Founded in fall 2021, Freshman Aggies in Medicine, or FAiM, provides freshmen a unique opportunity to form a community with other students at Texas A&M working toward a career in the medical field.
FAiM is the first freshman leadership organization, or FLO, pertaining to medicine that connects students of all majors and backgrounds through academics, friendship and a passion for healthcare.
FAiM founder and nutrition junior Cosette McGuire said she was inspired to create FAiM after enjoying the time she spent in a FLO her freshman year.
“FLOs bring freshmen together, specifically freshmen with something in common,” McGuire said. “There is a FLO catered to freshmen engineering majors and a FLO specifically for business majors. It felt like a medical-related FLO was missing. I wanted to create a FLO because they are so different from other organizations. Freshmen not only get to meet new people, but experience mentorship as well.”
Biology junior Burak Torlak had the opportunity to serve as a part of FAiM’s staff for the Class of 2025. There are many other medical organizations at A&M. However, Torlak said there are two main things that sets FAiM apart from these organizations: close relationships between all members and mentorship.
“FAiM focuses not only on healthcare related things, but service and social activities as well,” Torlak said. “This is what brings the freshmen closer together. It guarantees that the freshmen form bonds with each other they wouldn’t get in other medical organizations. We also provide freshmen with personable knowledge, like research opportunities. The experience has been extremely rewarding.”
Most FAiM members are working to attend higher education after undergrad. There is an understanding that they must prioritize their academics to achieve this common goal. Fortunately, one day out of the week serves as a study night for FAIM freshmen to reach out to their mentors for guidance. Psychology senior Gillian Robson served as one of the many staff members who assisted freshmen with their studies when needed.
“The best part of weekly study night is the fact that staff have already taken the classes freshman are currently taking,” Robson said. “It’s the best thing because whether you are absolutely lost in [organic chemistry] or [biology], you can attend and afterward go, OK, I understand now.’ Someone can always help you out.”
FAiM hopped hurdles in the process of becoming a FLO. The organization plans to be a formal part of the freshman leadership advisory council, or FLAC, starting fall 2023. Despite delayed recruitment, the organization received over 120 applications in its first round last fall. FAiM had a near-perfect 2-to-1 ratio with 40 freshmen and 22 staff members. Psychology senior and FAiM staff member Sarah Belland said this small number became a tight-knit group thanks to FAiM members’ diverse backgrounds and majors.
“The freshmen are all working toward a similar goal, but all of them come from different places,” Belland said. “It really worked toward the diversity of the freshmen. We had freshmen this year who want to go into biomedical engineering, pharmaceuticals, some want to work in mental health and clinical psychology. Then we had people who have wanted to be pediatric surgeons their whole life.”
For more information about FAiM visit their Instagram, @aggiefaim, and their website.
