Student Life

I’m a Medical Doctor from the Dominican Republic. I’m fluent in English and Spanish and speak a little Portuguese. I’ve been teaching medicine for the past 3 years. I love reading, walking my dog, cooking and weightlifting.

Dr. Dickinson is a board certified family physician and teaches clinical skills at Rocky Vista University. She created a fun on-demand human biology video library for kids and founded her community’s first free clinic.

Dr. Obinna is a physician-scientist with a research background in neurosciences and clinical background in primary care. He has 20+ years of experience as an educator and has a passion for mentoring students who have an interest in pursuing a career in medicine and science.

Dr. Tiano is currently a practicing pediatrician, with a special interest in childhood trauma, health equity, advocacy, and pediatric global medicine. During medical school, she was a recipient of the National Medical Fellowships, Primary Care Leadership Program where she completed a summer fellowship in research and clinical experience at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Prior to attending medical school, she earned her Bachelors in Science in Cell and Molecular Biology at San Diego State University and her Master’s in Science in Global Medicine from the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California. Her vast global medicine experience includes a field study at the United Nations, studying dietary interventions in the Mamanuca Islands of Fiji, IV drug use in the favelas of Brazil, congenital heart screenings in Yunnan China, and a rural brigade to Honduras.

As a first-generation student, Dr. Tiano believes that cultural competency, diversity, and inclusion are integral parts of not only medical care, but also life. She believes her role as a pediatrician is to help her patients become the happiest and healthiest versions of themselves, and works hard to do just that every day.

In her free time, Dr. Tiano abides by the philosophy captured by Henry David Thoreau in his call to “live deep and suck out all the marrow of life”. She is always on the go and planning her next adventure with her beloved husband and best friend.

As racial and ethnic diversity in the United States (U.S.) population continues to increase, the physician workforce has been relatively slow to follow (Xierali et al, 2018). The American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) estimates that by 2032, the U.S. will see a physician shortage of nearly 122,000 doctors because a large cohort of physicians over age 65 are retiring (AAMC Physician Shortages). These shortages will be felt most acutely in underserved communities across the nation (AAMC Physician Shortages). To properly address the racial disparities in our healthcare system, it’s crucial that we build a more diverse pipeline of medical students.

Underrepresented minority students (URM) experience a higher occurrence of dropout in the premedical pathway compared to their non-URM counterparts. A study conducted at Stanford found approximately 22% of the incoming class expressed an interest in pre-med, and approximately 30% of these students were URM. Based on this study it was determined that 50% of URM students dropped out of pre-med, compared to 17% of non-URM students (Barr et al, 2008). Another study used a College Board dataset to analyze 15,442 students spanning 102 institutions who began their post-secondary education in years between 2006 and 2009.

This study found that the rate of fulfilling prerequisites among those with the intention of pursuing pre-medical studies was lowest in Hispanic and Black students. This study also found that there were meaningful differences between those who fulfilled the pre-medical prerequisites and those who did not fulfill the pre-medical prerequisites. Those who completed the pre-medical prerequisites typically reported a higher GPA, both in high school and all four years of college; scored higher on the SAT-Combined, with the largest difference in the Math section; reported a higher socioeconomic status, and in cases where it was available obtained higher grades in Advanced Placement (AP) courses, including AP Biology, AP Chemistry, and AP Physics B and C (Zhang et al, 2020).

The MPP Academy is committed to contributing to a culture of health and promoting diversity in health care by increasing the racial and ethnic composition of the medical physician work- force through our pre-professional and pipeline program. The academy focuses on creating diverse applicant pools and increasing the number of underrepresented minority and disadvantaged students who are prepared to enter and graduate from medical school, which strengthens not only the workforce but also the medical care for generations of Americans and our global community. In addition, the academy offers the medical community an opportunity to engage diverse talent while supporting their career development.

Special topics courses are offered to cover specialized content not represented in the main curriculum.

• Don’t Blame Other People for Your Mistakes, Actions, or Problems
• Let Go of Your Negative Past Experiences
• Be Impeccable with Your Word
• Don’t Take Anything Personally
• Don’t Make Assumptions

Students will learn about the 15 core competencies that aspiring physicians should possess before entering medical school. Laid out by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), the core competencies for entering medical school consist of a list of 15 traits the ideal medical student should possess. The list is broken down into three groups: pre-professional competencies, thinking and reasoning competencies, and science competencies. The 15 Core Competencies for Entering Medical Students have been endorsed by the AAMC Group on Student Affairs (GSA) Committee on Admissions (COA) who represents the MD-granting medical schools in the United States.

