Student Spotlight: Melissa Duran

Melissa Duran immigrated to the United States from Ecuador 11 years ago with the dream of becoming a surgeon. She settled in New York City with her sister where she worked full-time and went to school full-time. She earned Biology degrees from Laguardia Community College and Brooklyn College. Her grades were good, but not good enough for medical school. Her dreams of becoming a surgeon were on hold.

When her sister returned to Ecuador, Duran decided to move upstate where her mother was living. She discovered Onondaga Community College and decided to enroll for the fall 2023 semester. She chose the Surgical Technology degree program. "It put me in the operating room so I could get experience there. And I also began retaking old classes so I could improve my GPA (grade point average)."

Duran excelled in her coursework at OCC and improved her cumulative GPA from 2.9 to 3.8. She earned membership in the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, Honors College, and was also a Meg O'Connell Scholar. She shared her knowledge at the Learning Center where she tutored fellow students in Medical Terminology, Anatomy and Physiology 1, and Spanish 1 and 2.

In between semesters, she did research at Syracuse University with Professor Sarah Hall. They used the animal model organism C.elegans to investigate the mechanisms of environmental programming of gene expression and in impact on adult phenotypes.

When she's not in class, tutoring, or doing clinicals at one of the area hospitals, Duran can often be found on the 2nd floor of Coulter Hall where the Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (C-STEP) is headquartered. "The advisors here are amazing. They are always staying in touch and giving you all of the things you need to succeed. Sometimes I have imposter syndrome and think I don't belong here. But when people are telling me I'm doing great, I realize I really do belong here."

Duran will complete her Surgical Technology degree this May. She plans to transfer to SUNY Upstate Medical University where she will pursue a master's degree in MedPrep Enhancement. The program will give her the opportunity to continue to improve previous grades in preparation for medical school.