Mina Pairawan at the rock-climbing gym. (Photo courtesy of Mina Pairawan)
By Sara Elliott
Mina Pairawan’s brain rarely takes a break, even when she is relaxing.
During her scarce downtime, the biomedical science major goes bouldering at a local rock-climbing gym with her friends.
“You have to use so much brain power to figure out how to do it,” says Pairawan.
The third-year undergraduate also knows how to harness that brain power beyond the gym. She excels at academics, research, volunteering and playing a musical instrument.
Her path to research started in high school when she joined the Youreka Canada program where she was paired with a University of Windsor undergraduate mentor to create a small research project.
“I didn’t peg myself as a research kind of person before Youreka,” she says. “I am the kind of person who repeatedly asks why over and over again, and I just like understanding things that are beyond my knowledge level.”
She continued that passion for research through the university’s Outstanding Scholars program. By working in Prof. John Trant’s Trant Team chemistry and biochemistry research lab, Pairawan explores the biology and biochemistry side of drug testing and autoimmune disorders.
“Now I’m hardcore into immunology. I love it so much and my life has taken a different path.”
Third-year undergraduate Mina Pairawan excels inside and outside of the classroom. (Photo courtesy of Mina Pairawan)
On campus, Pairawan volunteers for Let’s Talk Science, the geology club and the Windsor chapter of the Canadian Undergraduate Conference on Healthcare. This is her third year attending the conference, but this is the first year she is presenting.
“I am presenting on testing peptide drugs to treat autoimmune disorders like rheumatoid arthritis and Type 1 diabetes,” Pairawan explains.
“Since these disorders are all initiated by your body attacking your own healthy molecules, we’re trying to design a drug that will stop that immune response altogether.”
Pairawan also exercises the creative side of her brain when she plays the alto saxophone in the University Wind Ensemble through the School of Creative Arts (SoCA) Music.
Mina Pairawan volunteers in the dog enrichment program at the Windsor-Essex County Humane Society. (Photo courtesy of Mina Pairawan)
Off campus, she volunteers in the dog enrichment program at the Windsor-Essex County Humane Society and is a patient-care assistant at the Hospice of Windsor and Essex County.
“I like keeping myself busy because I can’t stay still for five minutes,” she says.
“I like living life to the fullest and I want to do as much as I can before I go to medical school.”
This article is part of a series celebrating Outstanding Scholars—exceptional students making an impact through research and creative work across campus.