Comparing Notes

When Erika Pierre and Dr. Jacqueline Laurin got together via Zoom to chat about their chosen pre-med track at Barry, they clicked immediately. After learning that they were both president of Tri Beta Honor Society (Jacqueline in 1984 and Erika currently), Jacqueline shared stories about the beautiful orchids in the greenhouse grown by Sister Joan Karen Frei, one of her mentors.

The pair traded notes on everything from why they chose Barry for pre-med to the organizations they were a part of along the way. Erika is a current Barry student and president of Barry’s American Medical Student Association, the AstroMathPhysics organization, Beta Beta Beta (TriBeta) Honor Society, and the Minority Association of PreHealth Students. Jacqueline is a transplant hepatologist at Johns Hopkins Medicine in the National Capital Region (Washington DC), as well as an assistant professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Here, the two compare notes on what they did (or plan to do) with their Barry degrees; offer advice for the next generation of pre-med students; and share their favorite study spots on campus.

Q. What did you do (or what do you plan to do) post-Barry?

JL: I finished my internal medicine residency at the University of Maryland, and while I was there, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do—there were so many different subspecialties. I ended up choosing gastroenterology, and started a project involving non-A/non-B hepatitis. We knew there was a virus that was transmitted by blood, but we had not identified the virus yet. It would eventually be identified as hepatitis C in 1989, but prior to that there was a meeting of hepatologists in Chicago, and my mentor couldn’t go, so I did. Meeting with those hepatology investigators sparked my interest. The field of hepatology was fascinating, especially with liver transplantation starting to become a more widely available therapy for individuals with liver failure. So I decided to do an extra fellowship in hepatology.

EP: I plan to apply to an MD PhD program. It’s also called an MSTP—medical scientist training program. My goal is to be able to bring research into hospital settings so that I’m able to alleviate pain and bring quality of life to patients. I want to base my PhD in neuroscience, because I love how therapeutics are able to go through the entire body. And there are different aspects of pharmacokinetics in which they’re able to pass through the blood-brain barrier. And I just want to be able to understand, not only how the therapeutics work, but also how we might be able to make therapeutics better and reduce side effects. That’s my next step, but my end goal is to become a neurosurgeon.

Q. Where was your go-to spot to study at Barry?

EP: Darwin’s Dungeon. It’s basically the basement of Barry. If you’ve ever been in the Weigand Center, it’s right between the nursing department and the chemistry and physics departments. Before you reach Weigand Cafe, there’s a door that reads “Darwin’s Dungeon” in small letters. The door leads you down some stairs. It looks pretty scary at first, but it has red chairs that are super plush and super comfortable, and you’re just able to study, charge your phone, or take a lunch break.

JL: I was often in the library, but there was also a big study room in Weber Hall where the biology and chemistry majors studied. It was the perfect spot to meet in the evenings. There were a lot of windows, and we didn’t have to be as quiet as we had to be in the library. We could just eat and study together.

Q. Advice for future pre-med Bucs?

JL: It goes by so fast, those years at Barry. Cherish the time you’re at Barry, the friends you’ve made, and your professors. You’ll never have that atmosphere again. When you leave, it’s just a different life. Your studies are very important. But always remember that there’s more—don’t limit your life to only your studies. It’s important for your overall mental health and for your future in medicine to have other interests.

EP: Don’t forget why you started. Remain open and consider the different opportunities that are out there. Change is always okay. Surround yourself not only with like-minded individuals following the same track as you, but also those who are not pre-med. It is worthwhile to see that motivation does not have to come from people sharing the same major as you. The influencing nature of those determined to succeed is also beneficial. As a person of color and daughter of immigrant parents, I was able to find students in the same position as myself willing to bring pride to our family names, and I was able to be a role model to others in the community with similar backgrounds.

At Barry, the Biomedical Sciences program supports students who will continue studies in traditional allopathic and osteopathic medical schools, physician associate schools, podiatry schools, optometry schools, pharmacy schools, veterinary schools, or biomedical PhD programs. A few fast facts about the program:

Total students enrolled

264

Approximate percentage of those students enrolled in pre-dental programs

70%

Approximate percentage of those students enrolled in pre-medical programs

30%

Average percentage of qualified BMS students who apply and are accepted to professional schools

70%

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Comparing Notes

264

70%

30%

70%

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