Sami Johnson, ‘20
Why did you choose to come to UMR? From my first college tour as a high school senior, I fell in love with the integration of health care that ran through the veins of UMR. Every course provided scientific perspective despite representing different subjects of learning. I loved the possibilities that the proximity to Mayo Clinic provided and was awed to work in collaborative labs in my second year. UMR facilitated health care-oriented experiences that I would not have had at other universities.
What did your Capstone experience at UMR involve? My Capstone was focused on thriving within chaotic situations and using this to my advantage when pursuing emergency medicine as a career. It involved using my eclectic range of activities to exemplify my journey, including medical scribing, ballroom dancing and becoming an EMT. Through these activities, I was able to show how I capitalized upon my wide range of passions to prepare for medical school and onward.
How did your Capstone experience prepare you for your future in what you’re currently doing? The pandemic has changed the shape of health care. It’s been a humbling experience to see the devastating effects that a disease can bring. What I’ve continued to learn from my Capstone experience is to advocate for myself and patients in order to organize the oftentimes chaotic life of emergency medicine.
Is there a certain instructor that greatly impacted your time at UMR? Every UMR instructor provided the framework of my knowledge, but I would not be the person I am today without Yuko Taniguchi. Professor Taniguchi taught me to seek experiences that exercised my passions, how to maximize opportunities and how to personally reflect upon how these opportunities affected me. She was my mentor while I was the undergraduate academic assistant with the Capstone preparation course and she remains my teacher and role model in life. My time at UMR and my life after graduation would not have been as fulfilling or rewarding without her guidance.
What are you currently doing? I am a medical scribe in the Saint Mary's Emergency Department and part of a specialized team of medical chart auditors who maintain billing and coding standardization across Mayo Clinic Health System. I am working towards my Master’s in Public Health which became particularly important to me when the pandemic started. Concurrently with work and school, I’m working on applications to medical school for the 2022 cycle including studying for the MCAT. Thanks to UMR I’m always looking for new opportunities to integrate my many passions and chase my dreams!