into the larger whole, and made for more vivid class discussions.”

So, like any self-respecting producer, she decided to make a sequel – or five. They picked up where the first series left off, focusing on extensions of the central nervous system to rest of the head, as well as the arm.

“In the second series, we had a lot more fun with it, because we knew the medium, and we played with it more,” Dr. Krebs says.

Each video started with scripts that were initially written by Dr. Krebs or Dr. Vogl, then refined and pared down by the team in “writers’ room” sessions, where every line was scrutinized and revised for clarity, coherence, even eloquence.

“We wanted the words to roll off the speaker’s tongue,” Dr. Krebs says.

A sublime cinematic moment

Beyond the words, the team would brainstorm for the visual hooks that would embed the concept in the viewer’s mind, and elevate the videos to something akin to art.

“We tried to have those memorable moments so people could connect with it,” she says.

For the brachial plexus video, the team’s original idea was to film young children playing with toys. After concluding that using children would be too challenging, they hit upon the idea of playing the violin, which depends on movement of the upper limb.

That is how Jennie Press, a violinist in the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, found herself performing Bach in a most unlikely venue: UBC’s immense and immaculate gross anatomy lab, where medical students dissect donated cadavers. (For the shoot, the covered bodies were pushed off to the side, outside the frame.)

For a smooth tracking shot, Rothman mounted a camera on a circular rail surrounding the musician. And Dr. Vogl, after several attempts, mastered the multi-tasking – the walking, talking and looking – required for that opening sequence.

“The whole thing was just spectacular,” Dr. Krebs says. “It almost brought tears to my eyes.”

Make ‘em laugh – and they’ll remember

A Monty Pythonesque scene from one of the neuroanatomy videos.

In addition to the sublime, they also indulged in the ridiculous.

For an overview of the head and neck, Rothman – inspired by diagrams Dr. Vogl created for Gray’s Anatomy for Students – proposed using Monty Pythonesque animation. So Dr. Vogl was transformed into a bespectacled, bow-tie clad avatar.

Playfulness – more than one would ever expect in an anatomy lesson – abounds. To convey how systems for breathing and systems for eating or drinking are connected and separated by a system of valves, graduate student Arlo Adams downs a glass of water, holds it in his mouth, and dramatically inhales and exhales through his nose to the beat of a raucous drum solo.

The video concludes with interviews of children from Lord Tennyson Elementary School recounting instances of drinking and laughing at the same time, with the inevitable result: a spray of liquid shooting out of the nose.

“It just kind of went everywhere,” one girl says.

“It brought comic relief to a content-heavy video,” Dr. Krebs says. “And if you laugh at something, you remember it better.”

The start of something bigger

Graduate student Arlo Adams dramatically downs a glass of water to demonstrate how systems for breathing and systems for eating or drinking are connected and separated by a system of valves.

From the start, Dr. Krebs was determined to share these videos far beyond UBC. So she posted them on YouTube, and without any marketing or buzz, they slowly went viral – at least by the standards of medical education videos.

The first installment, “Introduction to the Central Nervous System,” has been viewed close to 150,000 times. The medical schools of Boston University, the University of Washington, the University of the West Indies, the University of Ottawa and Vrije Universiteit (“Free University”) Amsterdam have added the videos to their curricula. Students from Hawaii, Louisiana, the U.K., Australia, Germany, Bangladesh, Brazil and even Iraq have emailed their praise. An online search for “neuroanatomy” brings up the landing page for Dr. Krebs’ course material – at the very top of the results.

“I saw the first two, and I immediately sent an email to her to congratulate her, because they were the best-shot educational videos I have ever seen,” said Jochen Bretschneider, a lecturer at Vrije Universiteit’s School of Medical Sciences and an ear, nose and throat surgeon at its affiliated medical centre. “Very nice light, very nice focus, very nice audio. They were short, to the point.”

Dr. Bretschneider, who recently earned a filmmaking degree, has produced some of his own medical education videos. With Dr. Krebs’ permission, he included UBC’s work in Vrije Universiteit’s collection.

The videos have brought together like-minded anatomists around the world, in Amsterdam, Sweden, Glasgow and Auckland, who are creating similar material – not just videos, but three-dimensional interactive models. Their working name: the Anatomy Hub.

“There’s no point in the guys in the Netherlands doing their own video on the brachial plexus. It’s done, they can go ahead and use it,” Dr. Krebs says.

