G.O.A.L.S.

Global Awareness: I am minoring in German, which has allowed me the opportunity to learn in depth a foreign culture. I have gained a new perspective that I lacked before learning the language, the history, and the cultural perspective Germany. My service trip to Panama has allowed me to experience an entirely different cultural perspective of a third world country. This particular experience has shaped my future plans to become a doctor and eventually take part in Doctors Without Borders.

I have been able to continue my independent study of Spanish, which I began learning in middle school, through Duolingo, “telenovelas”, which have offered me a distinct cultural viewpoint, and through my service trip to Panama, where Spanish is the most widely used language.

Over the past four months I have begun to teach myself Mandarin Chinese using the app Duolingo and a character workbook. I have always loved to learn languages and there I many more I wish to know, but I was motivated learn this language in particular after growing closer with my cousin’s wife, Yulei, who speaks Mandarin as her first language. I wanted to be able to hear about her experiences and learn about her culture in her own language, and to learn about the history of China, one of the fastest growing economies, in one of its most popular languages. I was also motivated by many of my Chinese classmates, who work very hard to learn English. Just as they work to be able to speak with me in my own language, I wished to be able to speak with them in theirs.

Original Inquiry:  Some experiences I have had to help me understand the creative process have come from my work as a published author. I was published four times in Flip the Page, by Thurber House. In creating short works for this contest, I learned not only how to come up with intriguing new ideas, but also how to communicate my ideas to others in a way that is clear and clever.

Some of my science classes, including Organic Chemistry lab and Psychology have helped me to understand the research process by participating in experiments. Psychology specifically has helped me learn to analyze a study, or a question, and to come up with how that study can be improved and what more research could be done on the idea. I am currently seeking out a research lab to better understand this process.

Academic Enrichment: I have greatly enjoyed the rigorous coursework required for my major. From multivariable calculus to organic and biochemistry, I have felt that these classes, though difficult, have expanded my view of the world and have allowed my to better understand it and how it functions. I chose this major because I felt that if I could understand the way the body worked on a molecular level, I could better understand how it works on a macro level, which in turn I believe will make me a better doctor, which is my ultimate goal.

Leadership Development: I have been nominated for the role of trip leader in my upcoming service trip to the Dominican Republic in May. This role requires that I ensure my fellow teammates are prepared for their trip. This entails making sure the clinical and Spanish chairs of the club are doing their jobs in preparing the team for our trip and helping my teammates with skill should they need it. I work to build cohesion within my team by working together on educational materials that we will take with us to the Dominican Republic. I also coordinate excursions and much of our movements in country.

Service Engagement: I am a part of a volunteer organization called Volunteers Around the World. My organization goes to third world countries and sets up mobile clinics in underserved areas in order to provide short term medical care to residents. Even though we as Ohio State students cannot be there all the time, this is a national organization that has a fairly regular presence in the countries that we visit, making it sustainable. I am also currently in the process of applying to volunteer at Grant Medical Center in Columbus, and will volunteer at a local free clinic over the summer to give back to the community I have lived in my entire life.

About Me

Alison Hager is a sophomore from Westerville, OH. She is studying Biochemistry with a minor in German on a Pre-Med track. During her time at OSU she would like to participate in biological or chemical research, hopefully with a focus on or application to cancer. When not in class, she enjoys swimming, martial arts, writing, and learning new languages. She is very excited to be attending OSU and cannot wait to see what lies in store!

Year in Review

Freshman year was a year of discovery. During my first semester, I realized that Biomedical Engineering was not the right path for me and embarked on a journey to choose a new path, eventually settling on Biochemistry. I completed most of my prerequisite classes and am excited to start my major coursework!

I joined a pre-med service club, Volunteers Around the World, and went on a service trip to Bocas del Toro, Panama. There, we travelled (by boat!) to underserved islands in the province to set up mobile clinics and provide short term medical care to the people on the islands. This experience was life changing. Being able to work in the clinics and alongside doctors made me absolutely certain that I want to pursue medicine. I plan on going on another trip after my sophomore year.

Over the coming year I plan on continuing to volunteer with VAW and plan on getting involved in research and volunteering in a hospital or community clinic.

Career

[“Career” is where you can collect information about your experiences and skills that will apply to your future career.  Like your resume, this is information that will evolve over time and should be continually updated.   For more information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]

Artifacts

[Artifacts are the items you consider to be representative of your academic interests and achievements. For each entry, include both an artifact and a detailed annotation.  An annotation is a reflective description of the artifact that attempts to communicate its significance.  For more information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. Delete these instructions and add your own post.]