Name: Lauren Styczynski
Year: Sophomore
Major: Medical Sciences + Professional Writing Certificate
Campus Involvement: President of Healthcats, Editor in Chief of the MedCat Jr. (Secretary of the Medical Sciences Student Government), Founder and President of the UC Ayn Rand Society, Member of CHAARG, Science Contributor for The News Record, RECON Mentor, Editorial Team Member for Her Campus & Undergraduate Researcher at UC College of Medicine in the Dept. of Anesthesiology
Fun Fact: One time I crowd surfed at a metal concert on a Tuesday night. It was the most exhilarating moment of my entire life.
Her Campus University of Cincinnati: Hi Lauren! I am super excited to talk to you about your amazing amount of student involvement on campus today! First things first, what inspired you to get involved in so many student organizations?
Lauren Styczynski: When I started on campus, I was pre-med (weren’t we all?). I was told that medical schools really, really love to see campus involvement, so that’s kind of how I ended up in Healthcats. I also knew about Her Campus before I showed up to school, and knew I wanted to write for them. Now that I’m no longer pre-med, my schedule hasn’t necessarily freed up, but I feel as though I have more flexibility and less structure and am able to join organizations that I am simply interested in, like CHAARG. I was fairly quiet and probably way too focused my freshman year, and while that was awesome for me academically, it wasn’t awesome for me in other aspects of my life. I came in not knowing a ton of people, and wanted to branch outside of my major in terms as friends (even though I love the MedSci fam), so I joined a bunch of organizations, and have met some of the sweetest people in the world. Student Organizations have allowed me to develop as a human in every aspect.
HCUC: Out of the multiple student organizations you’re involved in, which are you most passionate about? Which is your favorite and why?
LS: This might be the toughest question ever. I’m incredibly passionate about every organization I am a part of, but for different reasons, because each one is a different aspect of my life.
Healthcats is the service side of me. I’ve always been a huge advocate for community service, and I love what we’re doing with Healthcats: encompassing the “pre-health” mindset and packaging it into one organization, with guest speakers (physicians, scientists, public health specialists, and naturopaths), and lots of community service.
CHAARG is awesome because it forces me to go workout, even when I don’t want to. I was remotely athletic growing up and in high school, and it’s so nice being able to try out different workouts from the Cincinnati area.
RECON is awesome because it allows me to share knowledge of the one thing that I know and love: research. The reason I am no longer pre-med is because I realized I want to go to graduate school, and pursue research as a career. So naturally it makes sense that I am a huge fan of mentoring and helping someone else get involved in the wonderful world of research. Then it also makes sense that I would be the science contributor for the News Record; it encompasses science and writing, my two passions.
The UC Ayn Rand Society takes me into another aspect of my life: the part of me that loves to read and write and be creative.
HCUC: It is so cool that you founded your own student organization! What motivated you to bring the Ayn Rand Society to UC’s campus? To those who don’t know what the Ayn Rand Society is, can you please explain the purpose?
LS: I read The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand for a report in high school, and became friends with one of my best friends through it, because we’d always meet at Panera and talk about our book, edit each other’s papers, and make sure that we were on the same path. The kicker, though, is that we’re still best friends. I knew that Rand groups on campus were a thing, but they weren’t a thing at UC. So I decided to make my own. We’re a book club at the core, but only read Rand books as we are sponsored by the Ayn Rand Institute. We will talk a little bit about her philosophy and how weird and breathtaking she is, though. It’s a good time.
HCUC: How do you manage to belong and hold leadership positions in your many student organizations while maintaining your academics as a full time sophomore and a medical sciences major? What is your best advice for someone who wants to do it all, but feels discouraged?
LS: Honestly, it is tough. It’s hard to do everything, and I often have to miss out on events due to other events happening, and it’s a real struggle. I recommend investing in a planner, and using it religiously. I map out nearly every hour of my day. Without knowing how to manage my time, I wouldn’t be able to do everything.
HCUC: What are your biggest challenges when it comes to staying so involved on campus? Do you have time to even sleep at night?
LS: Trying not to be so scatterbrained. While I might be good at time management, I tend to switch tasks in my brain faster than I would like to.
Sleep? Sleep is for the weak. I’m just kidding, I tend to get 7 hours every night.
HCUC: I know that campus organizations aren’t the only thing you’re doing extracurricularly. What are some of the other activities you’re involved in that contribute to your daily life?
LS: I volunteer in the college of medicine in the department of anesthesiology studying nociception and pain circuits in the spinal cord.
HCUC: Knowing you personally and knowing the medical turmoil you experienced this past summer, how do you still do all of this?
LS: I try to keep a good attitude, and have the most amazing support system with the best family and friends. All of life is a team effort, and I am learning how to delegate and use my team.
HCUC: Finally, I am wondering what your favorite drink to get at Starbucks is when you either reward yourself for your hard work or need something to get you through the day?
LS: My favorite drink at Starbucks depends on the seasonal menu. In the fall I love a salted caramel mocha with nonfat milk. In the summer, I am an unsweetened green or white tea gal. I also like an iced coffee with vanilla or caramel with almond milk! But black coffee is also perfect.