One Course At A Time provides path to medical school
Eric Daubach ’17 is preparing for his MCAT and applying to medical schools this summer. He credits Cornell College’s One Course At A Time curriculum with helping him prepare for the rigor of medical school.
“One Course At A Time forced me to learn how to properly manage my time. I have learned through Cornell how to be efficient with my time and how to succeed while dealing with multiple sources of stress,” Daubach said.
The biochemistry and molecular biology major from Omaha, Nebraska, says that playing baseball for the Rams also defined his time at Cornell.
“I played baseball all four years here and it took up most of my time away from schoolwork. That is not a complaint by any means, I enjoyed every second of it,” Daubach said. “Playing baseball here for Coach Wing made my experience at Cornell worth everything.”
Despite his busy class and baseball schedule, Daubach was still able to study abroad in Belize, which helped him form his senior capstone research.
“I went on a class trip to South Water Caye, Belize, a small island 15 miles off the coast of Belize,” Daubach said. “We studied fire coral and the symbiotic algae that live within them. We isolated and analyzed DNA from the fire coral. This trip actually completed the research I did the summer after my freshman year and made everything come full circle. I did the lab work, and then three years later I went and did the field work. It was an incredible experience and I strongly recommend every student to study abroad if you get the chance.”
Q: What activities were you involved in at Cornell and how did they add to your education and enjoyment of Cornell?
A: My primary activity at Cornell outside of the classroom was baseball. I also tutored in the chemistry department for introductory chemistry classes my sophomore year. That certainly added to my education by giving me a more holistic view of college education by looking at things from the teacher perspective, and helping students learn. I am also a part of the Cornell LEADS program, which provided valuable experience and information on how to better solve problems, interact with people, and bring people together as a leader.
Q: What is your biggest academic accomplishment?
A: This is tough, but I would have to choose the paper I wrote for my senior capstone class, BMB 485. This was the class that went to Belize. The class culminated with a research paper proposal that was slowly written throughout the block. The paper built on the writing skills that I have acquired over four years through multiple classes at Cornell. Upon completion and reflection of the paper, I realized that I have come a long way in four years and felt extremely proud of the work I turned in.
Q: What are your post-Cornell plans?
A: I will be applying to medical school this summer and will likely spend next year working in a hospital back home and doing some traveling before beginning my path toward becoming a doctor.
Q: What Cornell experiences prepared you for this?
A: There are many factors that have prepared me for medical school. One Course At A Time is a big one, because it forced me to learn to properly manage my time. I have learned through Cornell how to be efficient with my time and how to succeed while dealing with multiple sources of stress. Many of the courses I took in pursuit of my major have contributed toward my future plans and will especially help me on the MCAT.
Q: Who was your Cornell mentor, or what person on campus had the biggest impact on you?
A: This is a hard question, but I would have to say that my Cornell mentor was Professor Craig Tepper. Over the course of four years at Cornell, I took five classes with him, performed an internship with him, and did research for him for a summer.
While working for Tepper performing research, we developed a great relationship. I find it very easy to converse with him, and we often talked about our common interest in professional baseball. Unfortunately, he is a Yankees fan and I like the Red Sox, so we butted heads a bit there.
Q: What do you most value about your Cornell education?
A: The thing I value most from my Cornell education is the friendships I have made during my four years here, both in the classroom and on the baseball field. They are friendships that I treasure dearly and absolutely made my experience at Cornell worthwhile.
Q: Is there someone else who has inspired you?
A: The reason why I said the mentor question was tough is because there is somebody else on campus who has had a huge impact on my experience at Cornell, my coach Seth Wing. He was one of the biggest reasons I came to Cornell, and I am very happy I made that choice. My experience here on the baseball field has been better than I could have ever imagined. Coach Wing is one of the most passionate people I have ever met, and is the best coach I have ever played for. I would do anything for that man, and I know he would do the same for me.
