Preparing For Medical School: Q&A With Eric Pinkston (‘20)

The right pre-health program doesn’t just give you prerequisites for medical school; it gives you the vital experience you need to thrive as a medical professional. Since graduating from Southern Virginia University in the Pre-Health Professional track in 2020, Eric Pinkston has been taking the wisdom of his SVU professors and a heart for helping others to make his career in medicine a reality.

As he pursues a medical degree at the University of Arizona College of Medicine, Eric has found that his SVU foundation prepared him to take on the responsibility of becoming a doctor. Our interview with him in 2022 detailed what led to his decision to become a doctor, how he was prepared for medical school while studying at SVU, and offered advice and suggestions to students interested in pursuing a career in medicine.

This interview was edited for length and clarity.

Preparing For Medical School With a Pre-Health Program

Getting into medical school is a pivotal point for building a successful medical career. Your undergraduate degree sets the trajectory for the rest of your education journey, so choosing the right program matters.

At SVU, every student has the opportunity to choose a career concentration that gives them real-world experience and the necessary prerequisites for their chosen field. Concentration tracks connect the education from SVU’s majors and core courses to specific skills and experiences students will use after their undergraduate degree.

The rigorous nature of medical school means that students hoping to pursue a career in medicine should begin building their skills and developing the right knowledge as soon as possible. With SVU’s Pre-Health Professional track, students get all the tools they need to be competent and competitive for medical school admissions, including clinical experience, volunteer hours, and one-on-one instruction. Rather than limiting students to a specific pre-med degree, they are free to choose a major and align their pre-med classes to fit their career goals.

Q&A With Eric Pinkston (’20): Connecting Medicine and a Heart For Others

Eric Pinkston (’20) credits the hands-on, mission-oriented nature of SVU’s pre-health program with preparing him for his medical school experience. In 2022, we sat down with him to discuss his time at SVU and the ways that his undergrad education gave him what he needed to succeed at the University of Arizona College of Medicine.

Q1. Why Did You Decide to Pursue Medical School?

Eric Pinkston: A lot of things. My grandfather and other family members are doctors, and that showed me that a career in medicine is rewarding, you can do a lot of things with it, and you can have a good life for you and your family. But what really got me into it was my mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Russia. 

Having dedicated time serving people helped me to realize that I wanted one-on-one individual service and care as part of my career. And after that, it was an easy decision when I found out that I really loved science. It was a marriage between a good career for my family, science, and an ability to help people in a one-on-one type of relationship.

Q2. What is the Process for Applying to Medical School?

Eric: It’s a difficult process. On paper, it’s doing all of the prerequisite courses for the schools you’d like to apply to—history, the biologies, and some schools require physics, others require biochemistry. You need to understand what kind of schools you want to apply to and ensure you get those prerequisites. But, you don’t necessarily have to major in a science. There are lots of students here at the UACM who did different kinds of majors, like politics or art. 

Then you need to show that you understand what it means to be a doctor; that you’re prepared and know what you’re getting yourself into. That’s because it’s both a big investment on your part as well as an investment for the med school. Having quantifiable time that ou can tell the admissions committee, ‘I did this amount of time shadowing a doctor, so I know what it’s like to be a doctor, and I know what it’s like for the hours they work and the interactions they have,’ is important. The more experience you have, the better. 

It’s also important to have a good amount of volunteer experience because a lot of what we do as medical students, and even as residents, feels like volunteer work. But honestly, the hardest part is just buckling down and preparing for the MCAT because that, unfortunately, is a big deciding factor of whether you get an interview or not.

Q3. Did Attending Southern Virginia University Help You Prepare for Medical School?

Eric: For sure. Dr. Roger Johnson was my biochemistry professor, and he taught at a medical school prior to teaching at SVU, so he was able to talk to us about the process and the rigor of medical school. The material he taught was very helpful when I first started school because at the UACM you have to jump right into biochemistry and the molecular side of life and disease. So taking classes from him and having a good conversation about chemistry helped me tremendously. Aside from Dr. Johnson, more than anybody else, Dr. Barbara Van Kuiken gave me confidence and just showed me that I could do it. She made me feel like I was worth it, that I could apply to a big school and get in and be successful.

Q4. Beyond Classes and Professors, What Else Helped You Prepare for Medical School?

Eric: So Remote Area Medical (RAM) clinics were by far the most impactful thing. I probably spent about 200 hours volunteering at different RAM clinics in my two years at SVU. It was a tremendous opportunity, and a lot of the professional connections that I made came from RAM. There was an orthopedic surgeon I worked with at the RAM clinic in West Virginia, and he invited me out to shadow him on a separate occasion so I could see more of what he did. I also had the opportunity to shadow Dr. Dane McBride, who used to teach at SVU. He’s an Asthma, Allergy, and Immunology specialist and practiced in Roanoke until he recently retired. I spent a lot of time at his practice and I really enjoyed my time there. He was a great mentor to me and was very encouraging.

Q5.  Tell us about your Your post-graduation, pre-medical school experiences.

Eric: Immediately at the UACM, we were brought into different research groups depending on our interests. My group is currently working on a project about specific bacteria that cause infections in joints that are replaced. I’ve actually joined another research project with a resident at one of the orthopedic residencies in the area, and I might have an opportunity to go down to Tampa to present our project. I am also part of the Global Health Group in the UAE, and in late May this year, we went down to Mexico to do some clinical work for some people there who really needed our help.

Q6.  What Are Your Plans After Medical Schools?

Eric: When I finish at the University of Arizona, I’ll be a doctor. I’ll have an MD and will apply to a residency program to be trained to be some sort of specialist, whether that be some specialty surgery, family medicine, or emergency medicine. I’m really interested in orthopedics; I’ve had a lot of experiences with orthopedic surgeons that have been excellent, as well as some personal experiences being treated by orthopedic surgeons that were very impactful. But it’s a really competitive specialty, so fingers crossed!

Put Your Passion Into Practice: SVU’s Pre-Health Program For Medical or Dental Professionals

Southern Virginia University’s Pre-Health Professional track equips you with the real-world experience and personalized support to thrive in medical or dental school. Through hands-on learning, global service opportunities, and small-class mentoring, you'll graduate prepared to lead and serve.

Students gain practical experience through international medical mission trips to countries like Ecuador, Ghana, and Costa Rica, and local volunteer work at RAM clinics and within the community, giving them a competitive edge for med school applications.

With individualized guidance in every class, you’ll sharpen the communication, critical thinking, and writing skills essential for success in healthcare. You’ll also fulfill all course prerequisites tailored to your career goals and start preparing for the MCAT during your junior year with expert-led review sessions and Kaplan prep options. SVU also offers on-campus EMT certification training.

SVU takes a well-rounded liberal arts education and tailors it to your skills, passions, and calling. Take the next step in your career with purpose and preparation at Southern Virginia University.