Welcome to my eportfolio! My name is Nojan Bajestani, and I’m currently a freshman at Ohio State. I’m a Biology major on the pre-med track and hope to minor in spanish and epidemiology. Thank you for checking out my page and have a great day!
Month: August 2017
Semester in Review
My first semester at Ohio State has been nothing short of extraordinary. Originally, the college lifestyle took me by surprise, and I didn’t know how to deal with this overwhelming transition — I began to live by myself for the first time and had to adjust to a significantly more independent lifestyle. Similarly, I had to learn to manage time effectively. I would often ask myself, what do I do with all of this time? Should I prepare for chemistry first or begin finishing math homework? This transition was difficult, yet within this difficulty was a chance to grow. By reaching out to peers for advice, I began to adjust much easier and eventually became in-tune with the college lifestyle. I reached out to peers within my club Humanism in Medicine, where I found upper class men with similar aspirations offering support and advice on how to succeed. Mentorship is so highly valued at Ohio State, and no matter what challenges I faced, I knew I was never alone. Soon, I learned how to study in a way that fits my type of learning, to manage my time effectively, and ultimately, to be a more sociable and outgoing person.
Even early on in high school, I knew I had a very distinct way of learning. Personally, I had to teach myself material and have an in-depth knowledge of the principles behind the concepts, which took a considerable amount of time. As you can imagine, my way of learning didn’t match with the rigorous collegiate academics, and I had to adjust. Progressively, through trial and error and advice from peers, I found the way I learn best: to learn the basic concepts independently, discuss the material with an expert such as the professor of the course or a teacher’s assistant, and then practice it repeatedly. Through this method, not only do I learn the material quicker, but I make it more meaningful and it stays with me for longer periods of time.
Time management, as it turned out, wasn’t a pick-and-choose sort of game but rather a list of priorities, each of which I had to make time for. I had to prioritize events based on my habits. For example, I knew I would remember the material clearer for calculus before 7 pm and for psychology during the afternoon. Through trial and error, I eventually became an expert at managing my schedule, and I now even have more time than I had before. I recently resumed my position as a volunteer at the Ohio Hispanic Coalition, and I plan to re-start volunteering for Riverside Methodist in the winter.
I never imagined such tremendous personal growth within a matter months. I feel college’s strenuous academics have made me hardier, more resilient, and focused. At the same time, having the chance to be in such an amiable, engaging community has helped me become more social. Meeting people from all around the world has made me a much better communicator. Not to mention, I have new-found love and appreciation for mentorship. In the future, I want to put myself in a role within the college community where I can assist freshman on how to deal with the prominent challenges of adjusting to college life.
G.O.A.L.S.
Global Awareness
Global awareness has such profound significance in daily life and diversity of culture is one of the most prominent aspects that encourages societal advancement. Personally, I believe the goals of global awareness are in alignment with my personal goals of being a physician. As a physician, I want to connect with people and alleviate their pain, and having a good cross-cultural understanding can help an individual become more aware and impactful within their community. Ohio State offers countless opportunities to gain global awareness on campus and abroad — multiple clubs and organizations promote diversity of thought and nationality on campus such as Spanish Club, and abroad such as Global Brigades. Likewise, there are many language and culture courses being offered that encourage the understanding of diversity. One of my most cherished experiences that instilled a deep appreciation for diversity in me was when I volunteered at The Ohio Hispanic Coalition over the summer. I helped teach immigrant hispanic children how to read, entertained them, and got to talk with them about their lives. Having an understanding of the spanish culture and language, as many of the teachers and administrators did, allowed them to connect with the kids at a more deeper level, motivated them to learn, and even lifted their spirits. Ever since then I’ve had a deep appreciation for diversity, and I believe the understanding and being able to connect with with people from different cultures or even mindsets is remarkable. In the future, I hope to continue my involvement with the Ohio Hispanic Coalition, become proficient in Spanish, join the Global Brigades, and have a more thorough understanding of how to global awareness.
Original Inquiry.