Taking a stand for anatomy

She and her colleagues aim to create a repository of anatomy material that would help preserve anatomy’s footprint in an ever-evolving medical curriculum.

“The basic science instructors are realizing that we need to get our information out there to students, because some of it is being pushed to the side,” Dr. Krebs says. “This is a good way to ensure the students get that content, even if it’s only piecemeal, with students seeking it out when they feel they need it.”

She and her colleagues also believe this kind of material can be particularly helpful for medical students in developing countries, where qualified instructors are in short supply. A three-time winner of teaching awards from medical students and the Faculty of Medicine’s first Professor of Teaching, Dr. Krebs would never claim that videos can replace in-person instruction. But digital resources like these, if educationally sound and expertly produced, can make the educational experience so much better, because they free up classroom time to put content into context.

“UBC, as one of the best universities in the world, has a social responsibility to reach out,” she says. “We can’t just stay in our ivory tower and keep our knowledge and expertise to ourselves. Not every university has the resources to create educational material like this. We do. For us to share that knowledge is part of our responsibility and part of where education, globally, is going. And UBC can be leader with that.”

Since the MED 2020 class is full, we have shortened the waitlist. To applicants who received disappointing news today, please accept our congratulations on making it so far. We hope your hard work and notable achievements are a source of pride for you. Waitlisted applicants who did not hear from us today are still on the waitlist. However, as there is likely to be little or no movement on the waitlist from here on out, we still recommend thinking about your next application or other plans.

Due to the potential Canada Post strike, we recommend that applicants who are currently submitting transcripts avoid sending their transcripts via regular mail and choose a different method, such as courier delivery. Applicants in the Vancouver area can also drop off their transcripts in person at our mailing address during the hours listed on our website.

As of now we are not extending the September 15 deadline. We will continue to monitor the situation, but for now all transcripts must arrive by September 15 as usual.

The Rural and/or Northern Training section of the application is used to assess applicants’ suitability for training at the Northern Medical Program and the rural seats of the Southern Medical Program. If you are open to training at one of these sites and believe you would be a good candidate, we encourage you to complete this section of the application.

What makes a good candidate? Rural experience, broadly defined. Many applicants have lived, worked, volunteered, or participated in recreational activities in different areas of the province. We are particularly interested in northern, Interior, and/or rural experiences, so we encourage you to include these on your application, even if you are not sure the location is ‘rural enough.’ This goes for all applicants interested in this section, in fact – we evaluate rurality internally, so if you believe something is relevant to this section of the application, please include it even if you are unsure about the location.

Similarly, although many applicants who complete this section are BC residents, we also value rural experience outside of BC. Out-of-province applicants who are interested in northern and/or rural training are equally encouraged to complete this section of the application.

Completing the Rural and/or Northern Training section gives you more options in terms of site selection. Applicants who do not complete this section are not considered for the NMP or the rural SMP seats. However, completing this section does not mean you have to rank NMP and SMP as your top sites, or even rank them at all. It just leaves the door open for you to rank them if you are interested. Applicants are not allowed to go back and complete this section later on, so the only chance you have to complete this section is when you are filling out the application.

For more information about the NMP and SMP, please see the Northern Medical Program and Southern Medical Program websites. As a reminder, all UBC MD Undergraduate Program sites deliver the same curriculum, and students at all sites graduate with an MD from UBC. There is one application for the program. Applicants invited to interview rank their preferred sites during the interview stage of the application process, and applicants are allocated to sites in late spring.

The online application system will be undergoing maintenance this weekend and will be intermittently unavailable from Friday, July 22 at 10:00 p.m. to Sunday, July 24 at 11:00 p.m. Applicants attempting to use the system at this time may experience disruptions in service. We apologize for the inconvenience.

The other day we were perusing PreMed101 and found this conversation. The poster essentially asked forum members if it would make sense to split up his/her work experience into the projects or activities that were required for his/her job and put them in either/both the Non-Academic Activities or Employment History section. As evaluators of non-academic experiences, we humbly request that you do not do this. As stated in the Help Guide, we look through both the Non-Academic Activities section and the Employment History section of the application for the same traits and qualities considered important in generating a non-academic score. When evaluating different experiences it is important for us to understand the context in which you were doing them and the time frame in which you completed them. This also gives the Admissions Selection Committee a better understanding of your background when they are selecting the class post interview.

