Second-year graduate student, Kathy Pham - an MS student majoring in Biomedical Science - reflects on how she is using her MS in biomedical science degree as a pathway to medical school or PA (Physician’s Assistant) school.

Hi everyone! My name is Kathy Pham and I am currently a second year biomedical science (non-thesis) master's student at the School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems. I started working towards my MS in the summer of 2014, promptly after graduating in May 2014 with a BS in Pharmaceutical Healthcare and Sciences. I am actually using my MS in biomedical science degree as a pathway to medical school or PA (Physician’s Assistant) school. The curriculum, although rigorous, is flexible enough to allow me to take the necessary pre-requisites for medical school admissions in addition to all of my graduate level requirements.

I am also working on fulfilling my patient contact hours (a required component of a medical school application) with my School’s faculty clinical partners and collaborators at the Drexel University College of Medicine and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. I believe that completing an MS in Biomedical Science makes me a more competitive, unique, and well-rounded medical school applicant than the usual preparation offered by post-bac pre-med programs. I will also have an actual graduate degree after the completion of the program, which allows me to pursue avenues other than medical school, should I choose to do so.

My favorite course sequence has to be Math for the Biomedical Sciences I, II and III. By all means, I was not the greatest math student, nor do I enjoy math, but Dr. Amy Throckmorton has been one of the best teachers I have ever encountered; she truly cares about how well you do and she always makes sure she gets to know you well enough to not make you feel like “just another student.” Completing an MS in Biomedical Science at an engineering unit such as this one, and enrolling in courses such as Dr. Throckmorton’s Math for the Biomedical Sciences course, provided me with a completely new, quantitative perspective of biology. I believe that the knowledge and perspective gained from this course and others I’ve completed will make me a more effective physician in the future. I can definitely state that pursuing a master’s degree in Biomedical Science has been one of the best decisions I have ever made! I am also very happy that Philadelphia has a great variety of medical schools, teaching hospitals, and pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies – I will have plenty of choices in my career path after graduation.