Med School Admission for Michelle
Donation protected
Dear Friend of the Edwards Family—
You know us. We’re Lucy and Wayne Edwards. And we have a special request to make on behalf of a young woman truly deserving of a bit generosity.
Our adult niece, Michelle Smedley, has been struggling for years to achieve her goal of becoming a doctor in order to serve those in need of medical care.
Michelle has been on her own and financially independent since graduating from the University of San Francisco with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Management.
She worked in the wine industry to pay off her student loan debt – and was a big success in sales.
But something was missing. Michelle loved the industry – but she didn’t feel that she was using her talents to the utmost to help serve those in need.
So Michelle went back to school. She wanted to help sick people – perhaps as a pharmacist, perhaps as a physician’s assistant.
She had such a knack for her new studies that one of her professors told her:
“Michelle, you shouldn’t stop at being a physician’s assistant. You have the brains and drive to pursue higher studies and you have a real gift for helping people. You should study to become an M.D.”
It seemed an impossible ambition. But other professors stepped forward with encouragement. They really felt that Michelle would make an excellent doctor.
So Michelle pursued a pre-med course of studies – and so far has proved her professors right!
For a long time, she didn’t even have a full-time home near her college. She had to couch-surf among her school friends. She also didn’t have car. She rode a bicycle through crime-ridden areas of the East Bay, carrying her books with her, often early in the morning or late at night….
She supported herself by living off her savings – and working part-time at Apple, where she became an exemplary employee. Recently, she has been promoted from sales to a new job as mobile device technician.
~ Despite these challenges – not faced by most pre-med students – Michelle earned higher than a 3.8 GPA for all her pre-med courses.
~She earned certificates in all sorts of technical subjects along the way.
~ And to get experience in the medical field she worked part time as an emergency room medical scribe and Volunteered at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center for two years.
If I tried to list all Michelle’s accomplishments here, your eyes would glaze over. Please see the postscript at the end of my appeal if you have an interest in the details.
Suffice it to say that she worked hard and impressed everybody she came across.
Michelle has a place to live now. She has a car. Things are, on a day-to-day basis, better than they were when she started her medical studies.
But she is at a crucial juncture.
Her school record is excellent. But, in order to go to medical school, she has to study for and complete the MCAT – a standardized test that constitutes the entrance exam for med schools. An MCAT study program is an expensive proposition and is not eligible for financial aid programs – but no one really gets into med school anymore without one.
After she passes her MCAT, Michelle needs to apply to medical schools. And that’s an expensive proposition, too.
Then there will be the cost of airfare and hotel stays as Michelle flies to selected med schools to interview for admission.
Here are the projected costs of passing the MCAT and applying to med schools:
MCAT Prep course: $4,699
MCAT Study Materials: $599
MCAT Test: $365
1st Primary Appl. to Med School: $160
15 additional primary applications @ $38 each: $570
7 Secondary Applications $0-$150 each: $1,050
Total $7,443
Costs of interviewing are likely to exceed $2,500 – by a lot, but we are setting the reasonable goal of $10,000.
According to Michelle’s professors and college advisors, this is what Michelle needs to raise in order to pursue her dream.
Michelle was mortified when we said we wanted to make this appeal for her. She has always been so independent. We managed to convince Michelle by indicating all the sacrifices she had made already. It’d be a shame if those all went to waste because of a lack of funds.
Also, we reminded her that she will be the kind of doctor our society really needs right now. Michelle is not in this just for herself. She was moving up in the wine industry. She had her business degree. If she just wanted to make money, she could do it in great ease and comfort.
Michelle wants to serve patients. Michelle wants to give back.
We have been astounded by her positive attitude and determination. We have been astounded by her academic achievements.
$10,000 seems like a lot to Michelle. Indeed, given her current circumstances, it is clearly out of reach.
We are helping her all we can. Please… won’t you help her, too?
Won’t you please consider giving $25, $50, or even $100 toward the essential goal Michelle needs to reach?
From those who can afford extremes of generosity, we are of course seeking even larger gifts.
But anything you could afford to give would win oceans of gratitude.
Please… don’t let Michelle’s talents and good will go to waste! Please give what you can at this crucial point in her education.
Love to you all,
Lucy and Wayne Edwards
P.S. Here’s a list of some of Michelle’s astonishing accomplishments to date. Keep in mind that she did most of this without a permanent home or a car….
-Certificate of Achievement, Biological Science: Biomanufacturing
-Certificate of Proficiency, Biological Science: Biomanufacturing Skills (Fast Track)
-A.S. in Biological Science: Biomanufacturing Production/Biotechnology
-Phi Theta Kappa Scholastic Honor Society maintaining a GPA of 3.5 or higher every semester since she started taking pre-med courses
-Teacher’s Assistant for Anatomy
-Instructional Aide for Fundamentals of Biotechnology - part-time job w/ Laney College
-Certification of Completion, Pharmacy Technician/Assistant
-Pharmacy Technician - part-time job with CVS
-Peralta Colleges Foundation Scholars Award in November 2014 -Monetary Award $1,000
-Volunteered at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center at the Front Lobby Desk and Skilled Nursing Facility for a little over two years
-Vice President of Laney College Biomanufacturing Club
-ER Medical Scribe - part-time job with Elite Medical Scribes
-Family Practice Medical Scribe - part-time job with CEP America
-Volunteering regularly via part-time job with Apple Inc. in the local community
-Promoted to a new role at Apple Retail Inc. as a technician for all mobile devices
-Apple Certified iOS Technician (ACiT)
-Maintained 3.8+ GPA for all pre-med courses
You know us. We’re Lucy and Wayne Edwards. And we have a special request to make on behalf of a young woman truly deserving of a bit generosity.
