Hi, I’m Elijah! I’m a nontraditional medical student at Marian University – Wood College of Osteopathic Medicine, with a deep appreciation for public health and a passion for reproductive medicine and sexual health. I’m one of three kids born in Southern California and raised primarily by my grandparents in a Chinese immigrant household. I’m also proudly first-generation, pursuing this self-determined path well beyond the high school level. My journey to medicine wasn’t linear: I earned a Bachelor’s in Music at University of California-Irvine before pivoting into the sciences and completing a Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences at Marian, where I focused my research on increasing representation in healthcare, especially for communities too often left out of the conversation. When I’m not in my student doctor role, I’m lounging around listening to music, solving Sudoku puzzles, watching documentaries, being a devoted cat dad to my Tabby, Paulette Bonafonté, and learning the nuanced art of keeping my growing plant nursery happy and alive!