Amelia Diaz

I would definitely have to attribute my success to my parents, for sure. Ever since pre-K and elementary school, they were just involving me in absolutely everything, just to see what my passions would be. At first it kind of annoyed me, but now I realize that I'm really glad that they did that, that they put me in all these extracurriculars, because I got to realize that I had so many different passions and interests that I could pursue at the same time, while still going for my main industry. My dad came to the United States at either [AGE] or [AGE], and he pursued 7 different jobs in New York and Massachusetts, just so that he could find a way to pay for college out of his own pocket. My mom, even though she had two kids, she still pursued her undergraduate degree as a full-time mom and as a full-time student, so I was very blessed to see the college environment at a very early age, and she has definitely been an inspiration. Both my parents have been an inspiration, and my family definitely has been such a large component into my success. They are there for me every failure, every success, every achievement, every bad day, every bad exam, they are always there, and I would be absolutely nowhere if it wasn't for the unity of my family.

The best career advice that I've ever received is just going for any opportunity that your heart desires. It's about getting over that jump in your mind and just truly going for absolutely anything and everything that your heart desires - it will definitely get you far in life. Not only will you get to do all the things that you're passionate about, but you'll be happier in life. This kind of goes into advice that I heard, where if you work in a field that you're passionate about, then you're not truly working.

The biggest advice I would give to young women who want to pursue medicine is that there is no blueprint that you need to follow in order to get into medical school. When you go to the university and start doing the pre-medical track, you are given handouts and PowerPoints about what exactly you need to do to get into medical school. I have always thought that if I did not meet these exact guidelines, I would not get into medical school at all. But when I started doing the things that they said I had to do, I realized that I didn't enjoy some of these things - it just wasn't for me. So I decided that I wasn't going to follow these guidelines, and I was just going to do what I was passionate about, and find the medical school that was going to be the best fit for me. You can do anything you want. You can pursue any passions that you have, whether it's public relations or entrepreneurship, even if they're not necessarily healthcare or medical or clinical. You can still pursue them and be successful in it and still have an amazing chance of getting into medical school. I pursued an entrepreneurship passion project using a NASA patent - that's definitely something that they don't tell you you need to do to get into medical school, but I did it out of my own passion and inspiration to pursue this project, and it is probably one of the highlights of my undergraduate career.

I would say my biggest challenge would probably have to be myself, and I know it sounds kind of weird, but I would always get stuck in my head if I see an opportunity that I want to go for, but in my head I just think that I'm not qualified for it and end up not applying for it. I tend to limit myself sometimes, with imposter syndrome and all that. I think that's my biggest obstacle, and once I've started to get over that fear, I went for opportunities that I, in the past, would never imagined myself in, and now I am in these positions. So I would say that would be my biggest obstacle - sometimes we can truly be our own obstacles.

I would have to say honesty, integrity, and unity are my top 3 values. I believe that being dishonest will get you absolutely nowhere in life, because to me, being dishonest is stealing the truth from someone, or not being true to yourself, and you're just limiting yourself from other opportunities that are meant for you, and not for someone else. I have always thought of myself to be a very person of integrity. I get that from both of my parents, especially my dad. Their life stories have definitely been such an inspiration to me. My dad came to the United States at either [AGE] or [AGE], and he pursued 7 different jobs in New York and Massachusetts, just so that he could find a way to pay for college out of his own pocket. My mom, even though she had two kids, she still pursued her undergraduate degree as a full-time mom and as a full-time student, so I was very blessed to see the college environment at a very early age. Unity is important because my family definitely has been such a large component into my success. They are there for me every failure, every success, every achievement, every bad day, every bad exam, they are always there, and I would be absolutely nowhere if it wasn't for the unity of my family.