Admissions Essay - I Will Not Be Stopped :: Medicine College Admissions Essays

Admissions Essay -  I Will Not Be Stopped    It is a late summer night and I have just gotten home from work. I work at a meat packing plant where I load tractor-trailers. Since my dad is permanently disabled as a result of a heart attack that occurred two years ago, I feel fortunate to have the job. I've been there three years now and have grown tremendously as a result.    The guys I work with are typical blue-collar workers in that they are poorly educated and lower middle class. Because I am an aspiring physician, many of them share their problems and anxieties with me. Through many interactions, I feel that have become very sensitive, compassionate and understanding. My job is very fulfilling because men of all ages look to me for support and as a role model for their own children.    I relate to the guys at work so well because I was raised in a lower middle class neighborhood and my dad was a blue-collar worker. Most of my neighborhood friends are now unemployed, doing manual labor, or in trouble with the law. I was fortunate to have parents who knew the value of an education and were willing to sacrifice to send me to excellent catholic schools. In retrospect, this was a turning point in my life because I was introduced to a new group of people of different races and different socio-economic backgrounds. Eventually, I became aware of the limitations that my background imposed and I was determined to overcome and far exceed those limitations.    I became interested in medicine through my grandfather who was an unlicensed veterinarian. He had no formal education and relied solely on practical experience; nevertheless, he was quite competent. I would go with him as a young boy to treat animals in our small community. The relief my grandfather provided and the subsequent gratification has left a lasting impression on me. Since his death nearly four years ago, I find myself with a profound desire to vindicate the educational shortcomings that so often frustrated him.    In the summer of 1983, before my college matriculation, I attended Xavier's Stress On Analytical Reasoning (SOAR) Program. The Program's main objective was to prepare students for college level math and science courses. One of the moderators was my cousin who is a Xavier graduate and now a senior at Louisiana State University Medical School.