Meet Alena, the 13 year old medical student.
Image Credit: Keith Major
Alena Analeigh Wicker is already making history at the age of just 13 years old. She is the youngest person to ever intern at NASA, she graduated high school at just 12 years old, and she is now the youngest African American to ever be accepted into medical school.
And this whilst being a student at not one, but two universities. Simultaneously. She’s currently attending both Arizona State University and Oakwood University, where she is earning two separate undergraduate degrees in biological studies.
Alena, from near Fort Worth, Texas, says she is still very much a normal 13 year old. She loves going to the cinema, playing football, baking, and hanging out with her friends. She puts her success down to having “extremely good time management skills and I’m very disciplined.”
Alena has been offered a place at the Heersink School of Medicine for 2024, at the University of Alabama, where she will be more than 10 years younger than the average incoming medical student. Speaking about it, Alena said
What is age? You’re not too young to do anything. I feel like I have proven to myself that I can do anything that I put my heart and mind to.
Alena has said she loves school, loves learning and loves reading. Since she was younger though, she’s had a particular interest in STEM - Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths. STEM is an area that is incredibly lacking in representation of women and girls, and research in 2020 showed that it’s workforce is almost 90% white.
Alena wants to change that - as well as her academic achievements, she is something of an entrepreneur and philanthropist. She started The Brown STEM Girl, which is an organisation aimed at providing opportunities for girls of colour to explore careers in STEM.
It offers financial scholarships, mentorship programs and resources to standout students. Currently there are more than 460 active members, and around 2000 girls on a waiting list. Speaking about why she started it, Alena said that she wanted to create a platform for girls like her to feel like they belong somewhere. She also said:
We’re showing the world that there’s other girls out there that are just like me, and they deserve an opportunity and a chance.
And this isn’t the only way Alena wants to help and uplift others. Speaking about her love for medicine, she said her goal is to use her medical degree to help those in need.
A big part of what I want to do is viral immunology, and I want to advocate for underrepresented communities that lack health care, it’s something that I’ve become passionate about.
Her acceptance at any age would have been astounding, because only 7% of applicants are accepted into medical, and only 7% of those accepted are black.
“It feels amazing to be able to create a path for girls that look like me,” Alena said, speaking to The Washington Post. “It doesn’t matter how old you are. You can do it. Don’t let anybody tell you no.”