
Update from Sana Iqbal, our 2011 Scholarship Recipient
November 2013
Dear PBKACA,
With more than half of my undergraduate career completed, I am happy to report that with the thoughtful financial contributions from Phi Beta Kappa, I have been able to get the most out of my time as a student. My classes and my extracurricular activities have allowed me to gain a better understanding of my interests and my future career plans.
One of the many advantages of attending Loyola University Chicago is that as a liberal arts university, Loyola opens its doors to a wide array of academic areas of knowledge. Although I started as a student of biology on a pre-medical track, after taking courses that skewed away from the natural sciences I realized I did not want to limit my focus on courses such as physics and chemistry. I experimented with classes in my second year and discovered my interest in history, which encouraged me to add it as a second major. In fact, my favorite class this semester is the History of the Holocaust and Twentieth Century Genocide, which taught me that because genocide is something so prevalent in the contemporary era, we have so much yet to learn about humanity.
While I’m greatly enjoying my courses on campus, the experience is no different outside the classroom. This summer, I interned as a research assistant at the University of Chicago Medical Center’s Biological Sciences Department. I joined a team of several researchers and assisted them with research on the Hospitalist Project, an ongoing study at UCMC that aims to improve the quality of care of hospitalized patients along with the cost of hospital care. Working on this study allowed me to gain insight on healthcare in action, further reinforcing my passion to become a medical doctor.
My classes at Loyola as well as my research experience from UCMC has been a fascinating and rewarding learning experience that is an essential part of attaining a holistic undergraduate education. I am very grateful for the generous support from the Phi Beta Kappa and the ambition it has instilled in me to explore and pursue my dreams.
Sincerely,
Sana Iqbal
PBKACA 2011 Scholarship Recipient