Inspired by her mother, a nurse, medical student Minhtam Tran remembers always being interested in service-related fields while growing up in Portland, Oregon. She chose the T.H. Chan School of Medicine at UMass Chan Medical School specifically for the Population-based Urban and Rural Community Health (PURCH) regional campus track, which focuses on population health and health care disparities, and is based at UMass Chan-Baystate in Springfield.

“Physicians have a unique role in integrating medical knowledge and expertise into advocacy and legislative work,” said Tran, who became interested in community health while studying biochemistry and public health at the University of Rochester. “PURCH prepares you for health care system work, connecting patients to insurance, navigating pharmaceutical coverage for Medicaid patients and interfacing with consultants. Our community-centered curriculum provides insight into how the greater community views health care and how much we need to do to increase trust.”

Although she hasn’t chosen a specialty yet, Tran is leaning toward pediatrics because she says the field is advocacy-focused in providing children with the opportunity to thrive and serving as a point of early intervention.

“I love being able to do all my clinicals in one location. Everyone at Baystate is enthusiastic about teaching,” Tran said. “I wanted to surround myself with people who are passionate about public health and community health work and challenge myself in a new environment.”

Tran earned a Mick Huppert Community Scholar Award in 2023 to work with the Southeast Asian Coalition in Worcester, developing curriculum and teaching high school students about civic engagement. In 2024, she completed a civic health fellowship with the nonprofit Vot-ER. She advises medical school applicants to cultivate their own passions.

“Medical school can be challenging. I think it’s good to be open but also stick to your intuition and principles,” Tran said.

Out of the classroom, Tran enjoys running, hot yoga, swimming, reading and watching soccer.