Sixty-five members of the UNMC High School Alliance are among the students taking classes at UNMC this academic year.
The students come from high schools around Omaha and take college-level classes to prepare for health careers.
Today we meet:
- Name: Elias Smith
- High school: Bellevue West
- Year: Senior
How did you learn about the UNMC High School Alliance?
I learned from a friend who was applying and thought I should do it too. I really didn’t know much about it, but she made it sound really exciting. So I talked about it more with my counselor at school and decided to go for it.
What sparked your interest in science?
My interest in science began during my sophomore year when I was taking honors chemistry. I started making connections between all the things we were learning throughout the year. Before that class it all was just separate units and ideas, but in chemistry it all tied together and built upon each other, and you really had to know your stuff.
What are your career aspirations?
I haven’t fully decided, but I know that I want a career where I can help people. At the moment, I am interested in pursuing a career as either a pharmacist or pathologist.
Tell us your three favorite things about UNMC High School Alliance experience so far?
One of my favorite things is the people I get to be around everyday. I’ve been able to make a lot of friends here, and we all care about the same things with school and health sciences, so it’s been great to meet more people like me.
Another thing is the teachers and instructors all are interested in helping the students succeed, and I believe they care about us. They remind me of my favorite teachers back at my home high school.
I also greatly enjoy the labs in class. I’m in both biomedical research and pathology, and every other week or so we do some sort of lab. They help me understand the concepts we learn about in a real life and hands-on way. It’s not just facts here, but actual learning, which is great. For example, in pathology we got to go to the morgue and see how a healthy brain compares to one where someone had a stroke. I never thought I’d be seeing samples of tissue like that during my senior year of high school!
The fourth thing is just getting to walk around campus. I like feeling that I’m a part of UNMC even if it’s just in a small way.