Why Adeline Mai ‘28 Went Pre-Med at Trinity

Mai, a neuroscience major on the pre-med track from Houston, Texas, says she has appreciated having access to hands-on opportunities, a robust support network, and a tight-knit community.

For Mai, it starts with research experience. She’s currently in the lab of Physics Professor Kwan Cheng, Ph.D., where she investigates neurodegenerative diseases.

“Something that I think is really unique to Trinity, is you're able to form these really close-knit relationships with your professors and the people you're working with. And that can be so useful for when students go into med school and when they write us recommendation letters.”

Mai was actually able to join Cheng’s lab after simply emailing him and asking to meet as a first-year. "I introduced myself saying that I was interested in joining and was wondering if there would be anything for me in the lab, since I had no prior research experience,” she recalls. “And after he gauged what I was interested in, he had a project for me.”

Coming from a small private school, Mai was focused on finding a similar tight-knit community at the college level. “The reason I came to Trinity was for the pre-med opportunities,” she says. “Because of how small and tight-knit the community was, I knew there would be opportunities available to me.”

Though she only knew about Trinity from a friend from high school, she asked if Trinity was a good place for someone on the pre-med track. “And my friend told me,’ this is the place to go.’” 

That’s because Trinity offers resources and hands-on opportunities that larger schools might not have.

In addition to starting research as a first-year year, Mai has also founded her own chapter of Doctors Without Borders. She initially wanted to be a psychology major, but switched to neuroscience to blend opportunities in science and psychology - after a one-on-one conversation with her dedicated faculty advisor.

Over the summer, Mai spends 10 weeks in Trinity’s fully-funded SURF research program (plus a stipend for travel and presentation!), but she’s also able to tailor her research during the school year to coexist with her class load. “It's not too rigorous of a schedule, but it's definitely something rewarding and a valuable med school experience that you can talk about later on.”

Mai’s favorite class so far has actually been outside the STEM world, in “Medical terminology,” a pathway class with Classics Professor Becky Kahane, J.D., Ph.D. She was a great professor. And in that class, I really understood the foundation of terms that can be applied when I go into med school.”

That’s the power of the liberal arts, where students like Mai develop well-rounded skills that make them better learners, scientists, and doctors one day.

In tough classes like Organic Chemistry, Mai says she’s been impressed by Trinity’s support network. “They offer so many resources for kids who need help. O-Chem is so difficult, but I go to peer tutoring hours all the time which has really helped me succeed in that class,” she says. “That's the resource that worked best for me, because these tutors are upperclassmen. They've gone through this course before and they're able to give you insider tips about how to succeed.”

The pre-med journey won’t ever be stress-free for students like Mai, but an environment like Trinity’s (nestled in vibrant San Antonio) can make all the difference in being happy.

“I love journaling for fun on the side, and I also love just going on walks and hikes with friends. And also in my downtime, because you're on campus, you see your friends all the time, so a lot of the time we'll just go around San Antonio,” she says. “San Antonio has a lot of cute hidden gem spots, and so we'll go thrifting or go to the farmer's market at the Pearl. So there's never a dull moment here.”

For Mai, everything keeps coming back to Trinity’s tight-knit community, especially during challenging moments.

“Never once have I felt things get too competitive here. I think it's definitely more of trauma bonding,” she laughs. “All the pre-med students here are able to really connect and create a relationship that’s healthy, which I really liked. When I was applying to other universities, there were some that were very competitive when it came to pre-med. And I just knew that I would drown in all that noise. But here, that wasn't the case.”