by Cindy A. Abole, Public Relations

At the age of 13, Ramkishen (Ram) Naryanan has already made a career decision. He recently discovered his preference for the challenging and passionate world of medicine to that of hanging out with friends or playing sports.

Ram is one of a handful of students involved in Charleston County School District’s Gifted and Talented Career Preview Program, a mentoring experience which allows students to spend time with professionals exploring various career fields. He was among seven CCSD students paired with physicians, researchers and specialists at MUSC which allowed them to experience the everyday challenges of a medical work environment.

An eighth grade honor student at Drayton Hall Middle School, Ram never dreamed he’d spend most of his school year shadowing premier cancer researcher and oncologist Daniel W. Nixon, M.D., associate director of Cancer Prevention and Control at Hollings Cancer Center. He first learned about the program through Drayton Hall’s Students Actively Interested in Learning (SAIL) program teacher Lara Eubanks. SAIL is a district-wide program designed to stimulate academically talented students by challenging their critical problem-solving skills. Eubanks manages seven SAIL classes, grades 6-8, and coaches the school’s Odyssey of the Mind student team, an international problem solving competition for gifted students.

Since 1992, Eubanks has been involved with the Career Preview Program. “We’ve got the ‘cream of the crop’ as it relates to Drayton Hall students,” Eubanks said. “They’re excited to have the opportunity to see how the adult world relates.”

“Kids today are unbelievable,” said Robert Lesko, liaison for the CCSD Gifted and Talented Program. “The program is designed to involve kids in a realistic environment. Not only are they choosing jobs in professional careers, they are being specific in the type of doctor, lawyer, veterinarian etc. they would like to be.”

Charleston County’s school-to-work program began in 1985 and teamed 21 middle school students with professionals and businesses throughout the Lowcountry area. A state-mandated program, it was marketed through the district’s Talented and Gifted classes (TAG) and SAIL programs. Today, there are 105 TAG students from middle and high schools who participated in the program. Eubanks can only smile as she reviews a long list of jobs and occupations chosen by previous mentoring students. That list includes: veterinarian, school principal, physical education teacher, pilot, geneticist, Sting Rays Hockey Coach, Charleston’s semi-pro sports team and Mayor Joe Riley of the City of Charleston. “The program is geared to teach students at least two things: first, the guidelines to secure a mentor; and second, a chance to save mom and dad lots of money, time and effort as their children begin to narrow their career choices,” Eubanks said.

This school year, seven students paired with various professionals at MUSC. Students volunteered their time in many departments and clinics including: anesthesiology, neurosurgery, pediatrics, physical therapy, physiology, cytotechnology, pediatric emergency medicine, oncology, pathology, cardiology, microbiology, and genetics lab.

The Career Preview Program is open to students, grades 8-10. In most cases, students must complete a formal application and approval process. For example, at Wando High School, 55 applicants competed for seven spots. Besides spending time with a mentor, students prepared journals, conducted a job profile and career interview with their mentor, and presented an oral summary of their experience to CCSD staff, faculty, parents and sometimes with peers at their respective schools. Students are responsible for locating a mentor participant and logging hours. They can also volunteer hours for credit. High school freshman and sophomores earn one-half credit, when they contribute up to 60 hours of volunteer time, 40 hours of that must be spent with his/her mentor. Eighth grade students can volunteer up to 30 hours a school year, 20 hours with a mentor.

Lesko rates the student’s oral presentations as the pinnacle of the program. He’s especially attuned to students as they describe learned skills or integrate jargon and language syntax in relating their experiences. “It adds a bit of sophistication,” he said. The summaries are also a helpful method to assess and measure each individual’s experience and program performance. According to Lesko, results show that around 80 percent of the participants find their mentoring experience helpful and agreeable to their career choice. Another 20 percent discover how the experience will lead them to pursue other interests.

Selecting the medical field seemed like a natural choice for Ram. His parents, Narayanan Krishna and Bhagavathi Narayanan are both Ph.D.’s working at MUSC. His father, Narayanan, is a faculty member in the Department of Biometry and Epidemiology. Mother, Bhagavathi, is a post-doctorate fellow working with Nixon in the cancer prevention program. Ram’s other family members are physicians and specialists in their native India. Using his connection, Ram initiated contact with Nixon during the start of the 1997 school year. He worked an average of 16 hours per week stretching his visits between November and April 1998, sometimes working school days and holidays. Like other mentoring students, Ram was responsible for completing any school work missed.

“It was really an enjoyable experience,” said Nixon. “I wanted Ram to see that cancer is not a horrendous experience. Although cancer can be devastating, I wanted him to realize that being sick is often only a reaction to their treatment. Over time, many cancer patients can walk, talk and perform just like other people.”

Ram credits Nixon for teaching him about the many responsibilities of a physician towards patients, staff, and researchers. He learned about prescriptions, advice regarding nutrition, the roles of other caregivers including dieticians, nutritionists and massage therapists. “Over time, I learned how to talk to patients,” he said.

Nixon affirmed how he wanted to introduce Ram to “the art of medicine,” where doctors don’t just talk to patients, they listen to them. Nixon explains how being flexible is vital due to today’s large gamut of adult cancer patients.

“It was a great experience,” said Ram, who has just accepted a summer scholarship to 1998 Governor’s School for Science and Math in Hartsville. “I used to think that all cancer doctors spend most of their time in surgery. I didn’t know they spent a lot of their time talking and listening to patients, plus conduct research. It has met my expectations and more.”

Asked how Ram’s attitude and mentoring experience will help him as he chooses a career for the future. Nixon replied, “I think he’ll be a good doctor.”