Every Wednesday after school in Room 325, the officers of Bronx Science’s Pre Medical Society club introduce a new medical word to a room full of enthusiastic students. As someone reads the word aloud, the rest of the students listen eagerly.

The start of every Pre-Medical Society club meeting is exciting, with new information to learn each week. Pre-Med is a place for Bronx Science students interested in the medical field or students who are simply interested in exploring different careers. The board members share new Medical opportunities each week including internships, scholarships, or even volunteer credits. Along with every new vocabulary word, a new medical concept is introduced including diseases, body systems, medical procedures, and more. With this information, Pre-Med members are able to reaffirm their interest in the medical field or pick up a new interest in the medical field. 

Co-presidents Pithiya D’Costa ’23 and Sarah Cheng ’24, along with secretary Jonathan Lin ’24 and events coordinator Sumaiya Jessi ’25, plan Pre-Med meetings with care as they come up with new and interesting concepts each week. Together, they prepare slides to present to their members and write grants in hopes of receiving items like suturing kits.  

Even though Pre-Med is viewed as an educational club, it still is able to transform medical topics into fun activities! During Halloween season last year, Pre-Med planned a fun activity that quickly became a favorite memory amongst the members. This activity involved labeling the parts of a skeleton on a poster while it was attached to someone. With club members scrambling to quickly and accurately label the parts of the skeleton, the room was filled with laughter and knowledge. “I think it was a really good example of a fun time at a club while also learning at the same time,” said Cheng. Although the Halloween activity is only one instance of having fun in the club, Pre-Med is always able to connect with their members in order to create a community. “Pre-Med is a club that involves what you want to do with your life and not a hobby, but it’s still cool that a lot of the members are so passionate and engaged in the club. It makes it feel like we’re not in a school environment, even though we’re still learning new information,” said Lin.

During the 2022-2023 academic year, Pre-Med is also trying to bring in guest speakers to talk to their members. The board members are working on providing more opportunities for their members by contacting different organizations and doctors in hopes of having guest speakers come to Bronx Science to share their experiences about the medical field with club members.

When asked about the positive experiences of Pre-Med, D’Costa said, “The overall involvement of the members is so important because we are partnering with the Pre-Med scene and other organizations, so having that connection with Pre-Med really opens doors for members to connect with opportunities.” 

Starting off as club members themselves, the current club leadership have all made valuable memories at Pre-Med as they became leaders. For Jessi, she believed that having others who shared the same interests was what drew her into Pre-Med. “It was my first time at Pre-Med during my ninth grade year, and it was really fun going and seeing all the stuff that Pre-Med did and also just having friends and people around me who shared the same interests was also really fun and nice,” said Jessi. For Cheng, her experience of going to Pre-Med positively changed as she made closer bonds with the board members. “My view of Pre-Med positively changed because it feels like Pre-Med is our club where we’re leading it as friends and having fun, not just as leaders leading a classroom full of students,” said Cheng. For D’Costa, it is being able to relate to other members and bond with them over future career goals that means the most to her. “There’s so many people you can relate to, and it’s not just about hobbies or things like that, but about a future career that you’re considering. So, having people who can support you and create bonds with you is so nice, especially when everyone is interested in the same field,” said D’ Costa. 

During the first Pre-Med meeting in October 2022, the amount of people in the room was quite large. With every seat taken, students standing in the back, and students sitting on the floor, Pre-Med clearly had a successful first meeting. Members were able to form a sense of community within the first few minutes of the meeting as students talked with one another about their medical interests. Even when ice breakers were going on, members did not hesitate to go up to the front of the classroom and introduce themselves to everyone. Simple ice breaker questions like “What’s your favorite ice cream flavor?” or “What medical field interests you most?” got the members excited. With new underclassmen joining and old members coming back, the club is as lively as ever during the 2022-2023 academic year. 

“There’s so many people you can relate to, and it’s not just about hobbies or things like that, but about a future career that you’re considering. So, having people who can support you and create bonds with you is so nice, especially when everyone is interested in the same field,” said co-president of the Pre-Medical Society club, Pithiya D’Costa ’23.