Remember, we do not know you personally. When you divide one of your experiences into several parts, labeling each a different title, with different hours, and then list them in both the Employment History and Non-Academic Activities sections, you make it seem like you were hired to do independent jobs over a series of months or years, and that you volunteered for the same company for as many hours as you were working, doing similar (but different) tasks, during the same time frame. This is extremely challenging (and confusing) to adjudicate, and often candidates who do this are sent a number of emails from our office clarifying what they actually meant- that they worked for one company, in the same job, for a specific period of time. It’s okay to have only one entry, even if it was a significant life experience. We understand that jobs are multifaceted. In the 350 character box we expect you to provide a specific description of your main duties in your role (use the Non-Academic Activities preamble in the Help Guide to direct you). Unfortunately, you will not be able to fit a description of every project you worked on or person you interacted with. This is fine. We do not need this information to accurately assess your application. The only time you should divide your activity is if you had different roles with the same employer over different time frames (eg. started as a sales associate then became store manager). Or, you did actually volunteer with the organization you also worked for (eg. volunteered as a youth leader for an organization on weekends and worked as their office administrator during the week).

It is not necessary to fill up your Non-Academic Activities/Employment History sections to receive a good non-academic evaluation. It is better to write your application in a clear and concise way. Think of each line like a line on a CV. Each line should be unique, and it should be placed in the category where it seems like the best fit. As stated in the Help Guide, we do not deduct points for things being “out of place.” But it does make our job easier when you follow the instructions as outlined in the Help Guide. If you have any pointers about how we might improve the Help Guide in the future, please let us know. We’re always happy to hear from you. You can comment here or send an email. Thanks!

Some verifiers are easy to choose: your current supervisor, your former coach, your guitar teacher. Others are more problematic. Because the Admissions Office has a responsibility to verify the accuracy of applications in order to ensure fairness for all applicants, we require a verifier for all non-academic, employment, and rural training experiences. However, we recognize that it can be hard to find a verifier for some entries. We hope these questions can help if you are struggling with a difficult verifier situation.

1. I worked somewhere/did something a long time ago and have lost touch with my supervisor.

   This is a common problem. Sometimes the organization will keep records, so you might be able to put down the current HR person. Remember, the verifier only needs to be able to confirm the details you list on the application – they don’t have to know you personally or comment on your performance. Alternatively, you might be able to reach out through social media to get in touch with your former supervisor. The ‘last resort’ is to use a coworker. You may do this at your discretion, but please note that in some cases we may contact you to ask for a different verifier. We do not accept things like certificates, newspaper articles, or other non-human forms of verification.

2. I have a hobby I usually do on my own. You say not to put yourself down as a verifier, so who should I put?

   For solo hobbies, you may choose a friend or family member who knows about your hobby.

3. I own my own business and work by myself. Since I cannot put myself down as a verifier, who should I pick?

   A business is more formal than a hobby, so we prefer that you not use a friend or family member. You might consider using someone like an accountant or lawyer who can confirm the basic details of your business. Clients are a bit trickier because they may not know the total number of hours you work or the start and end dates of your business.

4. I work for a family business. You say not to use friends or family members as verifiers, so who should I choose?

   Ideally, you could pick a non-family member who supervised you, but we understand that many family businesses are small and are staffed only by family members. In this case, if there is no one else, you may use the family member who supervised you.

5. The only people who can verify my activity are also applying to the MD program.

   Sorry, applicants should not verify activities for other applicants. Please try to find someone else.

6. What happens if the Admissions Office thinks I put down an inappropriate verifier? Will the activity be automatically disregarded?

   We will not automatically disregard an activity unless you put yourself down as a verifier or enter something like “no verifier”. As long as you have made an honest attempt to list a suitable verifier, we will contact you if we need to verify the activity and we have concerns about the verifier. We are not looking for ways to disregard activities or withhold points – we really want to reward your accomplishments and experiences. We just need to make sure the entries listed are accurate.

Ultimately, verifier choice is your decision. The Admissions Office cannot give you permission to list a particular verifier on your application or help you if you are trying to decide between two or more potential verifiers. Please use your best judgement to work within the guidelines provided.

The MED 2020 class officially started their medical education program yesterday. This is a happy and exciting time for them, and we wish them good luck as they start this new phase of their lives. Since the class is now finalized, no more positions will be available this year. We have notified all remaining applicants on the waitlist and would like to offer special congratulations to them for making it so far in the application process.

