Standing in a UT-Southwestern gym with hundreds of her classmates Friday, Namrah Siddiq reflected on the four long years she endured to get to this moment.
She admits watching a timer on the wall count down the seconds to what was coming was harder than all of that.
"My heart was pounding," said Siddiq, who is a UT-Southwestern medical student from Dallas. "My family was just so nervous along with me. I think you don't really feel it until the drums start rolling, then it hits you. There's one minute left until you know where you're going to spend the next three years of your life."
It was finally her Match Day. And inside that gym were letters for her and all her fellow graduating med students telling them where they will complete their residencies and in what field.
After opening her letter, Siddiq couldn't wipe the smile off her face even if she tried.
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She'll begin her medical career at UT-Southwestern's Medical Center in their internal medicine department.
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“My dad is a doctor, so I’ve always thought of being like him since I was a kid," said Siddiq. "And he actually was at UT-Southwestern, too, so I’ve grown up here basically.”
Ashley Walker's letter brought tears of joy to her eyes.
“This is what I really wanted to do," said Walker, who is also a UT-Southwestern medical student from Dallas. "You just gotta keep the hope and the faith – and look, we’re here finally.”
She was also matched to one of her top choices. She'll head to Community Hospital in Indiana, where she'll work in family medicine.
“The community that I grew up in, which is Oak Cliff, has inspired me to go into family medicine and community medicine to help inner-city people, as well as the homeless," said Walker.
She's always dreamt of practicing medicine in Dallas one day. She says that piece of paper has made her realize that can be a reality.
And both she and Siddiq are eager to get started.
“I can’t believe I’m going to be a doctor," said Siddiq.
The students have a few more weeks of school left before graduating. They'll then spend the next three to six years completing their residencies.
