Board of Directors
Daniel Pan
Founder & President Dan is a MS4 at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. When he applied to medical school in 2018, he realized that he didn't have the connections or mentors that other applicants had. After receiving his first acceptance, he decided to assemble a group of mentors who would provide free guidance on all aspects of the medical school application process for under-resourced students. Giving a Boost (GAB) was soon established as a student organization at Pitt Med, which has since helped hundreds of applicants not only from the greater Pittsburgh area but also from across the country. Moreover, GAB has expanded nationally, with new chapters being established at other medical schools across the USA.
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Ricky Chae
Executive Director Ricky is a MS4 at University of Massachusetts T.H. Chan School of Medicine. The guidance and support he received from his mentors over the years played a pivotal role in shaping his journey to medicine. By taking on the role of Executive Director for Giving a Boost, he hopes to pay forward the knowledge he gained and help students navigate the medical school application process with confidence. Furthermore, he looks forward to working with medical students across the country on expanding the GAB network nationwide.
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Mikaela Bankston
Executive Director Mikaela is a MS3 at University of Texas Southwestern Medical School. When she applied to med school, she had the privilege of receiving support from her undergrad's health professional advising office and close friends. She credits her application success to her support network and understands that others may not have the same opportunities. She joined GAB in order to pay it forward and to help do her part in ensuring that others are not limited by their life circumstances.
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Selina Chang
Executive Director Selina is a MS3 at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. As the first in her family to pursue medicine, she often felt lost during her application cycle and spent many hours searching for guidance through websites and online forums. By serving on the national executive board and VP Internal at Pitt Med's GAB chapter, she aspires to increase the assessibility of medical school for others who are in the same position that she was in.
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Albert Tong
Campus Recruitment Director Albert is a MS2 at Drexel University College of Medicine. He grew up in Northern Virginia and attended the University of Pittsburgh for undergrad. The GAB program played a valuable role in helping him through the medical school application cycle. His experience has helped him realize that the advice from mentors with prior application experience can often mean the difference in receiving an acceptance or not. Now as a GAB mentor, he hopes to spread GAB’s mission to other universities while providing guidance to applicants who may feel stressed during this intimidating process.
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Seyi Ajayi
Campus Recruitment Director Seyi is a MS2 at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Her interests include obstetrics and gynecology and healthcare disparities. As a senior undergraduate student at the University of Maryland, College Park, she served as Secretary of the Charles R. Drew Pre-Health Society, an organization committed to diversifying healthcare fields and providing the resources to enter these fields. As a GAB mentor, Seyi is committed to continuing those same goals and helping pre-med students achieve success in their medical journeys.
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Robert Dembinski
Communications Director Rob is a general surgery PGY-1 at Brown University. He was born and raised in New Jersey and attended Johns Hopkins University where he served as captain of the Track and Field team. As the first in his family to pursue medicine, Rob relied on the advice of friends to navigate the application process. He joined Giving a Boost because he views the organization as a lasting way to pay this effort forward. He is excited to continue developing his passion for near peer mentorship as he transitions to surgical training.
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Grace Simmons
Written Materials Director Grace is a MS3 at Columbia VP&S. During her time as an undergraduate at Princeton, she was involved in PUMP, a mentorship program for students of color, first as a mentee and then as a mentor and now as an alumni mentor. This experience as well as applying to medical school as a FLI student really taught her the importance of peer guidance. Now as a medical student and member of Giving a Boost, she is excited to help demystify the application process and improve the accessibility of the medical field for premeds from underrepresented backgrounds.
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Vishni Arulanandam
Written Materials Director Vishni is a MS2 at UMass Chan Medical School and is closely involved with her local GAB chapter. She attended Brandeis University for undergrad. She became passionate about mentorship while being a TA. She loved interacting with students from different backgrounds and watching them thrive. Just as she helped students navigate through organic chemistry lab, she hopes to help pre-medical students navigate the application cycle. She strives to create accessible resources students can refer to throughout the application cycle and compile information that she wished she knew earlier.
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Melissa Kukowski
Managing Director Melissa is a PGY-1 at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. She graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 2017, and she worked as a teacher for three years prior to starting medical school. When she applied to medical school, she had very little guidance, and after going through the process, there is so much she wished she would have known. Therefore, she has been involved with GAB since she was an MS0 to help applicants navigate and prepare for the competitive yearlong process.
