SEN Intern: What year did you graduate?
Victoria Oladipo: May 2018
SEN: What was your major?
V: Biology – Vertebrate Physiology focus
SEN: Can you tell us a bit about your experience completing the Global Health minor, including traveling abroad, while at Penn State? How has that impacted your current role? Are there any skills or interests you found in that experience that lead you to your current role?
V: The Global Health minor provided the perfect supplementation of sociopolitical and cultural enrichment to the science courses of my major. Following this with the excursion to Senegal really solidified the concepts I had learned, and allowed me to think more reflectively on my trip. I was able to form relationships with several different healthcare providers and community members, learn about effective non-profit organizations and sustainable development, and become better acquainted with rural medicine. Currently, I’m a second-year medical student at the University of Chicago, and I’ve already found that this experience has significantly contributed to my medical career. For example, it’s allowed me to better understand the interdisciplinary and collaborative nature of healthcare, and the vastly different roles that impact it. Out of everything I did at Penn State, the global health minor solidified that I wanted to become a physician. Delving more into research, biomedical advancement, health policy, and the provider-patient relationship through the minor gave me clarity of what I wanted in a career. Learning about so many key players in healthcare has increased my understanding and appreciation for my current and future colleagues’ roles—as well as the infrastructure in which we operate.
SEN: At the Student Engagement Network, we focus on five growth areas when discussing experiences. The five growth areas are: Multicultural Awareness, Civic Responsibility, Professional Development, Ethical Reasoning, and Systems Thinking. During your time at Penn State in this involvement do you see any of the growth areas being applicable to you? If so, which stand out to you in your experience and why?
V: Partaking in the Global Health Minor Program was one of the most rewarding experiences I had at Penn State because of the growth that it fostered in every one of these areas. As far as multicultural awareness, both the curriculum and global fieldwork broadened my understanding of cultural humility, cultural exchange, and the key role of culture as a social determinant of health. Additionally, I believe Ethical Reasoning is essential and foundational in the field of global health, and I feel fortunate to have grown immensely in this area. I became more cognizant of ethical research, and also participated in it. I also learned how to evaluate foreign relations, patient care, and humanistic approaches to medicine. Lastly, I feel as though Systems Thinking was a large area of growth due to the extensive coursework, lectures, and interactive activities surrounding the global fieldwork. These enabled me to think more critically about how systemic institutions such as government, economics, education, public health infrastructure, and many other factors interplay with micro-level factors of the individual’s health.
SEN: What advice would you give to a Penn State student looking to find their why?
V: My advice to Penn State students would be that the most formative experiences are not always the easiest ones to partake in. I cannot express how important it is to challenge yourself in some way—whether that is to apply for a position, take on certain leadership roles, explore unfamiliar involvements, etc. Don’t let imposter syndrome and self-doubt stop you from utilizing the incredible resources Penn State has to offer!
Posing for a picture with the team of health professionals she worked with in Senegal!
Posing outside the clinic they assisted at in Senegal
As part of completing Penn State’s Global Health minor, Victoria traveled to Senegal and worked in clinics.