Home > Prospective Students > Admissions > M.D./Ph.D. Program > Student Profiles > John Kelly

M.D./Ph.D. Program Student Profiles

Meet John...

Hometown: Charlestown, Rhode Island
Entering Year: 2002
Undergrad: University of Rhode Island, Kingston, Rhode Island
Degree: B.S. Microbiology and Chemistry
Thesis Advisor: Pramod Srivastava, Ph.D.
Area of Concentration: Immunology
Email: jkelly@student.uchc.edu

I received the news of my acceptance to UConn via telephone, while stranded in a duty-free shop at Chicago’s O’Hare airport. I was returning with a group of friends from a spring break trip to Laguna Beach, California. In spite of a two-hour delay in Chicago, being tired and worn out from the past week, that day was one of the greatest of my life. I didn’t know it then, but I had found the place where I belonged.

As an M.D./Ph.D. applicant, my search for a medical school was about finding a balance, balance between truly humanistic clinical medicine and excellent research programs, because the modern physician/scientist requires both to tackle challenges like cancer, AIDS and diabetes. No other school I saw melded the two as well as UConn. The clinical faculty are top notch, highly-skilled teachers adept at guiding students along their chosen career paths, and the basic science professors are accessible, well-funded, respected leaders in their fields. This combination, with a wide-selection of Ph.D. concentrations to choose from, made my decision to attend almost a foregone conclusion.

I feel the excellent staff is complemented by an equally impressive student body. UConn recognizes that the school exists for the students, and our input is sought and encouraged on nearly every facet of our medical education. The curriculum is regularly reviewed and revised based on emerging data and student response, student members sit on all important committees, and the student interview is an integral part of the admission process. There are almost endless choices for volunteer work, either in existing organizations or by creating a new one. Leadership opportunities abound, and most students take the helm in at least one major activity.

I was particularly impressed to find that UConn students are encouraged to maintain and develop their interests outside of medical school. I’ve heard the saying, “All work and no play makes for boring doctors.” This is taken to heart at UConn – proven by an organization, the Medical/Dental Student Government (MDSG), whose mission is to direct student involvement in school functions and provide social events outside of academics. The list is long, but includes items like socials with the UConn Law School, white-water rafting, skiing and snowboarding, a winter formal, and a Connecticut wine tour. Other events include Culture Shock, where students perform musical and dance numbers from their various heritages, and the Gong Show, a humorous variety performance that gives students a chance to poke fun at the professors. While these events are a welcome break from studying, they aren’t completely self-serving, because a wide range of experiences and interests is required to interact with a diverse patient population. Thanks to organizations like MDSG, UConn students are able to balance their work with other activities, maintaining their mental well-being and rounding out their education.

It was clear to me that UConn fosters an interactive environment where administrators, professors, and students work together to produce an exceptional medical education. Coupling this cooperative interaction with state-of-the-art facilities and researchers at the forefront of their fields made UConn the obvious choice for the next phase of my career. In summary, I’m proud to be a UConn student, and I encourage you to make the same choice. You won’t be disappointed.