Hi, my name is Raul Salazar and I am a first year in PRIME-LA at Charles R. Drew/UCLA. I’m originally from San Jose, CA but moved around a lot throughout the Bay Area. Both my parents immigrated from Mexico in their youth with limited opportunity. Consequently, I did not have much guidance in the education system in the US but managed to graduate high school and continue my studies at the University of California, Davis where I majored in Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior with a minor in Communication. After graduating in 2015, I continued my community work in Sacramento as a patient advocate within the emergency department, specifically assisting with mitigating barriers to care and improving healthcare access for uninsured and Medicaid patients. I revisited my education under the UC Davis Postbaccalaureate Program during 2018-2019 and then applied to medical school. My interests revolve around health policy, social justice, immigrant health, and mentorship.

Undergrad Institution: UC Davis

Hometown: San Jose, CA