Student Profiles
Joseph J. Maleszewski
Age: 25
Hometown: New Baltimore, Michigan
Highlights of Pre-Med Career:
- Bachelors in physiology with a specialization in health and humanities, Michigan State University.
- Served as a graduate assistant for cellular and molecular biology.
- Served as a research assistant in the MSU cystic fibrosis laboratory.
- Was an American Heart Association Student Fellow at Henry Ford Hospital.
- Served as a level IV restorative C.E.N.A. at Presbyterian Villages of Michigan.
- Member of American Physiological Society, American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Medical Association and American Medical Student Association.
Why Medicine?
My motivations for pursuing a career in medicine are somewhat unique. Going to college, I intended to one day become a teacher and researcher. I have a great love of teaching students and have known for some time that it was my calling. I also have been consistently fascinated by the study of disease and how it affects the human body. The love of these three areas—teaching, research and disease process—makes medicine a very logical field for me to pursue a future in.
Why CHM?
Knowing that my future was teaching medicine, it was clearly important to me to find excellent teaching mentors. Having gone to MSU for my undergraduate education, I was acutely aware of the type of faculty that teaches at the college. They are, by an overwhelming majority, an enthusiastic group of people that truly love to teach. I was also afforded the opportunity to cultivate my teaching skills by being a graduate assistant in the Lyman Briggs School of Science here at MSU. Additionally, I was involved with a researcher on campus as an undergrad and I was very pleased to be able to stay on in his lab and continue my work there while in medical school.
About CHM's Community Campus-Based Structure
The community-based structure has been a terrific experience for me. Not only was I exposed to a couple of community health care models, but I feel I got great attention from the faculty. The faculty at the community hospitals are, in large, a volunteer group. These physicians teach medical students not because it is a mandated part of their job, but because it is a great joy to them. They tend to go out of their way to involve the medical students in every aspect of patient care.
Serving Residency at a Community Campus
The community of Kalamazoo has been a great place to learn. It is fantastic to have two major hospital centers at our disposal as well as facilities at Western Michigan University. The hospital facilities are amazing. Bronson Methodist Hospital is brand new and everything in it is state-of-the-art. Although these facilities are impressive, the most impressive feature of the Kalamazoo campus is its faculty. They are a group of people truly dedicated to teaching medical students and rely on us a great deal for the delivery of care to their patients.
Professional Opportunities at CHM
Being at CHM has afforded me numerous professional opportunities. In addition to serving as a graduate assistant in molecular biology for the Lyman Briggs School of Science, I was able to be a teaching assistant as a Year II student for several of the Year I courses: histology, neuroscience and anatomy. I also have been able to serve on numerous committees, including pathology medical education committee and the orientation committee, and to continue my work in the cystic fibrosis research laboratory on campus. This work has resulted in numerous presentations and publications.
