The Charles Drew Minority Pre-Health Society hosted its ninth annual pre-professional health fair on Wednesday as part of their Charles Drew Memorial Week, drawing over 200 students to Old Union Hall.
The club planned to host one educational event every day this week in memory of African-American physician Charles Drew. The fair itself was an opportunity for pre-health students to meet representatives from eight graduate health schools, including Cornell University, University at Albany and University of Buffalo, and learn more about the medical field.
Erin McArdle, a senior majoring in nursing and president of the Nursing Student Association, said the event was a good chance for students to explore programs that could further their education.
“Sometimes I feel like when we come to school we forget about the world outside,” McArdle said. “We’re in Binghamton for what we came for, but then there’s all these other places that you could go to further careers. I think it’s important to have people come and talk about other programs you might not know about.”
Representatives from colleges helped to explain the application process, such as the nuances of applying to different sections of their respective schools and what tests were required, like the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). The Decker School of Nursing and co-ed professional pre-health fraternity Delta Epsilon Mu tabled as well, and provided information on requirements to get into Decker and the benefits of joining the pre-health fraternity.
Joy Swanson, the director of nutritional sciences at Cornell, said it was also important for students to have hands-on experience and the ability for students to focus on personal areas of improvement.
“Part of the problem is being able to identify what you don’t know,” Swanson said. “That’s going to help you answer the problem. Part of the learning process is showing the students it’s more than just in a lecture hall sucking it in, but it’s applying it.”
It was also a chance for students to interact with these schools without leaving campus, said Ruth Tesfaye, a junior majoring in biology and the education coordinator for Charles Drew.
“Many students have diverse interests and have the opportunity to learn about these programs rather than traveling to those schools,” Tesfaye said. “They can learn about the schools they’re interested in, they can learn about what they can do to improve, to be prepared.”
Tiara Hills, a sophomore majoring in integrative neuroscience and a Charles Drew intern, said the fair was enlightening to those unsure about the specifics of applying to medical schools.
“Some of us don’t really know about the application process, what things we should be putting on our resume, what types of internships we should be looking at,” Hills said. “I hope they just feel comfortable, they become familiarized with the process of going into the medical field.”
Other events throughout the week include free HIV testing and a safety awareness event in conjunction with Harpur’s Ferry Student Volunteer Ambulance Service.