In elementary school, Manav Shah was fascinated by the human brain and knew he wanted to become a brain doctor.  

“I was so astounded by this part of the human body that plays such a big role in defining who we are,” said Shah, a second-year medical student at USC School of Medicine Greenville (SOMG).  

For Shah, there is a sense of pride that comes with being a first-generation student and “being able to pursue my dreams.” There have been obstacles along his academic journey, and plenty of learning from previous mistakes, but with the help of mentors and his biggest supporter, his mom, Shah graduated from Clemson University with a bachelor’s degree and Duke University with a master’s degree in biomedical sciences.  

As a medical student at SOMG, Shah hopes to specialize in neurosurgery, and he is currently conducting research on brain trauma and different outcomes in patients.

First-generation college students are those whose parents/caregivers do not have a bachelor's degree. Shah and his fellow first-generation students at SOMG gathered to celebrate what it means to be a first-generation student at an event Nov. 5 in the rotunda.

At a luncheon Monday, Nov. 4, with Dean Phyllis MacGilvray, a first-generation college student herself, and a celebration event on Tuesday, Nov. 5, first-generation students came together to network with one another and first-generation staff and faculty at the school. The events were held during national First-Gen Celebration week and organized by SOMG’s Office of Culture, Access, & Stakeholder Engagement (CASE). The celebration was made possible by a $1,000 grant from FirstGen Forward and the Council for Opportunity in Education. 

Of 65 grant award winners, SOMG was the one medical school to be awarded the grant this year.  

At the Nov. 5 celebration, students grabbed snacks, filled out “Why I’m First” posters, and were given Exam Cram Kits to help with exams, courtesy of TIAA. TIAA, and Strada Education Foundation, were sponsors of the $1,000 grant.  

Supporting first-generation students at the school, however, doesn’t end with the event. Throughout the entire academic year, CASE will be holding programing and making support available for the 78 first-generation students at SOMG.    

Finding your Community  

Students who are the first in their immediate families to receive a bachelor’s degree can face disadvantages and hurdles in medical school when it comes to studying for exams, choosing courses or research, preparing for programs, and later in school, applying for residency programs. “Medical school is very intense, very rigorous,” said Rachel Onley, Manager of Pre-Clerkship Education and leader of the First-Gen program at USC SOMG. “There isn’t much spare time, if any. If you are not in class, you are reading or studying. So, there is this shift that all students go through, but it can be especially hard for a First-Gen student.”

First-generation students often learn to become extra diligent, from preparing for exams without the aid of expensive preparation courses or tutoring and being creative about finding clinical experience opportunities in their community, said Dean MacGilvray.

“They already cleared the hurdle to make it through college with minimal resources, and now it is a second bigger hurdle to make it through medical school as a first-gen medical student,” said MacGilvray.  

MacGilvray was thrilled to see first-generation students networking last week. “Seeing the smiles on their faces and that sense of community is fantastic,” said MacGilvray, a first-generation student who studied biochemistry at Clemson University, before going on to earn her Doctor of Medicine (MD) at the Medical University of South Carolina.  

“They are finding their community,” said MacGilvray. “That is going to be their support network.”

Programs and events throughout the year will help first-gen students stay connected at SOMG.  

A Mentor to Others

Facing obstacles has shown Bryan Lopez-Montoya that anything is possible.  

“When things get really difficult, I think back on all of the obstacles I have had to overcome,” said Lopez-Montoya, a first-year medical student at School of Medicine Greenville who attended USC Upstate for his undergraduate degree. Lopez-Montoya plans to specialize in family medicine.  

Amariyah Ayee, a first-year medical student at SOMG, hopes to specialize in primary care/family medicine or emergency medicine.  
Along her academic journey, mentors in high school and college helped her. In turn, Ayee hopes “to become a mentor to others, to be an example to those coming from a similar background that we can accomplish our goals and overcome adversity.”  

The biggest things medical student Emanuel Ayala has had to work at is to overcome a fear of seeking help and finding mentors for research projects. But one word he uses to describe first-generation students, “resilient.”  

Ayala noted how focused he and his fellow first-generation students at SOMG have become. Quoting hockey great Wayne Gretsky, he also noted how they are prepared to take on a challenge:

“You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take.”