Learner Profile
Ifeanyi Miracle Idoko
School
University of Nigeria College of Medicine, Nigeria
HMX Courses
As a first-generation student growing up in an underserved community, Ifeanyi Idoko does not take educational opportunities for granted – and has long planned on a career in medicine to help address the disparities he’s experienced.
In addition to completing his medical school curriculum and volunteering in medical missions, he proactively seeks out ways to further his knowledge online. With the help of a partial tuition waiver, he learned immunology and genetics with HMX to solidify his grasp of key concepts and lay the foundation for his future career as a surgeon-scientist.
What aspects of the courses stand out to you?
For me the videos and animations were just top-notch. At the same time, I must say they did a really great job with the quizzes and the explanations. As a penultimate-year medical student, I’ve spent most of my training in the clinics and in the wards, so the patient-doctor interactions is really not something that is new to me. But then how the videos represented with accuracy the fine details, and then the quizzes and explanations to assessments, that was just fascinating to me.
What did the experience provide for you?
I feel incredibly honored to be taught by leading scientists in the field. The teachers are intellectually stimulating, and they’ve unveiled to me the idea of harnessing the immune system and genes to offer various treatment options to patients. This is the kind of medicine I want to practice. It was an improvement on the lectures we received in school.
Especially of note is the history and even insights into the future of medicine shared in the lessons. I’ll always remember the deeply moving story of the Canadian physician and Nobel laureate, Ralph Steinman, who was recognized for identifying the role of dendritic cells. It was striking because, coincidentally, I watched this lesson at the time when the Nobel committee was prepared to announce the 2021 awardee.
Has your experience in the courses changed your plans for after medical school?
In the middle of the immunology course, I got excited and actually emailed one of the professors, Dr. Shiv Pillai, to understand the prospects for me and how I could come to Harvard. He gave me some advice, saying it would be wonderful to pursue my master’s maybe in the UK, to get some laboratory experience, and then possibly come over to pursue my PhD at Harvard. So it’s basically supported me so that I’m excited about new opportunities for my education.