Arezo Azizi’s parents always wanted her to become a doctor, though the path toward medicine was uncertain during her childhood in Afghanistan.
“Education was not very accessible for girls,” she said. “My parents’ biggest reason for deciding to move to Canada in 2017 was education.”
After settling in London, Ont., Azizi took a bold step of her own in Grade 10 at Montcalm Secondary School. She became part of the first cohort of students to participate in the Experiential Learning Academy for Biomedical Sciences (X-LABS) when it launched in 2022, requiring her to live on campus for two weeks – her first time away from home.
“I was really nervous, but my family said it was time for me to step out of my comfort zone,” she said. “I’m so glad I did because I got to make so many connections with people I would have never met otherwise.”
Arezo Azizi’s experiential learning in the X-LABS program at Western’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry helped steer her toward a future in biomedical science. (Submitted)
The program introduces promising high school students to biomedical science and researchers through two-week immersions in the research labs at Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry. Through three successive summers, Azizi worked on real-world experiments under the supervision of Schulich professor Nica Borradaile.
“I worked with different chemicals doing cell cultures, media changes and splitting cells. I also got to use very advanced microscopes. I was like, ‘This is so cool! You can actually zoom in and see the structures of the cells,’” Azizi said.
Borradaile recognized Azizi’s potential immediately.
“Arezo is a very positive person,” she said. “Science can be discouraging, but even if something didn’t work, she was willing to think about it positively: ‘How can we make this work?’”
Her enthusiasm for seeking solutions, combined with genuine curiosity and consistent engagement, marked Azizi as a student likely to succeed in biomedical sciences, Borradaile said.
“It’s actually surprising to see that in a student who’s fairly new in the lab. Learning techniques for manipulating things in a cell culture is not particularly easy and you have to want to get better at it. Arezo always had that mindset,” Borradaile said.
Career options in biomedical science
The experience revealed a world of possibilities now steering Azizi toward biomedical research instead of clinical practice.
“It opened my eyes to the fact that science is about much more than medical school,” she said. “At first I was afraid to ask questions, but then I learned that science is nothing without questions. You have to keep questioning.”
Azizi is now a first-year student in Western’s competitive integrated science program. It combines multiple scientific disciplines in the first year before allowing students to specialize.
“You can do so much with this program. Not just medicine, but even law, technology, software, so many options.”
Her choice to attend Western was influenced significantly by her X-LABS experience and the welcoming atmosphere she encountered on campus.
Arezo Azizi demonstrated her potential for a future in biomedical science through consistent engagement, curiosity and perseverance in the X-LABS experiential learning program. (Megan Morris/Schulich Medicine & Dentistry Communications)
“Every person I met at Western, even in the halls, would say hello,” Azizi said. “Everyone was so kind and welcoming to me, and if I needed help, someone was always there.”
The X-LABS program also transformed her understanding of scientific work itself. She was shocked by the importance of communication in scientific research.
“A huge amount of research and work goes into writing one article for an academic journal, and so much of science is about presenting ideas. You’re learning so much, but what is the point if you’re not helping your community or sharing what science is?”
The program’s mentoring component proved equally valuable. Working with PhD student Jessica Twumasi Ankrah motivated Azizi to pursue biomedical science and persevere amid the unpredictable.
“She told me how science is difficult, but that it’s important to be able to fail and then get back up and say, ‘I got this.’ She told me how rewarding it is to learn and teach others.”
Azizi is already planning to pursue graduate studies in biomedical research, with a focus on treating disease.
“My goal is to work in chemistry in a research lab. I want to help my community through discoveries that could prevent people from losing a loved one to disease.”
While her parents’ dreams of having a doctor in the family may have evolved, Azizi’s new pursuits are making them proud.
“I’m the first in my family doing research in medical science,” Azizi said. “My parents are thrilled.”
