Bridging the Gap to Medical School
Practicing Hospitalist, UChicago Medicine
A high school physics competition brought David Beam to Illinois Tech, where the smaller class sizes and campus atmosphere created a base for a pre-health education.
David Beam (BIOL ’20)David Beam (BIOL ’20) first came to Mies Campus as an open-minded high schooler for a construction competition at Illinois Tech. While the medical field was already in his sights for the future, he decided that a tech-based university would be the place to start his higher education journey.
“The bridge-building competition and camaraderie was exciting, and I ultimately decided that I wanted to attend Illinois Tech because of the people and atmosphere,” Beam says. “The relatively small class sizes, direct experiences with professors, and Chicago campus were all factors.”
A native of Oak Forest, Illinois, Beam stayed near family while living on an urban campus surrounded by everything the city has to offer.
“Chicago is a major international city with a number of strong academic medical schools. As a member of Illinois Tech’s American Medical Student Association chapter, I was able to explore several of these schools and medical campuses, which helped my transition between undergrad and medical school,” Beam says. “Just as importantly, there is no shortage of great food, music, and culture to be experienced in the city.”
Beam put his first year of college experiences to work in a biology laboratory, culminating in a presentation at the department’s research day. Other collaborative work during his time was focused on designing 3D-printed joints as replacements for patients’ problematic limb injuries. He also found time to enjoy student organizations.
“I was involved with the American Medical Student Association at Illinois Tech, specifically with preparing emails and newsletters as part of its communications section,” Beam says. “It was great to get in touch with a variety of different students from other majors that also wanted to ultimately go to medical school. I think it relieved stress and showed us that there were many different, reasonable approaches that could get us there.”
After spending four memorable years in Chicago building friendships, as well as knowledge through relevant courses and academic guidance, Beam enrolled at Medical College of Wisconsin.
“The coursework was great in helping me truly understand the core concepts in biology and biochemistry that I was able to build on in medical school,” Beam says. “The professors personally wanted to ensure that you knew the material well and would be able to apply it to the real world and your career.”
Beam is now a practicing hospitalist at UChicago Medicine, where he sees the fruits of his hard work at Illinois Tech in the eyes of his patients.
“I’m able to directly impact people’s lives consistently through my communication with them and their families. I think that it’s a privilege to be able to build that degree of trust with others,” Beam says.
