Angela Mosley

As an African-American growing up in Cuba, Alabama, a small town not far from the Mississippi border, Angela Mosley saw health care disparities first hand. At Vanderbilt University, her experiences growing up inspired her to write her psychology honors thesis about the historical and cultural factors that contribute to health care disparities among African Americans and Native Americans. Her thesis, combined with her experiences as a research assistant in a lab conducting clinical drug trials and as a volunteer at a free clinic run by Vanderbilt medical students, led her to shift her career goals from clinical psychology to medicine.

UVA's Post Bacc Pre-Med Program was one of five post bacc programs she considered to help her make the transition. After she talked with former Program Director Beth Bailey, it became her only choice. “The interview was like nothing else I had gone through,” she says.  “Beth didn’t just go over the ground I covered in my personal statement. She asked me challenging questions to see if I had thought carefully about my choice of career. I really appreciated the extra effort and the personalized attention.”

When she arrived in the Summer of 2015, Mosley found the rigor of the program and the individualized support met her expectations. She was particularly gratified to discover how cooperative and helpful her fellow students are.  “Given the sheer quantity of information we are expected to master, having this mutual support makes a real difference.”