Hello, my name is Somenan Thach and I am 22-years-old. I was born and raised in Long Beach, California. This Spring 2015, I will be earning a Bachelor’s degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences with a minor in Education from the University of California, Irvine. This last school year has been especially stressful due to combinations of work, internships at the hospital, morning archery practices, delegating club tasks, and difficult upper division classes while applying/interviewing for graduate school. Through the difficult times, I have found a lot of support from new peers on top of stronger backing from those who have always been behind me. I am happy to say that I was accepted to all the schools I applied for and have decided to accept the University of Washington’s invitation to join their pharmacy class of 2019.
I have a few hobbies. I played for Long Beach Poly’s badminton team from 2007-2011 and continue to occasionally pick up a game. Currently during my undergraduate, I put a lot of time into the Archery Club at UCI and compete with them. Recently, I placed 12th at the USCA National Indoor Championship, College Recurve Men’s division.
The reason why I chose pharmacy is because I want to understand the human body and how all drugs interact with it. I want to be not only the first health professional in my family, but also to be able to be a trusted advisor for them, especially for my parents who have made many sacrifices to get me where I am now.
My future plans include pursuing a residency after I complete Pharmacy Doctorate. After gaining more experience I want to bring my knowledge back to the Long Beach to improve health care and increase the community’s understanding of the health system. Afterwards, I aim to lead medical missions with a team of other health professionals to Cambodia.
Nominated by Stephanie Sok
