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I read books daily
Merjaan Ahmad
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FinalistMerjaan Ahmad
2,725
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FinalistBio
Hi!
My name is Merjaan Ahmad. I am currently in college studying Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience with a minor in Psychology. In the future I wish to pursue a master's degree. I plan to go into the field of research and teaching.
I am the first child in my family to go to college in the United States. While daunting, it has been an incredible blessing to be a role model for my younger siblings and to encourage them to pursue higher education. In this male dominated field, I hope to be a role model to other young girls and women. I want to encourage young women that there is space for them in this industry, if they are willing to work to break through.
In my free time I enjoy a multitude of activities. I mainly enjoy doing these activities with my family (my parents, and younger sister and younger brother). I enjoy baking, photography, writing, and scrapbooking. I make time everyday to read something outside of school work. I read a variety of genres and aim to read books by authors of all backgrounds.
As I am only the first of three children in my family to go to college, scholarships would greatly help with college costs in my family. Lessening the cost of my education would help for there to be more money being put towards the education of my younger sister and brother. Therefore, scholarship money would not only support my education, but also the education of my siblings.
Thank you for reading and I'm looking forward to hearing from you!
Education
Loyola University Chicago
Bachelor's degree programMajors:
- Neurobiology and Neurosciences
Minors:
- Psychology, General
Downers Grove North High School
High SchoolMiscellaneous
Desired degree level:
Bachelor's degree program
Graduate schools of interest:
Transfer schools of interest:
Majors of interest:
- Neurobiology and Behavior
Career
Dream career field:
Neurosciences
Dream career goals:
Research
Medical Assisstant
Downers Grove Immediate Care Clinic2021 – Present3 years
Sports
Figure Skating
Intramural2008 – 20124 years
Research
Human Biology
Loyola University Chicago — Analyzed data about the frequency and abundance of microbiota in CTCL patients2023 – 2023
Public services
Volunteering
Franciscan Health at Olympia Fields Illinois — Helping patients2019 – 2021Volunteering
Ahmadiyya Movement in Islam — Youth Volunteer2010 – Present
Future Interests
Advocacy
Volunteering
Philanthropy
Al-Haj Abdallah R Abdallah Muslim Scholarship
I am majoring in Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience at Loyola University Chicago. InshAllah, I will obtain my degree in 2025. I am passionate about learning how the brain works. God willing, I will go into research so that I am able to discover new ways in which to help people. Neuroscience is a fast growing field, in both importance and capacity. The need for new discoveries on how to prevent and treat problems is growing.
In Islam, the education of women and girls is stressed immensely. The Holy Prophet placed great value on the education and moral training of women and girls. It is important for me to seek higher education in order to follow the teachings of the Holy Prophet, as well as to better my mind and person. With a higher education, one can further understand the world in which we are and how to better it. I hope to leave a positive impact on the world around me.
I have been volunteering in my mosque since the age of 7, since 2010. I have packed food with my mosque through the organization Feed My Starving Children. I, along with other young women in my mosque, have packed backpacks full of school supplies for young children in lower class. By doing so, I have enabled other young children to further their education and improved their school experience. I have also volunteered at a hospital for 3 years. There I cared for elderly patients, assisted nurses in their tasks, and shadowed nurses. From a young age I have been passionate about my education, and helping others further their education. In elementary school, I organized a book exchange for the children in my neighborhood, so that they would have new reading material to keep them engaged throughout the summer. Throughout my childhood, I have volunteered at food pantries and clothing drives whenever the opportunity presented itself. I am passionate about helping my community in any way that I possibly can.
Being a Pakistani American Muslim is a large part of my identity. I was born and raised in the U.S., but grew up with my parents bringing Pakistani, specifically Pathan, culture into our household. I am grateful that my parents did not shy away from teaching my siblings and I about where they came from and our culture. I am also very grateful that I was raised as a Muslim. Growing up, religion has always been integrated into my life. Going to mosque as often as we could helped me to appreciate being born into such a beautiful religion. In school, learning to balance being Pakistani Muslim and an American student was difficult at first. From a young age I felt isolated from my peers, as we did not share a lot of the same experiences and our cultures at home were so different. However, as I’ve grown up, I’ve learned to value the differences that my culture and religion give to me, and to not shy away from the discussions that classmates may want to have about both my religion and my culture.