Ever since I have been little, I have always been fascinated by biology and all of its counterparts. My sister and I would beg our parents every day after school to take us to the Museum of Natural History, where we would spend hours running through the Hall of Biodiversity. We chased after our imagination and curiosity and followed it all around the building, walking among prehistoric landscapes and ancient creatures. Once I started taking higher-level classes in school, I was able to foster my love of biology through my academics. I filled up every available space in my schedule with biology and always went out of my way to befriend my teachers and engage in discussion. Even though all of my classes were enriching, I found myself with more questions and a desire to discover even more. This quest ultimately led me to biology research. For the past two years, I have worked as a research intern at Weill Cornell Medicine studying beta-cell failure in Type 2 Diabetes. This experience has been one of the most rewarding of my life. I thrived in a natural setting where I was learning from seasoned scientists and wasn’t just confined to the words written down in a book. I spent hours looking under a microscope scanning for proteins that would help create a window into the potential cure for Type 2 Diabetes. Being able to work on a project that had the potential to help millions of people across the world also instilled a sense of purpose and responsibility in me. My work made me want to care for people and give hope to those who are struggling through illness, which makes biology a passion I want to pursue throughout the rest of my life.