Students will co-create service-learning projects, collaborating with leaders who are focused on eliminating health disparities and ensuring access to care for all. Students will have an opportunity to use what they have learned to help the communities they serve. Students will also deepen their understanding of how systemic factors far beyond individual patients and physicians shape the health of entire communities.

• This course introduces you to the building blocks of medicine–the basic sciences. Basic science content is integrated into six interdisciplinary blocks with four recurring themes enabling students to learn the material within the appropriate context. Clinical Correlations tie basic science content to the clinical context through the use of team based learning.
• Students will complete a course project, which focuses on the synthesis of the core concepts acquired throughout each of the six blocks and four themes. A few days after completion of the project, students will take a practice NBME United States Medical Licensing Exam® (USMLE®) Step 1 exam, which will cover most of the material presented in the six blocks.

Special topics courses are offered to cover specialized content not represented in the main curriculum.

• Don’t Blame Other People for Your Mistakes, Actions, or Problems
• Let Go of Your Negative Past Experiences
• Be Impeccable with Your Word
• Don’t Take Anything Personally
• Don’t Make Assumptions
• Always Do Your Best

• Creating Your Safety, Match, & Reach College List

• Choosing an Academic Major in STEM, Social Science, and other fields

• Applying for Financial Aid Practicum
• Understanding Financial Aid Award Letters and Packages

• Scholarship Application and Essay Writing Practicum
• Mock Scholarship Interview

• High School Graduation vs Four Year College Admission Requirements
• Becoming a Competitive Applicant for Highly Selective Colleges
• Writing the Personal Statement and Admissions Essay
• Personal Statement & Admissions Essay Practicum
• College Admission Entrance Exams (Test Prep)

Students will learn about the 15 core competencies that aspiring physicians should possess before entering medical school. Laid out by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), the core competencies for entering medical school consist of a list of 15 traits the ideal medical student should possess. The list is broken down into four groups: interpersonal, intrapersonal, thinking & reasoning competencies, and science competencies. The 15 Core Competencies for Entering Medical Students have been endorsed by the AAMC Group on Student Affairs (GSA) Committee on Admissions (COA) who represents the MD-granting medical schools in the United States.

Students will co-create service-learning projects, collaborating with leaders who are focused on eliminating health disparities and ensuring access to care for all. Students will have an opportunity to use what they have learned to help the communities they serve. Students will also deepen their understanding of how systemic factors far beyond individual patients and physicians shape the health of entire communities.

Special topics courses are offered to cover specialized content not represented in the main curriculum.

• Don’t Blame Other People for Your Mistakes, Actions, or Problems
• Let Go of Your Negative Past Experiences
• Be Impeccable with Your Word
• Don’t Take Anything Personally
• Don’t Make Assumptions
• Always Do Your Best

• Scholarship Application and Essay Writing Practicum
• Mock Scholarship Interview

• High School Graduation vs Four Year College Admission Requirements
• Becoming a Competitive Applicant for Highly Selective Colleges
• College Admission Entrance Exams (Test Prep)

Students will learn about the 15 core competencies that aspiring physicians should possess before entering medical school. Laid out by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), the core competencies for entering medical school consist of a list of 15 traits the ideal medical student should possess. The list is broken down into three groups: pre-professional competencies, thinking and reasoning competencies, and science competencies. The 15 Core Competencies for Entering Medical Students have been endorsed by the AAMC Group on Student Affairs (GSA) Committee on Admissions (COA) who represents the MD-granting medical schools in the United States.

Students will co-create service-learning projects, collaborating with leaders who are focused on eliminating health disparities and ensuring access to care for all. Students will have an opportunity to use what they have learned to help the communities they serve. Students will also deepen their understanding of how systemic factors far beyond individual patients and physicians shape the health of entire communities.

Special topics courses are offered to cover specialized content not represented in the main curriculum.

• Don’t Blame Other People for Your Mistakes, Actions, or Problems
• Let Go of Your Negative Past Experiences
• Be Impeccable with Your Word
• Don’t Take Anything Personally
• Don’t Make Assumptions
• Always Do Your Best

Students will co-create service-learning projects, collaborating with leaders who are focused on eliminating health disparities and ensuring access to care for all. Students will have an opportunity to use what they have learned to help the communities they serve. Students will also deepen their understanding of how systemic factors far beyond individual patients and physicians shape the health of entire communities.