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Berzolla
Student
and Faculty Profiles
Meet Catherine...
 Class:
2007
Hometown: Riverside, Connecticut
Undergrad: Georgetown University
Major: English
Program: Post Baccalaureate Program; M.D.
Though trite as it may seem, I have always
wanted to be a doctor. There are no doctors in my family and so
I set out to explore my fascination with medicine by
volunteering in hospitals throughout high school and college.
Over a period of 5 years I worked in New York City with
pediatric HIV and AIDS patients and eventually I became involved
in research. Medicine, however, has never been the exclusive
focus of my life.
As an undergraduate at Georgetown University,
though I completed the necessary pre-medical courses, I chose to
major in English and minor in Italian. I had spent a great deal
of time in Italy growing up and so I studied in Italy during
college and returned there following my graduation to teach a
writing course about Italian culture. When I returned, I spent a
year working as an international operations analyst in a
government bonds trading firm. I was then accepted into UConn’s
Post Baccalaureate Program to prepare for medical school.
I was initially drawn to the UConn Health Center
by the immediate sense of community that I felt when I visited
the campus. The students seemed genuinely happy to be here. The
faculty knows us as individuals and not just as medical students
sitting in an auditorium. Never did I hesitate to approach a
professor with a question or problem. There is a sense here that
we are expected to succeed and for me this nurturing has helped
to drive my desire to learn.
“We are encouraged to balance our
lives while in medical school and not to abandon
those things which are important to us.”
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As a UConn student my love of medicine and
appreciation for physiology and pathophysiology has developed to
new levels with the help of not only my professors, but that of
other students and most importantly patients. Medical knowledge
began in the lecture hall and moved on to become ridiculous
pneumonics created at 2 a.m. with friends. Eventually, however,
it transcended these places and evolved as it was applied to
patients. At UConn, this connection begins early as students
have the unique experience of the Student Continuity Practice, a
program that enables us to begin seeing patients within months
of beginning medical school.
Service has always been a factor in my decision
to become a doctor and as a medical student I have been able to
continue with this aspect of my life. I have spent time working
in clinics with both children and adults. As a teacher for
Hartford Health Education, I helped in providing health
education to Hartford middle school students. I have also worked
side by side with faculty members building houses for Habitat
for Humanity.
We are encouraged to balance our lives while in
medical school and not to abandon those things which are
important to us. I have managed to continue to spend time with
family and travel when possible. Having studied voice, I have
even been able to continue singing, participating in events at
school including convocation and graduation. I have weaved these
things into my time here which, although not always easy, had
made my experience that much richer. |
