Hi! My name is Claudia, and I am a medical student at Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry at Western University. Over the past two years, I worked as a Clinical Research Project Manager following the completion of my MSc degree at the University of Toronto. Prior to my masters, I completed my BSc at the University of Toronto, double majoring in neuroscience and psychology. In my spare time, I like to go on long walks with my puppy Scooter, scope out new restaurants and spend time unw...

Hi! My name is Claudia, and I am a medical student at Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry at Western University. Over the past two years, I worked as a Clinical Research Project Manager following the completion of my MSc degree at the University of Toronto. Prior to my masters, I completed my BSc at the University of Toronto, double majoring in neuroscience and psychology. In my spare time, I like to go on long walks with my puppy Scooter, scope out new restaurants and spend time unwinding with friends and family.

The path to medicine for me has been long and at times discouraging – I appreciate the tenacity it takes to go through multiple application cycles. Congratulations on even getting to the point of applying to medicine, you should be so proud of yourself already! I look forward to sharing my lived experiences (and my pitfalls) with you to ensure that you are successful with your application.

I would not be where I am today without my amazing family, friends and mentors that have encouraged me along the way; I hope to be that source of support and encouragement for you. I also applied to nursing this cycle and am open to sharing my experience with those applications as well.

One important tip for the application process: Really take the time to reflect on who you are, and why you want to go into medicine. Let your passion, personality and authenticity shine! Write out everything you have done on a big Excel sheet (for your ABS) and think about how you can relate your activities back to medicine using the CanMEDS framework as your guide. Remember, the journey is even MORE important than the destination so take the time to showcase who you are and how all your life experiences have brought you to the point of applying to medical school. Be yourself and best of luck!