Molloy’s Pre-Med Career Club welcomed back alumni Nicole Guerrero ‘04, Christa Ciuffo ‘11, and Benedict Harvey ‘14 for a Pre-Med Panel! Open to all students, the panel was an opportunity to learn more about the lives of nurses, nurse practitioners, physicians, and medical students.
Nicole was a member of Molloy’s first co-ed class. She holds a BS from Quinnipiac University, a BSN from Pace University, and an MSN in Nursing Clinical Systems Leadership from the University of Arizona. She is currently a Quality Management Specialist and Administrator on Call at the NewYork-Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center. Nicole has experience in children and adolescent psychiatry, adult telemetry psychiatry, heart failure, and cardiothoracic surgery, and is certified as a Nurse Executive-Advanced and a Progressive Care Nurse. Christa attended Adelphi University for her bachelor’s degree, then pursued a Master’s degree as an Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner at Hofstra. She is currently in pursuit of a Doctorate in Nursing Practice at Hofstra, while also working in the Post-Anesthesia Care Unit at North Shore University Hospital. Benedict pursued a degree in Biological Sciences at Cornell University with an emphasis on Neurobiology and Population Health, then spent two years working as a Diversity Programs Assistant at Weill Cornell Medicine. There, he worked for a 2.7 million dollar grant geared toward increasing representation in medicine across all levels of trainees. He is currently a few weeks away from graduating Weill Cornell Medical School (where he is the Vice President for Black and Latino Men in Medicine), and will begin his residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Howard University Hospital in July!
The panelists answered student questions regarding financing nursing/medical school, the importance of medical professionals, the length of training for each career, work/life balance, class selection, and more. Nicole shared that there are “so many options for a career in medicine, especially in the nursing field,” and that she loves it because “you get to see the benefits of what you’re doing every day.” Christa agreed that there are so many routes to take as a nurse, and so “she didn’t feel stuck, but could transition and learn as much as she wanted.” Benedict highlighted that the path to a career in medicine is “not always linear,” and that students should be immersed in the journey rather than be fixated on the results.
Thank you, Nicole, Christa, and Benedict, for coming to speak to our current Stanners!