About
Beza was born in Ethiopia and moved to Washington DC when she was 8 years old. Her family has lived in Alhambra, CA for 16 years so she is happy to be back to Los Angeles for medical school. She received her bachelor’s degree in Physiology & Neuroscience from UC San Diego in 2010 but she made the decision to enter medicine in her last year as an undergraduate so she attended a post-bacc program in San Francisco.
Having no medical role models among family, she found mentors and clinical exposures through friendships, pre-medical organizations, and hospital visits with loved ones. Her varied experiences placed her in a wide range of settings, each with a different set of privileges and needs. This expanded her understanding of medicine and taught her that each community has a need with which she can assist. As the oldest of four, her natural urge to answer a call for help led her to the UCLA PRIME program and desire to work with underprivileged populations.
She came to DGSOM with the intent to emulate the spectacular physicians with whom she had worked in the past and correct the transgressions she saw in the health care field as a patient and family member. She considers every day in medical school to be a privilege and will continue to work hard to expand her skill set and connect to new communities with which she can work.
Beza is also a co-coordiator for the Emergency Medicine Interest Group, one of the speaker coordinators for the Minority Health Conference and involved with various other student groups at DGSOM. She tries to use any spare time she gets to catch up with family and friends, seek adventure, play volleyball, or sketch.
Undergrad Institution: UC San Diego
Hometown: Alhambra, CA