For Daniel Karlin, helping others is more than an occasional act of kindness ““ it’s a way of life.
The UC Berkeley alumnus and third-year UCLA medical student has always been dedicated to serving the community ““ a passion that he will now share on a global scale as the recent recipient of the prestigious Fogarty International Clinical Research Fellowship.
“He’s one of those students that immediately makes an impression on you,” said Meredith Szumski, director of student affairs at the David Geffen School of Medicine. “Early in his first year, he was asking about different ways to give back to the community.”
Exhibiting excellence in research, leadership and the community earned Karlin the Albert Schweitzer Fellowship and the Jim Slotnick Fellowship, for which Szumski interviewed him.
The fellowships allowed Karlin the opportunity to work within underserved African American and Latino communities in Los Angeles.
“It’s an incredible experience to go out into the community, work directly with people and understand how to translate medicine to communities that are not as empowered or don’t have as much access (to health care),” Karlin said.
In August, Karlin will take his talent to Peru for what will be a yearlong commitment to clinical research and care, working primarily with infectious diseases.
Karlin plans to translate lessons he’s learned from underserved communities at home to global health issues abroad.
“My experiences and the skills that I gained will really benefit me in an international setting,” he said.
Though the fellowship will also mean taking a year off from medical school, Karlin didn’t have to hesitate in making the commitment when the opportunity arose.
“I’ve always wanted to help people on a broader scale and there’s no better way than through international medicine,” Karlin said.
Inspired early on by dedicated teachers in his family, Karlin says he was influenced by their devotion to using knowledge to benefit others.
“The rewards of what he’ll be bringing back not only to UCLA, but the entire global health community is huge,” Szumski said. “He’s truly a leader in all regards.”