Caitlyn's PreMed Summer Abroad Program (Atlantis)

Hi everyone,

My name is Caitlyn Slinkard and as some of you may know I am a third-year Biological Sciences major on a pre-medicine track. I am currently very involved in campus life and have a position on the executive board of the Biology Research Club and work in two Associated Student Offices as a financial and academic caseworker at the Office of Student Advocacy and as the media and marketing coordinator for The Office of External Affairs.

My career goals include going into medicine, specifically pediatrics. Since I was a young child, I have always had a strong desire to pursue the medical field. I believe I have a gift for wanting to help others as well as the determination to obtain the education and experiences in which I need to do so. Pediatrics is the branch I am most passionate about and I am grateful for the previous jobs I have had working with children, which have further inspired me to explore this.

UCSB is an amazing school with a variety of opportunities. However, there are a limited amount of opportunities for shadowing within the Santa Barbara area. There are a small number of hospitals and therefore these experiences are very scarce and hard to come by.

While looking into my summer plans, I was interested in an internship where I could both gain clinical exposure and take summer courses at the same time. After coming across Atlantis, I decided to apply when I realized how perfect of a fit it was for me. Shortly after my application and interview, I was accepted into the Summer 2023 Program.

A little bit about Atlantis:

Atlantis is a pre-med abroad program that connects pre-health students with doctors in hospitals across the world. It is designed to help students like me understand their place in the medical field and get first-hand experience shadowing physicians. As mentioned earlier, getting serious shadowing experience in the States is both extremely competitive and rigorously regulated. Yet, pre-med students are all but required to have shadowing experiences, along with unique extracurricular pursuits, to get accepted into medical school. An Atlantis program satisfies both needs.

I hope to not only gain clinical experience from this opportunity but also an intercultural perspective. This program will allow me to do both of those things while also allowing me to meet other pre-med students along the way. Additionally, since this program runs in the summer (3 weeks) I can solely focus on this program and then switch my focus to my summer courses when I return to Santa Barbara.

I plan on doing my program in Florence from June 24-July 14th. I am so excited to begin this part of my journey which is getting me one step closer to Med School.

I am beyond grateful for anyone who has read up until this point to learn about my story and summer plans. The program itself is estimated to be about $6,999, however, this does not cover airfare or some meals- this is where I need some help. The program does not offer financial aid, unfortunately, so I am looking into both external scholarships as well as hopefully support from family and friends to get me to Florence! If you are willing to partner with me in my medical pursuits I would greatly appreciate a monetary contribution of any amount. No donation is too small so even a gift of $5, $10, etc. would be incredibly helpful. I hope to share this experience with everyone via social media and would love to speak in person or over the phone with anyone who might have additional questions!

Again, I am so extremely thankful for all the support and contributions and I cannot wait to start this new adventure!