Hillary Bui ’22

I am a first generation Vietnamese American and I grew up in Portsmouth, N.H. Growing up, my parents had a huge impact on my decision to pursue medicine. They worked extremely hard to build a life in America and to send my siblings and I off to college. I was able to attend Simmons University in Boston, where I majored in Biochemistry. During college, I was lucky enough to work as a research intern at Harvard Medical School studying epigenetics and RNAi. I was also a part of the local hip hop team for the Colleges of the Fenway. After college, I took a year off to work as a medical scribe at Scribe America and as a medical assistant at Seacoast Dermatology. Throughout my experiences, my parents were there supporting my dreams every step of the way.

Getting accepted to UNE COM was extremely exciting for me — however — around the same time I was accepted, my father was diagnosed with prostate and bladder cancer. My father was the type to avoid going to the doctor until absolutely necessary. Unfortunately, the cancer had progressed to a point in which he required major surgery to remove both his prostate and bladder. My father's diagnosis and slow recovery was the final push in my decision to come to UNECOM. By becoming an osteopathic physician, I hope to educate and serve minority populations and increase the awareness of preventive medicine and regular health screenings. My hope is that one day, early cancer detection will make cancer a thing of the past.