M.D., Ohio State University

I was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. By the time I was 18 I knew I wanted to be a psychiatrist. I did my undergraduate studies at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, majoring in chemistry and psychology and obtained an M.A. in physiology there as well. During graduate school I discovered a love for teaching. During my medical school years at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, I spent over 100 hours taking calls on Columbus' suicide hotline; I helped to run the Psychiatry Interest Group at the college; and I founded and facilitated a student-driven support group for medical students with depression, anxiety, and/or learning disorders. When it came time to look for the right psychiatry residency program, I was looking for a program with these characteristics: 1) a balanced biological approach to psychiatry with strong teaching of psychotherapeutic techniques; 2) lots of teaching opportunities for residents; 3) recognized the wellness needs of its own residents and had residents that were truly happy to be in the program; 4) diverse faculty and access to a diverse patient population; 5) in an area that had a reasonable cost of living, with the resources of a city without being overly large, and with many recreational areas and parks within a relatively short driving distance. UC Davis met all of these criteria. The program is well-balanced with faculty from many different cultures, backgrounds, and academic interests. The residency program administrators have shown time and time again that they are responsive to resident concerns. There is also a well-defined and structured teaching track for interested residents. Sacramento has an incredibly diverse population.  So far in my first year, I have been very pleased with Davis' program. Even though I've been climbing that steep learning curve that every intern faces, I've still been able to have a life, and enjoy day trips to nearby beaches and some hiking areas. The upperclassmen in my program have been extremely supportive and even protective of the interns, and have really made us feel welcome, as have the faculty. I'm looking forward to the rest of my intern year, and to the rest of my training at UC Davis.

M.D., UC Davis

As an undergraduate at UC Berkeley, I developed a passion for HIV/AIDS and founded a nonprofit called Healing Waters (www.hwaters.org), which provides rafting trips for people with AIDS.   After seven years of running Healing Waters I wanted to more directly help those in need and chose medicine at UC Davis as the best way for me to do so.  During residency, I am able to continue my passion by practicing HIV psychiatry one afternoon a week at the CARES clinic, one of several diverse continuity clinics each resident has access to in the second year. In my first year, I saw truly diverse set of patients at the Sacramento County Jail, Mather VA, the Primary Care Center, and of course the main UC Davis Medical Center.  UC Davis was my top pick because of the warm nature of the department and the outstanding faculty (particularly in cultural, forensic, and psychosomatic psychiatry as well as in psychotherapy.)  Other pluses are the many high-quality training sites as well as the collaborative work ethic and fun-loving nature of the residents.  Outside the medical center, I love white-water rafting and backpacking the Sierra Nevada mountains, volleyball, gardening, and hanging out with my classmates.

M.D. Pennsylvania State University

While I didn’t always know that I wanted to go into psychiatry, when I reflect on my life, my predisposition toward this field dates back to my early college years. I've always been interested in the human mind, behavior, and emotions, and majored in psychobiology at UC Los Angeles. However, it wasn't until medical school that I saw in patients what I learned in textbooks about the complexity of the human mind. As a fourth-year medical student, I had the opportunity to do several child/adolescent psychiatry rotations where I saw the value of early mental health intervention; I knew that this was the career to which I wanted to dedicate myself. As an applicant, I was looking for a medium to large-sized program that was warm and supportive as well as challenging. It was important for me to have camaraderie and professionalism amongst my colleagues. I wanted to work with diverse patients in socioeconomic backgrounds, cultural heritages, age, gender, and sexual orientation as well as in varied practice settings (county, private, VA, academic). I knew that I would be happy in a program that provided solid training in psychopharmacology and psychotherapy with faculty and a program director that are truly experts in the field.  For me, UC Davis is this program. Throughout my first three years of training, I can confidently say that UC Davis has exceeded my expectations. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions, and good luck as you decide what program best suits you!

M.D. UC Davis

As a medical student at UC Davis, I never thought that I would go into psychiatry. Then I did my third-year clerkship with the Psychosomatic Medicine Service and at the Sacramento County Mental Health Treatment Center. I was really impressed by the dedication to teaching on both services and by the role modeling of the attendings and residents with whom I worked.  Both services provided a rich setting with a diverse array of patients. In addition, I found the residents and attendings I worked with were intellectually curious, compassionate people with interesting histories and a great sense of humor.
I was very pleased to be able to stay at Davis for my residency training, and I joined the Resident Educator Track within the program so that I could learn to be a better teacher as well as a better psychiatrist. It has allowed me to have protected time to participate in medical student and resident education, as well as provided me with many mentoring opportunities with some of the great teachers that I have learned from and admired.

I am also working with the Rural PRIME program and the Telemedicine Department to learn more about novel ways of providing mental health services to underserved rural populations. I just completed a two-week elective working with two county mental health systems in Inyo and Mono counties. In these vast landscapes sparsely dotted with towns and Indian reservations, some patients drive hundreds of miles to see their psychiatrist, doctors do home and trailer visits, and there is only one pharmacy in town. Even though I was five hours away from UC Davis, I felt like I had the support of many different attendings in my program who specialize in the areas of telemedicine, rural psychiatry, cultural psychiatry, and medical education. During this elective, and throughout my residency, faculty have been very approachable and available for clinical consultation, career advice, and support.