Arnelle

Downing
Project 1 Reflection

Project 1...what can I say other than it posed a serious challenge for me. Over various
drafts, I kept battling with the how to actually combine the structure of an autobiography with
the flow and professionalism of a research paper. This balance was hard for me to master
because I have so much personality and passion when I get to talking about myself and my
struggles as a black woman pursuing medicine. However, once I did find my balance, which was
unfortunately after the due date of the final draft, I was content with what I had written.
The section of my narrative that focused on my educational path definitely took me the
longest to write. I didnt know what nor who I wanted to talk about. Since high school, I had
come across so many names that I couldnt pinpoint who specifically had the most influence
over my life decisions. So, I lackadaisically started with Darwin.
I started with Darwin because across the board, most biology classes introduce his work
first. Interestingly, initially researching him took me in a completely different direction; my
narrative became centered around him laying a foundation for the sexism and racism that I still
encounter today. However, when I finally thought about it, it was the lessons and teachings
that stemmed from his work that inspired me to come to Northeastern as a biology major.
Although I only mentioned two names and two experiences from my time as a scientist/
aspiring doctor, I learned that the biology field is constantly being revolutionized by new
scientists and new discoveries. In other words, nothing is stagnant, which is probably why I
couldnt select just a few names out of the thousands that have changed the field forever.
Moving forward, I will pay better attention to those names that arise in my lectures and try to
connect the dots between concepts. Who knowsmaybe Ill change my career path again
because of it.