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Julissa Marin

Just like her three-legged, good-luck Chilean pig that perhaps “gave up one of its legs to help others,” Julissa Marin is always looking to lend a hand wherever she goes.

That includes lending a hand to improve healthcare systems.

Marin, a full-time healthcare administration student in the Executive Program at California State University, Long Beach, wants to address inconsistencies in data information and review healthcare redesign.

She also works full-time in the business officer of the Clinical and Pathology Laboratories at University of California, Los Angeles, where she rectified over $16 million by stabilizing the influx of lab charge errors in hospital billing work queues.

To further her experience and education, Marin applied for the Éxito! Latino Cancer Research Leadership Training program.

The Éxito! program, led by Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez at UT Health San Antonio with support from the National Cancer Institute, recruits 25 master’s-level students and professionals each year for a five-day summer institute, optional internships, and ongoing networking and support to promote doctoral degrees and careers in Latino cancer. A recent study found significant increases in summer institute participants’ confidence to apply to a doctoral program and academic self-efficacy.

“[Éxito!] reaffirmed “that I am capable of pursuing a doctorate and there is a Latinx community in which is or will be on the same journey and has similar experiences in academia and life,” Marin said.

For those considering applying for Éxito! next year, Marin has this advice:

“Keep an open-mind because at the end of the week [your] path may completely change.”