Matthew

Already a college graduate, Matthew is returning to school to prepare for a career change. Interested in medicine and science, his goal is to become a physician assistant.

After high school, he earned a bachelor’s degree in exercise science from West Chester University and a master’s degree in nutrition from the Maryland University of Integrative Health, and tried out jobs varying from a personal trainer, to an acupuncturist and eventually sales. He then decided to enroll at Howard Community College (HCC) to obtain the prerequisites needed for an accredited physician assistant program.

“I knew HCC was right for me when my anatomy course was more rigorous than the one I had taken at a state university,” he says.

In his time at HCC, Matthew has excelled in his studies, maintaining a 3.9 grade point average, and immersed himself in many campus programs. He is president of the Active Minds Club, a Schoenbrodt Scholar, a work study student with the college’s Wellness Center, a peer leader in an anatomy and physiology study lab, and has twice represented HCC at Student Advocacy Day, joining other students at the state’s capitol to share with legislators how the college has impacted his life and thank them for their support.

Before completing his prerequisites this fall, he will have published two original research papers in HCC’s peer-reviewed journal as part of the undergraduate research program. “Our team quantified a neuropeptide in caterpillars that drove feeding behavior,” he said. Last year Matthew completed another research project, quantifying antibacterial resistance on bacteria found on the skin.

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