EPISODE 8: JAKE VOSS

OCTOBER 2, 2024

Interview by Priyanka Gera

Photo by Zoë Volney

Edited by Amar Gopal

Where are you from? Where’d you grow up?

I’m from San Diego, California—Oceanside. I grew up there and then went to college at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo on the Central Coast of California.

Most of the people I know from California love surfing. Is that on your list of sports?

Maybe not surfing, but I love the beach. Every time I go back there, I love hanging out on the beach.

What’s your ideal vacation?

I like going back to California and spending time with family and I also really love hiking in the mountains, so I like to visit states in the Mountain West as well. I lived in Montana for a little bit before med school.

What did you do before med school? Why were you in Montana?

I had two gap years. Most of the time I worked remotely, so I could live wherever I wanted. I wanted to do an EMT course then so I chose one in Montana because me and my sister wanted to explore the area and hike. So, we moved there for six months before I started med school, and we really liked it.

Are you an official EMT?

Yes. I got certified before I started med school and then got recertified during my M2 year. It’s inactive now, but I still technically have it.

You mentioned your sister. Who else is in your family?

My mom passed away, so it’s just my dad and me. We lived near my abuelo and abuela (grandparents)—they lived about a mile away from us growing up.

How was it growing up with family that close?

It was really good. We spent a lot of time together, and we always had Sunday night family dinners. We were really involved in each other’s lives, which was nice.

What advice did your grandparents give you?

My abuelo came to the U.S. from Colombia when he was 23. He always encouraged me to dream big. When he saw I was interested in science and medicine, he was one of the people who really pushed me to pursue it.

Do you still talk to them?

Yes, we talk on Sunday nights over Zoom.

Have you ever been to Colombia?

I haven’t, but I want to go someday.

Also, I have to ask: do you speak Spanish?

Unfortunately, no. I took some in high school, but didn’t end up practicing much afterwards.

Are you the first doctor in your family?

My grandpa on my dad’s side was a radiologist, and I have an aunt who’s an internist. So, I’m kind of following in her footsteps.

How was it growing up with doctors in the family?

I wish we had talked more about their careers, but we didn’t really discuss it much.

What do you think is the key to a long-lasting friendship?

I think both people have to be genuinely interested in supporting each other and checking in on how the other person is doing. It’s about showing genuine interest in being there for the other person.

Who is your role model?

I don’t know if I have one particular role model, but I had a cross-country coach in high school who used to say, “If it’s important to you, you’ll find a way. If not, you’ll find an excuse.” I’ve always thought that’s true in all aspects of life. He encouraged us to work on mental toughness in running, and it made me think about resilience in life. Also, there was an attending in my internal medicine rotation who said something that stuck with me: “As soon as we don’t want to learn anything new, we should retire.” He’d been practicing for 30 years, and it really showed how much he still cared about being the best he could be for his patients. That advice resonated with me a lot.

You mentioned running, is that something you still do?

Yeah, I try to run regularly, almost every day. Running and exercise in general give me a really nice break from studying and hospital work.

Do you use any running apps?

Yes, I use Strava. It’s great because you can share your runs with other people who are also running, and it can also track hikes and bike rides. Other people can see what you’ve done, and you can see what your friends are doing. It’s pretty cool.

How long are your runs typically?

About five miles. 🏃🏼‍♂️

What do you want your legacy to be in the future?

I want people who know me well to say that I was encouraging and supportive. With patients, I hope they’ll find comfort in knowing that I’m doing my best to work on a plan to help them, especially when they come in with difficult medical challenges.

Coffee or tea got you through these years?

Definitely coffee.

How do you take your coffee?

I like a little milk and sugar. I have somewhat of a sweet tooth.

What was your favorite Halloween costume?

When I was little, I was into superheroes. One year I was Spider-Man, another year Batman, and then Superman. Sometimes when I was a teenager I dressed up as funnier stuff. Once I went as a hippie [both laugh].

Which emoji best describes you?

Probably the sophisticated emoji 🤓 with glasses when I’m studying or in the hospital, and the smiley face with sunglasses 😎 when I’m not working.

What did you want to be when you were a kid?

At one point, I thought about being an engineer because I liked math. But in high school, I got more interested in biology and started leaning toward medicine.

Do you collect anything?

Not intentionally! Sometimes I’ll have random mail or a bill and think maybe I should hang on to it in case I need to reference it or something. I do collect meaningful cards that people have given me for my birthday or Christmas. It’s nice to go back and read them years later.

What’s the best gift you’ve received?

One of my favorite gifts was a trip to Arizona with my parents for graduation and we went with a lot of family, spent quality time together, and did a lot of my favorite things. Experiences like that are the most meaningful gifts to me.

What does self-care look like for you?

Self-care for me is taking breaks to exercise, watch sports, and stay connected with friends both on campus and back home. Throughout my years of studying, my self-care has been about taking breaks and knowing I’ll get back to it later. I can't just go on forever and get tired out, so I let myself recharge before diving back in.

What was your first job?

I worked at Legoland in a sandwich restaurant. It's made me way more empathetic with retail workers. Customer service can be a real challenge sometimes.

Would you survive a zombie apocalypse?

I think I could outrun most of the zombies because of my running. After I’ve run away though I don’t know what I’d do, but I could probably survive for a while!

If you could have any pet, what would it be, and what would you name it?

I really like cats, so I’d probably have a cat. Hard to say what I’d name it though, I’d have to look at it first before deciding. Some names fit and some just don’t.

Did you have pets growing up?

Yes, I had a cat named Thomas from when I was five until college. My dad used to keep a lot of snakes in our garage. It was his hobby to breed them. It surprises a lot of people when I tell them but I’m so used to it.

Where do you see yourself in 15 years?

I see myself working as a hospitalist or in critical care, with a family and kids. It’s hard to know where exactly, but that’s the direction I see myself going.

Do you have a location in mind?

Probably either the Mountain West or California, but not San Diego—it’s too crowded for me. I like the Central Coast of California, where I went to college, because it has more space, or I’d choose somewhere in the Mountain West.

What would you recommend doing in San Diego?

I’d recommend going to the beach and exploring downtown. You could visit Petco Park to watch a Padres game, or check out the Midway, which I think is a retired aircraft carrier. The Gaslamp District has great restaurants and breweries too.

What are three foods you dislike?

Cilantro—it tastes like soap to me. Growing up I would always think, why would people want to put it on tacos and stuff? It's bitter! I don’t like mustard that much either, unless it’s honey mustard. Plain mustard is not that good. And raw broccoli—cooked, it's really good though.

Why did you come to the East Coast for med school?

I applied to med schools all over the country. I got into a school in Ohio first, but then an interview came up for NYMC. I was on the waitlist for a while and got in at the last minute, so I switched to NYMC and came here.

Any advice for current M1s?

Give yourself time to adjust. Most people experience imposter syndrome at some point. Things can feel overwhelming, but we get used to it. Our brains learn to process more information at a faster pace, and we figure out how to study more efficiently. If you start doubting yourself, hang in there and ask for help. Don’t give up because everyone has an adjustment period.

Contact Jake at jvoss@student.nymc.edu.

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