Teryn Railey

 

Hello everyone, I am Teryn Railey, a native of Jackson, Mississippi. I am a 2021 graduate of the historic Tougaloo College, where I received my B.S. in Biology with high honors. Since a young age, I have been a very curious individual and never afraid to ask questions. I always enjoyed figuring out the “why” of something. Prior to my matriculation at Tougaloo, I had aspirations of becoming a medical doctor, as it was the only field I knew that involved science. My world changed in the summer of 2019 when I participated in my first biomedical research internship at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. I had finally found my niche that fulfilled my personality as well. Biomedical research is an amazing and expansive field that allows you to ask questions and develop your methods for answering. Upon completion of my first internship, I continued to participate in research at UMMC, but I struggled to decide if I still wanted to pursue an MD or a PhD. After graduating, I decided that a PhD made the most sense for what I enjoyed doing daily and long term. Shortly after, my mentor encouraged me to apply to the PREP@UGA program. This program has poured so many invaluable lesson into me, as well as affirmed that I’m capable of being a research scientist. This meant so much to me as a Black woman in a white male-dominating field. PREP also greatly prepared me for the application process and interviews. With their help, I received an offer of admission to every graduate school I applied to. I am now a first-year in the Experimental Therapeutics & Pharmacology program at UMMC. I can confidently say that PREP@UGA fully prepared me for my graduate school experience.