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Debby Cheng
Onboarding Director Debby is currently on a research year following her MS3 year at Harvard Medical School. She joined GAB as a mentor because she was a GAB mentee in the past. Applying to medical schools is stressful, and she really appreciated having a mentor to help her through that time. She hopes to give back to the GAB program and help guide other students through the process.
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Lori Huang
Outreach Director Lori is a MS2 at Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. During undergrad at Pitt, she was a student advisor for students pursuing a BS in Biology and a TA for several science classes, sparking a joy for mentoring others. When she was applying for medical school, she relied heavily on online resources to guide her through the process. Understanding how overwhelming the application process could be, she joined GAB to help ensure the success of applicants and their future careers in medicine.
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Serena Schein
Outreach Director Serena is a MS3 at Saint Louis University School of Medicine. Her interest in medicine stems from her passions for biology, neuroscience, and human connection. Serena is enthusiastic about mentorship and is involved with MCAT tutoring, her school’s medical education distinction, and the Saint Louis University School of Medicine’s admissions committee. She is thrilled to be involved with Giving a Boost to help the incoming student doctors both in her area and around the country.
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Ellie Randolph
Media Director Ellie is a MS4 at USF Morsani College of Medicine in Tampa FL. She became interested in mentorship after helping younger student athletes adjust to the challenges of balancing a tough athletic schedule with demanding academics while a member of the Track & Field team at Princeton University, and continues to be involved with undergraduate mentorship at her alma mater. She has always had a passion for science, exercise, and the arts, and she is excited to help other aspiring physicians achieve their academic dreams while maintaining the other passions that also make them whole.
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Jason Zheng
Social Media Director Jason is a MS1 at University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine and co-president for Penn’s GAB chapter. He is passionate about mentorship and has extensive experience teaching students in subjects like organic chemistry. Currently, he works at Blueprint Test Prep as a MCAT tutor. During his application cycle, Pitt’s GAB chapter helped him tremendously in securing multiple interviews and acceptances. Him and two fellow Pitt alums started a GAB chapter at Penn to pay it forward and help future premed students achieve their dreams as well. His goal is to help spread awareness for GAB and expand their reach to all medical schools in the US.
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Keri Allen
Social Media Director Keri is a MS2 at USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. As a future physician, she values integrative medicine, patient empowerment, and a holistic approach to care management. Throughout her professional education and career, she will continue to advocate for underserved communities and strive for equitable healthcare for all. In her free time, she enjoys weightlifting, making graphics, or spending time with family and friends.
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Matthew Como
Social Media Director Matt is a MS2 at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. He feels fortunate to have had several invaluable mentors during his path to applying to medical school, who spent time helping him with application planning and interview preparation. These committed mentors played a significant role in developing Matt’s passion to give back to the next generation of students interested in pursuing a career in medicine. He is excited to help further expand GAB’s national outreach and continue to help students achieve their goal of reaching medical school.
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Dharmil Bhavsar
Pre-Med Director Dharmil is an undergraduate pre-medical student at Princeton University with a passion for mentorship in the medical field. As a first-generation college student who understands the struggles of navigating the path to medical school and the application process, he is committed to helping provide valuable resources and guidance to fellow pre-med students. Through his role in Giving a Boost, he hopes to connect with pre-med students across the country and introduce them to GAB opportunities that can assist them in achieving their academic and professional goals.
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Emily In
Program Evaluation Director Emily is a MS4 at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine who will be applying into neurology residency. Emily is the first in her family to go to medical school, and although she found the application process overwhelming, she was fortunate enough to have friends in medical school who could serve as mentors throughout the application process. She continues to mentor through GAB because she would love to help other pre-meds in similar situations who wouldn’t otherwise have help to navigate the complicated medical school application process.
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Romano Sebastiani
Program Evaluation Director Romano is a MS4 at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. He grew up in southwestern Pennsylvania and attended undergrad at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown where he was a captain of the Men’s Basketball team. As a former GAB mentee, the guidance he received throughout the application process was truly invaluable. He became a GAB mentor upon starting medical school and is dedicated to forming longitudinal relationships with pre-med students while partnering with them to accomplish their goals.
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Zainab Balogun
Program Evaluation Director Zainab is a MS4 at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. When she’s not advising students on how to craft a winning medical school application, she’s tutoring junior medical students, and performing clinical research in the field of oncology. Zainab’s ultimate goal with GAB is to help close the gap when it comes to the diversity of incoming medical students and future physicians.
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