In high school, Alex Heo didn’t really know what he wanted to do as a career.
Strong subjects for him were science and math, as opposed to English literature.
His dad suggested trying to become a doctor.
That’s what Heo is doing. In his third year of medical school, he’s at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center.
“When I was applying to medical school, I applied everywhere in Texas. But when I interviewed with Texas Tech, a lot of things stood out for me personally. I felt like the school had a culture that was really friendly; really family-like. You can tell that the school really invests in its students,” Heo said.
At those interviews, there were dean’s ambassadors, first and second year medical students who answer questions that the interviewing students may have.
“You can tell just from their interactions with each other that they really liked the school and they really liked each other. They felt like the school adequately prepared them to become a doctor,” Heo said.
Previously, he went through a program that allowed students to explore health care careers.
He went to University of Texas at Austin as a biology major.
He had a chance to get clinical experiences in college by volunteering in Texas and abroad through mission trips to Mexico.
“I’ve come to have a lot of fond memories and I’ve really enjoyed a lot of things I got to learn. Then after college, my resume to enter med school wasn’t the strongest, so I took two gap years working as a medical assistant at a family medicine clinic in Austin,” Heo said.
That time period was the peak of COVID, so they were really busy, but it solidified his commitment to go into medicine and become a doctor one day.
Heo said he feels those years worked out for him.
“I feel like during those two years not only did I grow in clinical knowledge and medical knowledge, but I feel like I really grew as a person … matured a little bit,” he said.
So far, he said, the program at TTUHSC has been really great. He has come to like a lot of his classmates and the faculty members from his time in Lubbock and the Permian Basin.
“I feel like these past few years have just flown by, but I have a lot of people I can always go to and ask for support or help if I need (it). I’m really fortunate to have gone to a program like this,” said Heo, who grew up in Texarkana.
He hasn’t completely settled on what area of medicine to go into.
“I came into this year thinking psychiatry because I like taking my time with patients and really getting to know them,” Heo said.
He’s also considering other disciplines of family medicine, internal medicine and pediatrics. He had recently started a surgery rotation and liked different aspects of it.
“When we’re all split after spending our first two years together, because my original class was around 170 to 180. I think about 30 of us came here. A lot of us probably felt separated from our friends. I know I have other friends back in Lubbock and Amarillo that wonder how they’re doing, but it’s also pretty nice that you’re now talking to people that you didn’t really get to talk to as much the first two years,” Heo said.
He added that they get each other through the tough times.
“One thing I really appreciate is how me and my classmates that I’ve rotated during surgery with are helping each other out. I feel like we’re making it through together and we’re doing whatever we can to support one another,” Heo said.
Jasmine Tambunga Knorr, director for Student Affairs on the Permian Basin campus who has a hand in student onboarding and progression, said Heo has been a welcome addition to the campus.
“Alex’s friendliness and enthusiastic demeanor make him a welcome addition to our regional campus. Student doctors with his attitude make a direct, positive impact on the patient care of our community. We are proud to have a learner like Alex in the Permian Basin,” Knorr said.
