Meet Oyenike Ilaka: Public Health Graduate & Medical Student

ALBANY, N.Y. (July 2, 2021) – Oyenike Ilaka, undergraduate class of 2018, was always interested in public health issues affecting her home country, Nigeria. After attending high school in France, she researched public health programs in the United States, applying to and ultimately enrolling at UAlbany.

“I was a first-semester freshman when the Ebola epidemic was occurring in West Africa,” Ilaka says. “I wrote a piece for my creative writing class using information I learned from the Introduction to Public Health course and my family members living in West Africa. That was one of the first times I realized the power I had from having an international perspective.”

Ilaka completed the public health major and began studying for the MCAT exam. While applying to medical schools, she worked as a pharmacy technician and a medical assistant.

“These roles allowed me to practice empathizing with others and gave me more confidence in choosing medicine as my future career path,” she explains.

Ilaka started her first year of medical school at Albany Medical College during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the challenges this presented, she received a certificate as the top student in the Health Care & Society course, which focuses on ethics and professionalism in medicine.

“Many skills from my undergraduate degree, especially what I learned from Professor Jennifer Manganello, helped me achieve the award,” Ilaka says. “I was honored to be chosen because I am striving to be a decent and trustworthy physician in my community.”

This summer, Ilaka is serving as an orientation leader for the incoming class of medical students at Albany Medical College. She also has a summer fellowship with the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), where she is working on a research project studying a protein that could advance the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders like ALS and Parkinson’s disease.

“I have a chronic nerve disorder and feel honored to be researching areas of neuropathology,” Ilaka says.

As she completes medical school, Ilaka is unsure where her career will take her. She is interested in internal medicine, neurology, and otolaryngology, and would also like to be a physician who teaches students and partakes in research projects.

“No matter where I end up, I plan on improving health outcomes in my community and, if I am lucky, on a global scale.” Ilkaka says.