Our adult niece, Michelle Smedley, has been struggling for years to achieve her goal of becoming a doctor in order to serve those in need of medical care.
Michelle has been on her own and financially independent since graduating from the University of San Francisco with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Management.
She worked in the wine industry to pay off her student loan debt – and was a big success in sales.
But something was missing. Michelle loved the industry – but she didn’t feel that she was using her talents to the utmost to help serve those in need.
So Michelle went back to school. She wanted to help sick people – perhaps as a pharmacist, perhaps as a physician’s assistant.
She had such a knack for her new studies that one of her professors told her:
“Michelle, you shouldn’t stop at being a physician’s assistant. You have the brains and drive to pursue higher studies and you have a real gift for helping people. You should study to become an M.D.”
It seemed an impossible ambition. But other professors stepped forward with encouragement. They really felt that Michelle would make an excellent doctor.
So Michelle pursued a pre-med course of studies – and so far has proved her professors right!
For a long time, she didn’t even have a full-time home near her college. She had to couch-surf among her school friends. She also didn’t have car. She rode a bicycle through crime-ridden areas of the East Bay, carrying her books with her, often early in the morning or late at night….
She supported herself by living off her savings – and working part-time at Apple, where she became an exemplary employee. Recently, she has been promoted from sales to a new job as mobile device technician.
~ Despite these challenges – not faced by most pre-med students – Michelle earned higher than a 3.8 GPA for all her pre-med courses.
~She earned certificates in all sorts of technical subjects along the way.
~ And to get experience in the medical field she worked part time as an emergency room medical scribe and Volunteered at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center for two years.
If I tried to list all Michelle’s accomplishments here, your eyes would glaze over. Please see the postscript at the end of my appeal if you have an interest in the details.
Suffice it to say that she worked hard and impressed everybody she came across.
Michelle has a place to live now. She has a car. Things are, on a day-to-day basis, better than they were when she started her medical studies.
But she is at a crucial juncture.
Her school record is excellent. But, in order to go to medical school, she has to study for and complete the MCAT – a standardized test that constitutes the entrance exam for med schools. An MCAT study program is an expensive proposition and is not eligible for financial aid programs – but no one really gets into med school anymore without one.
After she passes her MCAT, Michelle needs to apply to medical schools. And that’s an expensive proposition, too.
Then there will be the cost of airfare and hotel stays as Michelle flies to selected med schools to interview for admission.
Here are the projected costs of passing the MCAT and applying to med schools:
MCAT Prep course: $4,699
MCAT Study Materials: $599
MCAT Test: $365
1st Primary Appl. to Med School: $160
15 additional primary applications @ $38 each: $570
7 Secondary Applications $0-$150 each: $1,050
Total $7,443
Costs of interviewing are likely to exceed $2,500 – by a lot, but we are setting the reasonable goal of $10,000.
According to Michelle’s professors and college advisors, this is what Michelle needs to raise in order to pursue her dream.
Michelle was mortified when we said we wanted to make this appeal for her. She has always been so independent. We managed to convince Michelle by indicating all the sacrifices she had made already. It’d be a shame if those all went to waste because of a lack of funds.
Also, we reminded her that she will be the kind of doctor our society really needs right now. Michelle is not in this just for herself. She was moving up in the wine industry. She had her business degree. If she just wanted to make money, she could do it in great ease and comfort.
Michelle wants to serve patients. Michelle wants to give back.
We have been astounded by her positive attitude and determination. We have been astounded by her academic achievements.
$10,000 seems like a lot to Michelle. Indeed, given her current circumstances, it is clearly out of reach.
We are helping her all we can. Please… won’t you help her, too?
Won’t you please consider giving $25, $50, or even $100 toward the essential goal Michelle needs to reach?
From those who can afford extremes of generosity, we are of course seeking even larger gifts.
But anything you could afford to give would win oceans of gratitude.
Please… don’t let Michelle’s talents and good will go to waste! Please give what you can at this crucial point in her education.
Love to you all,
Lucy and Wayne Edwards
P.S. Here’s a list of some of Michelle’s astonishing accomplishments to date. Keep in mind that she did most of this without a permanent home or a car….
-Certificate of Achievement, Biological Science: Biomanufacturing
-Certificate of Proficiency, Biological Science: Biomanufacturing Skills (Fast Track)
-A.S. in Biological Science: Biomanufacturing Production/Biotechnology
-Phi Theta Kappa Scholastic Honor Society maintaining a GPA of 3.5 or higher every semester since she started taking pre-med courses
-Teacher’s Assistant for Anatomy
-Instructional Aide for Fundamentals of Biotechnology - part-time job w/ Laney College
-Certification of Completion, Pharmacy Technician/Assistant
-Pharmacy Technician - part-time job with CVS
-Peralta Colleges Foundation Scholars Award in November 2014 -Monetary Award $1,000
-Volunteered at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center at the Front Lobby Desk and Skilled Nursing Facility for a little over two years
-Vice President of Laney College Biomanufacturing Club
-ER Medical Scribe - part-time job with Elite Medical Scribes
-Family Practice Medical Scribe - part-time job with CEP America
-Volunteering regularly via part-time job with Apple Inc. in the local community
-Promoted to a new role at Apple Retail Inc. as a technician for all mobile devices
-Apple Certified iOS Technician (ACiT)
-Maintained 3.8+ GPA for all pre-med courses
Organizer and beneficiary
Lucy Edwards
Organizer
Novato, CA
Michelle Smedley
Beneficiary