Research is responsible for some of the most prominent achievements in modern society and is a field I hope to become heavily involved in. Original inquiry catalyzes learning and gives honors and scholars students advantageous exposure to relevant fields of study through hands-on research experience and in-class projects. In the past, I conducted a research project of my own studying the spread of disease in air travel, and hope to improve the project with knowledge I gain through original inquiry. Similarly, the idea of doing research and learning about it forces an individual to constantly improve themselves — original inquiry gives students a chance to be a part of something truly meaningful with so many opportunities for contribution to society and self-improvement. That chance seems priceless. In the future, I hope to become much more involved in research and gain a more in-depth understanding of the research method through involvement.
Academic Enrichment
Academic Enrichment is the opportunity for an individual to both shape their education based on their life goals and become more well-informed within their desired area of study. Besides the in-class experiences, students can pursue academic excellence through research and out-of-class career preparation and information sessions such as attending seminars given by professionals in fields of interest or taking practice classes for standardized tests. I hope to increase my involvement in research, gain more knowledge about my field of interest through discussions with professionals, and increase my understanding of my field of interest through professional school preparation.
Leadership Development
One of the most valued traits for an individual within any program is their capacity to perform leadership roles within their communities. This entails being brave and going against popular notions in favor for a more beneficial outcome, being mindful of the wants and feelings of peers, and aiming everyone towards a common goal. Personally, leadership development is tremendously valuable to me and was something I was heavily involved in during high school; I acted as class treasurer and handled my class’ expenses and planned a successful prom; I was as vice president of both Medical Club and Biology Olympiad Club, where I organized talks to give members more insight into medicine, helped teach members biology, and planned dissections and other group events; as Head of Management of my friend’s startup hedge fund, Arlington Mutual, I helped gather investors, advised the Chairman and CEO on investments; and as treasurer of Key Club, I handled the club’s finances and organized them into ledgers and planned community events along with the other officers. In the future, I hope to continue involvement in leadership roles by taking more prominent roles in clubs, and I hope to run for student government.
Service Engagement
Service Engagement encourages students to not only be more mindful of problems locally and abroad but also to be an active participant in solving these issues. By connecting students to services relevant to their fields of interest, the honors and scholars program facilitates service and creates opportunities for students to both contribute to meaningful causes and be more knowledgeable of the world. In the high school, I volunteered at Riverside Methodist Hospital, organized and participated in community events through Key Club, The Ohio Hispanic Coalition, The Upper Arlington Optimist League, and through Partners in Health Club. Similarly, I think dedicating oneself to the community is incredibly fulfilling, and I hope to continue my involvement with the Humanism in Medicine Club as well as join more service clubs throughout my college career such as Circle K.
Resume
Click on the link to view my resume!
Artifacts
One of the most prominent accomplishments of my high school career was a science article I wrote during my junior and senior year correlating air travel with the spread of infectious disease entitled, A Novel and Practical Proposal to Alleviate a Long-standing Problem: The Spread of Infectious Disease During Commercial Air Travel. During the time of its writing, I encountered multiple obstacles that strengthened me as a person, making me more resilient, confident, and sociable — I had to increase my knowledge within the fields of aviation and epidemiology, learn how to conduct an unbiased KAP survey, talk and persuade people holding notable positions within the scientific community that the problem was real and significant, and write an article on par with research papers seen on noteworthy science journals. The project strengthened my interest in Preventive Medicine, and I hope to receive an IRB and continue writing it throughout my college career.
About Me
Nojan Bajestani is an undergraduate Biology major who hopes to combine his major with a minor in Chemistry. In the future, Nojan aspires to enter medical school and eventually “bring peace to people,” as his dad would say, through being a doctor. He is a recent Upper Arlington High School graduate and is also a very conceptual learner. Although his particular classes helped him learn more about his interests, extracurriculars helped shape his passions, especially for community service. He was highly involved in clubs throughout high school and held leadership positions in many of them — Biology Olympiad and Medical Club, Arlington Ridgeview Mutual, his friend’s start-up company, and Student Government. Similarly, Nojan loved volunteering for his community through his local hospital Riverside Methodist, Key Club, The Ohio Hispanic Coalition, Optimist League, and Partners in Health. Outside of school, he loves to play basketball, fish, and meet new people. If you’re looking for a new friend or just a study partner, feel free to reach him!