Freshman Follows a Music 和 Engineering Path to Medicine

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Posted on November 4, 2022

托马斯Becnel

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#FreshmanFocus is a series of stories on incoming students at the University of 南 阿拉巴马州.

Paul Nguyen grew up in Beaverton, Oregon, just outside Portl和, so he thought he might study engineering on the West Coast.

Instead, he crossed the country to enroll at the University of 南 阿拉巴马州. 他是 a pre-med student with a double major of 音乐 和 electrical engineering.

Nguyen never visited Mobile before coming to 南, so he’s still adjusting to the culture 和 climate.

“I knew it would be hot 和 humid, but I didn’t know it would rain so much,” he said. “There was a lot of rain in Portl和, but it’s different – cold 和 miserable. 甚至 the rain culture is different. Nobody there carries umbrellas. They all wear rain 夹克.”

After Nguyen’s mother, Teresa Tran, immigrated from Vietnam, she lived in Mobile 和 earned a degree in mathematics 和 statistics from 南 in 1990. That connection led to his college choice, especially after a successful audition for the 音乐 program.

“南 offered me some good financial aid, but it really came down to my mom graduating from here,” he said. “She was the one who told me about 南 阿拉巴马州. 她喜欢 idea of me going to an institution she trusted.”

Were you nervous about your piano audition for 南?

“I’m always a little nervous before a performance. Because it was online, a Zoom call, I got to play on my own piano, 和 that helped. 我认为 I played Beethoven’s ‘Tempest’ sonata 和 Ravel’s ‘Sonatine.’”

How does college life compare to high school?

“It’s busier, for sure. I don’t know that it’s harder, but you do have to train yourself in time management. I came from a really competitive high school, Westview High School, 和 we had a lot of Advanced Placement classes, so I was able to start college in 微积分三世.”

What do you do in your free time?

 “I listen to some K-pop, a group called DPR. Sometimes, with my friends, I play a videogame, Teamfight Tactics, which is a spinoff from League of Legends. 这就像 a board game on a computer, 和 you try to make a team to fight other boards. 我认为 I reached the top 800 players on the continent.

“In high school, I did some swimming. Here, I swim laps at the Student Rec Center. I used to do a workout of 3,000 yards. Now, I try to do a mile. In the evenings, the pool is 开放 until 8, if I get out of class in time.”

Have you gotten a chance to try Mobile culture 和 cuisine?

“I’ve been to a Florida beach, in Pensacola. I have a meal plan, so I usually eat 在自助餐厅. And I’ve got a pressure cooker in my residence hall. Stir-fry, basically. Rice, eggs 和 soy sauce. I like to let the soy sauce evaporate so it soaks into the rice, 和 you get a smoky flavor.”

You’re studying 音乐 和 electrical engineering. Are they completely different, or 非常相似?

“I feel like they’re different. Sitting down to do math or STEM homework is different from sitting down at the piano. After studying all day, 音乐 helps me release all 的. 这绝对是 freeing, but if you want to play at a high level, you have 集中. I’m not playing to have fun. 有 a lot of discipline.”

You haven’t lost any of your love for 音乐?

“When I was in high school, I found it kind of hard to practice. I would play maybe 每天一小时. Now that I’m here, once I’m in the practice room, I can crank out three 小时,轻松. 这就像 a different mindset.”

And you plan on going to medical school? What kind of physician would you like to be?

“I have a lot of family in radiology, so I’m looking at that, but I’m keeping my options 开放. Seeing what I like.”

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