Passion Over Paycheck

“These scholarships allowed me to pursue what I found most important,” Tucker says, “and that turned out to be internal medicine. Over the past year and a half, of all the residency programs at Dell Medical School, the internal medicine folks were really bearing the brunt of dealing with the pandemic. When I saw that, I knew this was the field where I could make the biggest impact.

“When you look at national statistics, the average med student incurs about $200,000 in debt,” he says. “Without the potential of 30 years of student loans, I had the freedom to choose a field of medicine based on passion rather than salary. And I’m grateful. This has been an amazing opportunity to help out on the front lines of the pandemic response while learning from our top-tier faculty and residents.”

“I had the freedom to choose a field of medicine based on passion rather than salary. And I’m grateful.”

While in medical school, Tucker also engaged with Dell Med’s efforts to overhaul the nation’s health care system through a unique degree program the school offers in conjunction with the McCombs School of Business: a master’s in health care transformation. His work included research on patient-focused care as well as strengthening partnerships between student and county medical groups, an important component in cultivating young talent and the exchange of ideas. It’s clear that his experience at Dell Med prepared him to navigate all aspects of a complex and ever-evolving health care system.

Patty and James Huffines

“The past four years have been a truly transformative experience, and it would not have been possible without the support of Patty and James Huffines and the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation,” says Tucker, now a resident at Emory University. “Dell Med was my dream school from the first time I read about its mission, and I have been beyond lucky to learn how to be a doctor here.”