Michigan State University College of Human Medicine

06/04/2026

Claire Lupini-Gohl spent years imagining the kind of physician she wanted to become. She found her answer during a psychiatry clerkship.

“There is such a richness to the relationship that psychiatrists have with their patients,” she said. “They’re able to sit with them for long periods of time to discuss what is pressing on their life and what is impacting them on a day-to-day basis.”

For Claire, the specialty offered something she had been searching for since her days volunteering at a free clinic: the opportunity to truly know her patients and walk alongside them through life's challenges.

Now, she's headed to Michigan Medicine for a residency in Psychiatry.

06/03/2026

As the first-born son of the chief of villages in Uga, Anambra, Nigeria, Frederick Ezenyilimba grew up watching what it means to serve a community.

During medical school, a pediatrics rotation helped him discover where that sense of service could make the greatest impact.

“To interact with the Black boys, girls, and families I provided care for was moving. There was a level of trust, respect, and inspiration I saw in those encounters that affirmed how important representation is,” he said.

Now, he's headed to Helen DeVos Children's Hospital for his pediatrics residency, the same place where his passion for the specialty first took shape.

06/01/2026

From researching surgical disparities in rural Rwanda to caring for patients in Detroit, Surya Adams has spent much of her journey trying to understand how access to care shapes people’s lives.

That question became personal when her grandmother suffered a stroke, and Surya helped care for her alongside her mother. “I saw how dependent we all are on systems of care, and how much it matters when someone is present and compassionate,” she said.

At the College of Human Medicine, her perspective continued to grow. Through global and community-based experiences, she saw how geography, economics, and everyday realities like food access and transportation shape who receives care and who does not.

Now, she’s headed to Brigham and Women's Hospital for a general surgery residency and global surgery track focused on improving access and outcomes for patients worldwide.

05/28/2026

Dylan Bilicki always knew he wanted to serve in the Army. Inspired by his family’s history of military service, that sense of purpose shaped his goals from a young age. For a while, he wasn’t sure how medicine fit into that path.

Then, a severe concussion during a high school rugby game changed everything. Months of recovery and time spent with his care team sparked an interest in neuroscience and rehabilitation.

At the College of Human Medicine, those two paths finally came together. A rotation with a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation team confirmed it, giving him a way to combine his passion for neuroscience with his commitment to service.

Now, Dylan is headed to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after matching in PM&R, where he’ll care for and rehabilitate service members.

05/26/2026

Paige Sims knew she wanted to pursue emergency medicine from a young age, drawn to the way physicians show up for people in life’s most critical moments.

As a first-generation student, she had to figure everything out as she went, with no blueprint to follow, just mentors and support along the way.

“What kept me grounded was purpose,” she said. “I stayed focused on finishing so I could give back and mentor those coming behind me. As a Black woman in medicine, where Black women make up roughly 2% of physicians, it also felt like a responsibility to keep going and contribute to changing those numbers through representation and service.”

Now, she’s headed to Henry Ford Health St. John Hospital for emergency medicine residency, guided by that same sense of purpose.

05/23/2026

Luke Laconi grew up in a family where “La buona salute è la vera ricchezza per la vita,” meaning “good health is the true richness in life,” was more than a phrase. It was a way of living. From cooking meals together to staying active, and watching generations of his family live well into their 90s, he saw early on the power of prevention.

That perspective took shape during medical school, where he helped create the college’s first lifestyle medicine elective. At the Traverse City Campus, he also helped establish a hospital-based teaching kitchen curriculum at the Groundwork Center.

Those experiences reinforced his belief that medicine is not only about treating illness, but about helping people build healthier lives long before disease begins.

Now, Luke is continuing that work after matching in Internal Medicine at Dell Medical School - UT Austin.

05/22/2026

Madiline McNamara is a Yooper through and through. Growing up in Iron River, she saw firsthand what rural healthcare could look like after a type 1 diabetes diagnosis at age 10. “After my diagnosis, I wanted to help others just as all of my doctors helped me."

At our Upper Peninsula Region Campus, she was able to return home for her clinical training, learning in the same kind of rural communities that first inspired her path to medicine.

As medical school went on, she realized family medicine was the perfect fit. “I value long-term relationships with patients, being able to care for generations of families, and being the ‘backbone’ of patients’ health care,” she said.

Now, she’s staying rooted in the UP as she begins her family medicine residency at UP Health System - Marquette.

05/19/2026

When Christopher Wilks was seven, he found escape in the anime show One Piece. Following Monkey D. Luffy on a search for adventure and friendship, he found a story that stayed with him through his path to medicine.

Before medical school, he studied chemistry at Princeton University and worked in community health during the pandemic, where he saw firsthand the inequities patients face in accessing care.

During medical school he contributed to research through MSU’s R2D2 program, and took part in community storytelling in Flint, experiences that strengthened his commitment to understanding patients beyond the clinic.

But one moment brought it all full circle. During a challenging intubation, a respiratory therapist’s tattoo of Monkey D. Luffy caught his eye, instantly grounding him in a familiar sense of calm and connection. “It brightened my spirits,” he said.

Now, he’s headed to emergency medicine residency at Henry Ford Health, ready to carry those lessons forward, one patient, one moment, one connection at a time.

05/14/2026

Following our recent viral video, People reached out to share the story of our recent graduate Jacob Charron and his wife Alexandra, who graduated with us last year. We’re so excited to see their story resonate so deeply and reach millions of people. We couldn’t be more proud of them. 💚

Just one year after a mom graduated medical school while holding her twins in her arms, the whole family was back on stage because this time, it was her husband's turn.