The Admissions Office will be closed on Friday, August 26 due to an all-day training event.

The Canada Post labour dispute continues to evolve and we are monitoring the situation. For now, however, the transcript deadline stands. All transcripts must arrive at our mailing address by Thursday, September 15 at noon Pacific Time. As a reminder, we do not accept faxed or emailed transcripts.

What if there is a strike? We will definitely address that if it happens, but right now we are not speculating on what we may or may not do if disruptive job action occurs.

Strike or no, if you have not yet submitted your transcript requests to your institutions, please do so immediately. It may take longer than you think for your institution to process your request and the travel time to UBC may be greater than you anticipate. If you are concerned about the potential for a postal strike, you might consider sending your transcripts by courier if you have that option.

Program: MD Undergraduate Program, Vancouver-Fraser Medical Program
Class of 2020

Hometown: Vancouver, B.C

What attracted you to your field of study or research?
I grew up in a family which had to constantly look after the health care needs of my father, who unfortunately was afflicted by a plethora of chronic illnesses. Although he passed away a few years ago, I was able to experience first-hand how clinicians are able to make a positive, lasting impact on an individual and by extension, their family members and friends. At the same time, I also recognized that modern medicine has its fair share of limitations, and I was filled with a desire to push its boundaries in every direction.

What excites you about the upcoming year?
First of all, being able to see how similar and different medical school is compared to my undergraduate classes. But more importantly, I am excited to be a part of a diverse community of classmates (and future colleagues!) who are willing to support and build each other up, one which I can learn from and hopefully contribute to in a meaningful way.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
I was named prom king at the conclusion of my high school prom. Anyone who knew me back then must have been shocked by that outcome, and I do not blame them.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I see myself working hard in the midst of an exciting residency in a medical specialty I am passionate about. I do not have one pinpointed yet, although there are a few that I cannot wait to explore and gauge my interest in. I would love to do post-graduate training in my hometown of Vancouver, but moving somewhere else would be awesome as well!

Best piece of advice: In the words of former Vancouver Canucks goaltender, Cory Schneider (who I greatly miss): “Don’t fear failure. Compete 100%. Enjoy the process. Play for others.”

Last vacation destination: I had an opportunity to visit Atlantic Canada (Newfoundland) in July. One highlight was being able to sit on the edge of Cape Spear (the most easterly point in Canada) and surveying the endless ocean in front of me. Needless to say, it was a humbling reminder of how small we truly are and how we are part of something bigger than ourselves. As nice as the east coast is, being from Vancouver, it will always be #westcoastbestcoast for me.

Program: MD Undergraduate Program, Vancouver-Fraser Medical Program
Class of 2020

What attracted you to your field of study or research?
Coming from a research background, I was particularly interested in studying medicine because I wanted to have the opportunity to treat patients. Hopefully I will have the chance to use what I learn from my patients to improve treatments through more research later on!

What excited you about the upcoming year?
I am especially excited to explore my interests through the many and diverse med student clubs – looking forward to the work hard, play hard environment!

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
I was once a Varsity captain for rifle shooting (marksmanship).

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Hopefully, I will have survived med school and will be happily getting on with my residency!

Best piece of advice: Sleep is important! (Some of my previous research was about sleep…)

Last vacation destination: Morocco – we did a camel trek in the Sahara!

Program: MD Undergraduate Program, Vancouver-Fraser Medical Program
Class of 2020

Hometown: Vancouver

What attracted you to your field of study or research?
The potential to significantly change patients’ lives for the better.

What excites you about the upcoming year?
Imagining the process of learning medicine, learning about the normal and diseased states of the human body, and learning about case studies makes me excited. I’m sure the actual learning process will be even more exciting!

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
When I was little, I took lessons in piano, clarinet, auto saxophone, and guitar. Currently, my best musical maneuver is whistling.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Entering a residency program with the same (or even more) passion for medicine, and being well equipped and ready to dedicate my life to a career in medical innovation.

Best piece of advice: With busy schedules, intentionally make time for aerobic exercise, adequate sleep, 30 minutes of light exposure each morning, good nutrition, and social connection. Practice anti-rumination regularly.

Last vacation destination: I visited a few cities in China this past summer. I learned a lot about the culture and the people there. I hope this experience will help me in the future when working with the growing Vancouver population of Chinese descent.

