Sometimes a defining moment creeps up on you.

That’s what happened to Brandon Baker, a first-generation college student, when he received his first medical school acceptance letter.

“At that point, I knew that all of my hard work had paid off, and I was that much closer to achieving my goal of being a physician,” he said.

While the fight to get into medical school can be cutthroat, Brandon is more interested in helping his classmates succeed. He often gives advice and counsels other undergraduate students about their plans in the medical field.

“I have definitely gained from communicating with others with similar interests when I was trying to figure things out,” he said, “so I did my best to carry on this collaboration at UM-Dearborn as a more experienced student.”

That sense of collaboration has served him well as a certified medical trainer scribe at Henry Ford Wyandotte Hospital, where he helps facilitate the goal of excellent patient care.

Brandon, as part of a team of four, trains new scribes as they’re needed at the facility—they’ve now trained the entire team that’s in place. He also serves as a scribe ambassador, giving presentations at local universities to undergraduate students interested in becoming scribes.

Back on campus, Brandon keeps busy as an undergraduate researcher with John Thomas, professor of biological sciences. In the lab, he has investigated plant alkaloid compounds and their anticancer effects.

He has presented posters on that work and will be co-author with Dr. Thomas on an upcoming publication. 

“His uncommon mixture of analytical reasoning and compassion, his ease of working with diverse people and his superior academics set him apart,” Dr. Thomas said. “I am convinced Mr. Baker has the necessary blend of human caring, sympathy and analytical skills to be highly successful in medicine.”

He’ll focus next on medical school. Right now, his interests include emergency medicine, trauma surgery or orthopedic surgery.

One thing Brandon’s not interested in? Leaving the area for too long.

“No matter where I attend school, I plan on returning to southeast Michigan to practice medicine,” he said. “As a physician in southeast Michigan, I will be giving back to the community in which I grew up.”