Opportunities on and off the field
When looking for the college that he would call home for four years, Jack Goldstein ’18 knew that he wanted a place where he could combine rigorous academics with the opportunity to continue playing the sport he loved.
“St. Olaf offers a world-class education, and I was sure it would prepare me well for a career in medicine,” Goldstein says. “This, combined with the chance to continue playing football, made me feel that St. Olaf provided the best opportunity.”
In his time on the Hill, Goldstein has jumped at every chance to develop his talents — in addition to finding new passions and ways to make an impact.
A biology major at St. Olaf, he has worked with some of Minnesota’s most prestigious medical institutions.
Last Interim, Goldstein, along with Abhishek Chandra ’18 and Daniel Hogan ’18, compiled research through the Innovative Minds Partnering To Advance Curative Therapies (IMPACT) program at the world-renowned Mayo Clinic.
A competition sponsored by Regenerative Medicine Minnesota and the Mayo Clinic Office of Applied Scholarship and Education Science, IMPACT aims to encourage students to pursue research or careers in medicine. Goldstein’s team contributed to Mayo’s work to find the underlying cause of hypoplastic left heart syndrome, and the St. Olaf students presented their work to physicians and researchers at the clinic.
Goldstein then spent last summer working at Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) through the Rockswold Health Scholars Program, a clinical and research internship program that provides St. Olaf students with an unparalleled hands-on experience in medicine. While at HCMC, Goldstein worked at the Traumatic Brain Injury Research Lab with physician Uzma Samadani.
“My summer at HCMC was an incredibly meaningful experience. I spent close to every day in the Emergency Department of a Level 1 trauma center and was able to work with patients suffering from the most extreme injuries,” Goldstein says. “Through my 10 weeks at HCMC, I was never once bored and truly enjoyed every second — and that experience reinforced my desire to become a physician.”
In addition to finding the academic and research experiences he had been looking for, Goldstein has also continued to pursue his passion for football. He was the starting quarterback for the St. Olaf football team this fall, and has formed lasting friendships with his teammates.
Goldstein also played a leadership role in the team’s relationship with Team Impact, an organization that connects college teams across the country to children who are facing life-threatening and chronic illnesses.
“The relationships I have made through this are so much greater than I could have ever imagined,” Goldstein says. “Working with Team Impact has been one of my favorite experiences here at St. Olaf.”