GGC alumnus Jason Lee came back to campus on January 30 to give his former classmates an encouraging message: medical school is a very achievable goal.

“Six months ago, I was sitting in your seat and now I’m a medical student,” said Lee, a biology major who graduated from GGC last June with a 4.0 grade point average. Lee has maintained that 4.0 average as a first-year medical student at the Medical College of Georgia. But when he spoke to his former classmates, he emphasized the importance of balancing studies with personal growth.

“I used to ask myself, ‘Am I good enough? A doctor has to know so much stuff,’” he said. “But yes, you are good enough. You can learn this. I want to reassure that everyone is capable of doing this if you have the right attitude.”

Lee’s philosophy of study and play hit home with the audience.

“You have three choices in med school: study, have fun, or sleep. But you can only choose two. If you choose all three, you will forfeit your goal. So, choose to study and sleep,” he said, laughing. “If you manage your time, you’ll still have some fun.”

In addition to dissecting the MCAT test that all med school candidates must take, Lee gave his listeners insight into the screening process. During his own interview, Lee was asked how he would respond to a situation in which there were three people whose injuries were  life-threatening: one in a coma, one with a punctured lung, and another who faced possible amputation due to an arm injury. With only a nurse at his side, he would have to decide which one he would work on first.

“At the time, I told them I’d want to save them all, but that if I had to choose, I’d save the person with a punctured lung,” he said. “I found out later there was no right answer, but the fact that I wanted to save all of them showed them [the interview committee] that I had the heart for the job.”

Lee’s dedication to becoming a doctor began in elementary school when he witnessed a man falling and cracking his skull in his native Taiwan. At the time, bystanders stared at the injured man, but did nothing to help him. In spite of his young age, Lee approached the man, who was hysterical, and, after discovering the seriousness of the injuries, summoned help.

“It was then I realized I wanted to help people.”

After his family moved to Georgia in 2005 Lee went on to attend Mill Creek High School where he took AP science classes and filed more than 150 hours of volunteer work, some of which were at VistaCare Hospice. Lee said this sort of volunteer work is noticed by medical school admission officials, but he emphasized the impact it can have on personal development.

“It will satisfy you to do this kind of job,” he told his audience. “It will make a big difference in your life.”

When he came to GGC in 2008, Lee dove as deeply into extra-curricular activities as he did his mainstream studies in microbiology and virology. He founded GGC’s Environmental Club, was vice president of the Grizzly Vital Signs Allied Health Club and a member of the Biology Club.

“They taught me leadership skills,” he said. “It showed me how to be responsible.”

Lee has high praise for all of his professors, but was particularly inspired by Drs. Diane Dorsett, Candace Timpte and Julia Paredes.

“The pool of dedicated professors that are here to help you is great. They write letters of recommendation for you as a friend. The courses are all relevant. They really get you prepared to do the work. You do need to study a lot in medical school.”

From the start, Lee worked closely with his GGC professors to assure his academic life would be successful. When the time came, Dorsett helped him take the next step by setting up mock med school interviews.

“I threw questions at him so he would get the feeling for the intensity of the process,” said Dorsett, who was Lee’s professor in microbiology. “We didn’t feel we had to polish him up. We just wanted to help him be more confident.”

It’s obvious that Lee’s sense of humor and infectious laugh make a bedside manner that cannot help but heal patients.

“There are two ways to become a doctor:  the happy way and unhappy way,” he said. “If you’re thinking of money, becoming a doctor is not going to be a good career. But if you think you might be able to save someone, the career will be rewarding.”

Lee is often asked what specialty he will pursue in the field of medicine. To this, the thoughtful young man says he changes his mind daily. Among other things, he’s considered becoming a cardiothoracic surgeon or a neurosurgeon.

“The brain is a very complicated organ,” he said. “We don’t have a mature understanding of it and it really fascinates me.”

Students who came to hear Lee speak were very interested in knowing what courses they should take to have a better chance of getting into medical school. To this question, Lee had some very definite answers.

“Learn about biochemistry, virology, cell biology. All are relevant in med school. I learned about glycolysis [the breaking down of sugar] and that is part of my curriculum now,” he said. “But more than anything you should be happy to learn. You learn for your patients. What you learn now is relevant and it’s a continuous process."  - Hillary G. Meister