Program: MD Undergraduate Program, Vancouver-Fraser Medical Program
Class of 2020

Hometown: North Vancouver

What attracted you to your field of study or research?
Medicine is an amazing field that requires a vast array of skills and knowledge, which is perfect for my temperament. To be a great physician, it requires that you are always striving to improve in all areas of your life. A career in medicine will allow me to blend my interests in sports, science, wellness, and spirituality in an interactive and personal manner to ease suffering and positively impact the lives of others.

What excites you about the upcoming year?
I am excited for the life-long friendships I will develop, the challenges of medical school, and the hands-on experience I will gain to learn and better understand human anatomy. A career in medicine requires an obsession with life-long learning and improving your tool-kit to heal others. You never know what piece of knowledge or skill you will need to save someone’s life.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
I have started my own small business, Sustainable Athletics, to help support athletes achieve sustainable peak performance.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I see myself just finishing my first year of residency, having the opportunity to truly impact the lives of my patients, as well as work with athletes to allow them to be the best they can be (pain free), while playing a big role in the community sharing information about wellness.

Best piece of advice: “Our main business is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand.”

This does not mean that we blindly follow a path and do not plan for the future. Instead, it is the realization that the best way to prepare for the future is to remain 100% focused on doing whatever you are doing right now to the best of your abilities. That is the only effective way to prepare for the future and it’s the only way that will allow you to remain peaceful, no matter what.

Last vacation destination: My last vacation destination was San Francisco, where my family and I had the privilege to watch the Cleveland Cavaliers versus the Golden State Warriors on Christmas Day. My whole family is fanatical about hoops.

Program: MD Undergraduate Program, Vancouver-Fraser Medical Program
Class of 2020

Hometown: Vancouver

What attracted you to your field of study or research?
Medicine is a field that integrates both science and art. As a physician, understanding the science behind treatments, causes of illness, and learning more about new treatments is something you are obligated to know. But, the art component of it comes in as being able to share that feeling of compassion with your patients and developing trust, and maintaining a personal and emotionally sincere relationship with your patients in order to serve them and help better their lives without making any judgments or prejudice.

What excites you about the upcoming year?
With the upcoming year being my first year as a medical student, and the start of a whole new chapter in my life, it really feels like going back to Grade 1, where one is about to embark on a new beginning and a fresh new journey that will shape my life in the future. The most exciting part of it all is definitely being able to meet all these amazing classmates who all have big goals and objectives, and whom I share a similar passion with.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
I actually started school a year early and skipped Grade 3 in elementary school, which led me into always being younger than my classmates throughout elementary school, high school, and also university.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
In 5 years I hope to be able to pursue my medical studies in a residency program here at home in Vancouver. I have not yet decided what exactly I would like to specialize in, but I really hope that whatever I’ll be specializing in, it will be something that I love and feel happy about.

Best piece of advice: My best piece of advice to all pre-meds is to pursue things based on the joy and pleasure you get out of doing them, not just to stack-up your application. As long as they show that they are passionate about something, they are in good hands!

Last vacation destination: I travelled throughout Europe for most of summer 2016. My Eurotrip started from Copenhagen and ended in Lisbon, Portugal, where I stayed for 4 days and absolutely enjoyed every minute of it. I will definitely go back again one day!

Program: MD Undergraduate Program, Vancouver-Fraser Medical Program
Class of 2019

Hometown: Toronto, ON

What attracted you to your field of study or research?
The most attractive feature of medicine is knowing that I will be able to help people of all ages, genders and backgrounds regardless of where I am. Personally, I have seen a physician help a distressed elderly individual on an aircraft over 30,000 feet in the sky! This ‘power’ to help beyond your typical hospital or office setting and literally beyond any borders is what excites me! This is also what led me to study medicine and I know that my end goal is not to know everything, but to use whatever little bit I do learn to make a difference in how people see and live their lives.

What excites you about the upcoming year?
I am going into my second year of medical school still wondering where the first year went! Time absolutely flew last year and I am expecting the same to happen this year as well. I look forward to connecting again with the great group of close friends I made last year and also with the rest of my wonderful peers. I am a big fan of the new FLEX program at UBC and my project this year will be at the Sick Kids Hospital in Toronto, which I have always wanted to be a part of! I am really looking forward to that experience. Apart from school, I also look forward to spending my time in Vancouver and exploring beautiful British Columbia a little more.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
Despite being born and brought-up in Toronto, when it comes to hockey, I am actually a die-hard fan of one of the rival, The Ottawa Senators (Go Sens Go)!

