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"My time at Rice has been amazing. Rice was always this gleaming diamond of a college. It was my top choice," Vyshnavi Gade '22 says of her first impression of Rice. "Tuition was a big factor for my family, and without the Rice Investment, I would not have been here and been able to do so many great things."
From working as a student researcher, to serving as a student EMT, to organizing events for the Rice Pre-Medical Society, Vyshnavi, a biosciences major with a concentration in cell biology and genetics, and an Asian studies minor, has immersed herself in a variety of rewarding STEM and humanities opportunities at Rice.
In a class on synthetic biology, Vyshnavi worked with classmates to come up with a way to genetically engineer e-coli that could target bacteria that cause infections in farmed fish. The ultimate goal was to find a way to help fish farms be infection free.
"Working with my professor, Beth Beason Abmayr, and other Rice students on the project was one of my best experiences in biosciences," Vyshnavi says.
Her time working in research labs at Rice has also been a highlight. Last year, Vyshnavi joined the Kirienko Lab, which works with worms. The lab's research focuses on identifying novel treatments for bacterial infections that show resistance to antimicrobials. In the lab, Vyshnavi worked as an undergraduate student researcher attempting to discover how multi-drug resistant bacteria kills worms. The research findings could help identify targeted drug therapy for vancomycin-resistant enterococci, life-threatening infections found in hospitals.
Vyshnavi presented her Kirienko Lab work at a research symposium last summer, and she won the best poster and presentation award. "That was very rewarding for me," she says.
Vyshnavi also studied abroad in Pamplona, Spain. She lived with a Spanish host family and worked with local nurses to learn medical Spanish. "It went beyond vocabulary though," she says, "to cultural competency and to patient interaction. It was that sweet spot between humanities and STEM coursework that I love."
Currently, Vyshnavi is enjoying a class on Asian American history. She's learning about the racism Asian Americans have encountered since immigrating to the U.S. "I never knew their stories and about all of their valiant efforts," she says. "It means a lot to me as an Asian American to learn about others who stood up to make a positive change."
Vyshnavi's undergraduate experiences have solidified her decision to apply to medical school. As a future physician, she's eager to work with patients and to use her humanities background to tackle social and economic factors that can prevent access to healthcare.