Forever grateful for my PA experience

/ Terman Park/

My time in high school

Attended high school in the
1990s

Overall high school experience
10/10

Grades in high school
Mostly A's

 

Best subjects
Math, Science

Struggled with...
English/history. More abstract.

Favorite extracurricular
Sports / Recreation

Life since high school

Attended college / university at
Stanford.

Majored in
Biology.

Post-graduate education or training
Medical school.

Places lived in US
California, New York

Current occupations / past occupations
Physician/parent.

Industries I've worked in
Health Care and Social Assistance

Did your education prepare you for your career?
Yes.

Has your education and/or career trajectory ever changed? How?
When I was younger, I thought I was going to be very career-oriented as an adult. Now that I'm all "grown-up", I care most about trying to balance my time/attention between my career and my family.

A little introspection...

To me, being successful means...
Pursuing your passions.

My definition of success has changed over time. 
Formerly thought more about making good money, having a "respectable" job.

My greatest accomplishment to date and what I’ve learned from it
Getting into med school. Humbling process.

My biggest mistake or regret so far and what I’ve learned from it
Not keeping in better touch with high school friends

An unexpected event that changed my life and how it impacted me
Moving to Palo Alto! My parents decided to move us to Palo Alto for the schools, which initially really upset me. It felt like it took a full 2 years for me to find my core group of friends. I felt pretty isolated/lonely for those 2 years. Despite that, I am forever grateful for the friends that I made in Palo Alto. They were/are an amazing group of people, who welcomed me into their lives and their homes and their families, who helped me relax and enjoy high school, and somehow pushed me to be a better student at the same time. At that time, academics didn't feel like a zero-sum game. Seeing how we've all grown up and all done well for ourselves validates that amazing community sense.
I hope that the kids in PA are just as amazing these days.

My favorite spot in Palo Alto

Terman Park!! Played a lot of mud football and soccer and tennis there :-)