What the Miami Experience means to me
The human body has always interested me, and when I got injured during my sophomore year at Miami—I popped my shoulder out of the socket and tore some ligaments while trying to land a pole vault of 13 feet—I became even more intrigued by it. So I'm majoring in exercise science with the goal of going to medical school and perhaps becoming an orthopedic surgeon one day.
I've really enjoyed studying exercise science. Most pre-med majors at Miami choose zoology, but I wanted to focus on the human side of science rather than animal science. I take the same basic science classes that they do, but I apply them to sports biomechanics or the science of sports.
Between my sophomore and junior year, I applied for and received a grant through the Undergraduate Summer Scholars Program. I was recovering from total shoulder reconstruction surgery, so I decided to put the time to good use. I looked at carbohydrate and fat metabolism after exercise in women with different body fat percentages.
I worked with Dr. Jeffrey Potteiger on the study. He gave me a lot of freedom to do my own research but also offered me a lot of guidance. He and I went to the American College of Sports Medicine's national conference last spring to present my results. I was the only non-PhD, non-MD, to speak in my session. I was nervous, but I was well-prepared. Dr. Potteiger had me do a bunch of smaller presentations to help me get ready. Now we're in the process of trying to get the results published in a peer-reviewed nutrition journal.