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
In 5 years, I see myself pursuing a residency program in the area that would have interested me the most during my time at UBC Medicine. Having been away from home, I expect to be a better cook by then as well! Hopefully, I don’t lose any more of my hair either!

Best piece of advice: Make sure to maintain a good work-life balance (physician burnout is real!) We received this advice a lot in first year and I truly support it. For me, joining intramural sport teams, the Bhangra dance team, and working out at the gym really helped offset any stress from school. Pick something that works for you and stick to it.

Last vacation destination: India in 2011, after my high school graduation. Another trip is long overdue!

Program: MD Undergraduate Program, Vancouver-Fraser Medical Program
Class of 2020

Hometown: Cranbrook, British Columbia

What attracted you to your field of study or research?
A number of things attracted me to medicine. Among these are my desire to work with people on a daily basis and to apply the knowledge and background I have in physiology in order to have a tangible impact on the lives of others.

What excites you about the upcoming year?
I am excited to get to know my future classmates and colleagues, as well as to learn new things and integrate previous knowledge in a practical setting. Most of all, I am looking forward to interacting with patients and clinicians outside of the classroom.

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
I defended my doctoral thesis this summer in comparative (avian!) physiology. During the last four and a half years, I investigated how the cardiorespiratory system of high-altitude geese and ducks were specialized to cope with hypoxia (low oxygen). This led me to work with over 15 waterfowl species in rural Tibet, Peru and North America, as well as to collaborate with international research teams and local communities.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
In five years I hope to be practicing as a resident, as well as seeking opportunities to integrate my love for teaching and interest in research into my future career.

Best piece of advice: The best piece of advice that I could provide anyone embarking on another degree, would be to have a strong community and to stay involved in something that gives them life – that helps them to have fun and decompress. For me, this is music and spending time with my friends and family. During my graduate studies, I played flute and piccolo with the UBC wind ensemble and found the rehearsals and concerts to be a complete oasis! Also, be sure to have a support system – peers, friends, and family with whom you can be real and who can cheer you on.

Last vacation destination: Having both just finished graduate degrees, my husband and I went on a major bucket list trip this summer and traveled to Auckland, New Zealand, as well as to four islands in French Polynesia (Tahiti, Moorea, Tahaa and Bora Bora). Everything was incredible, from the postcard scenery and friendly locals, to the tropical French cuisine and underwater wildlife. I would highly recommend this adventure!

Program: MD Undergraduate Program, Vancouver-Fraser Medical Program
Class of 2017

Hometown: Burnaby

What attracted you to your field of study or research?
I fell in love with medicine during my undergraduate degree in Physiology at UBC! I loved the pathophysiology and was looking for a way to apply it in the ‘real world’ and was so fortunate to have found my calling in medicine. Coming from a non-traditional background, the obstacles at times felt insurmountable, so I am so thankful and honoured to be in the UBC Medical Program! The past three years have only confirmed my choice and I couldn’t imagine a better combination of public service and academic stimulation!

What excites you about the upcoming year?
Everything. This year I will be graduating! I am super excited to be challenged by a variety of electives across the country and getting matched to my specialty! I am curious to see what twists and turns this year throws at us!

What’s one thing we might be surprised to learn about you?
I love to watch documentaries! It is so valuable to have access to such a wealth of information on innumerable topics!

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Happy and working hard! I will be well into my residency and looking forward to my College Exams! I hope to have lots more travel under my belt and be already planning my next trip. Hopefully, I will be well established in my community and chosen field and looking forward to the next steps in my career.

Best piece of advice: Just keep swimming! Applicable in countless contexts.

Last vacation destination: Colombia! An unexpected gem. The people and culture are so vibrant and welcoming. The country itself is very ecologically diverse, with rich pre-Colombian cultures and the largest variety of bird species in the world! The hiking was unbelievable, the coffee heavenly and the beaches were white sand paradises! I highly recommend visiting Colombia to everyone!

The Class of 2020 has officially started the UBC MD Undergraduate Program. Here, incoming students of the Island Medical Program reveal what attracted them to the field of medicine and where they see themselves in 5 years.