A Typical Day for Vidisha Marwaha, POWAN’s August TOTM
Q: What is the first thing you do when you wake up?
VM: The first thing I do when I wake up from sleep is drinking water. I don’t even worry about brushing because when you drink water the alkaline in your mouth which is secreted goes to the stomach which helps indigestion. Drinking water on an empty stomach makes you active. It increases the red blood cells, which means that more oxygen will reach your cells, giving you more energy. Drinking water on an empty stomach can help you lose weight faster.
Q: Do you have a morning routine?
VM: I wake up, drink water, use the restroom, brush my teeth, and then do my morning skincare routine. After that, I usually plan out my day in a to do list and begin doing productive work, whether that be applying to opportunities or completing my schoolwork.
Q: What does your class schedule look like?
VM: I am taking Organic Chemistry, Physics lecture and lab, and an arts-related class in the upcoming fall quarter.
Q: Do you have any extracurriculars? What is your favorite extracurricular and why?
VM: Yes, I have many. For one, I have POWAN as an excellent extracurricular. Additionally, I volunteer as a patient care assistant part-time at Kaiser Permanente Irvine. I also have several research projects that I am working on, and I have a staff writer position for a biology research journal at UCSD. My favorite extracurricular activities are my research projects, as I am very passionate about what I am researching. I am currently researching the effectiveness of human pluripotent stem cells in curing retinal degenerative diseases in murine subjects
Q: Do you have any special tips on how to tackle schoolwork and projects?
VM: Stay focused, get plenty of sleep, stick to a solid routine schedule, and be organized. Seek help earlier on – do not wait till the exam season to try to understand topics, get tutors or online courses or other help earlier on.
Q: How do you unwind at the end of the day?
VM: I do my skincare, listen to music and watch anime.
Q: How has your POWAN experience been?
VM: My POWAN experience has been nothing but a pure joy, as I joined to both empower students in their academic endeavors while refining my professional communication and teaching skills.
Q: What was something special that happened recently?
I was recently named tutor of the month here at POWAN, and I was given a new research position at a neuroscience lab at UCSD that I applied for. These events were special because all of the hard work and dedication that I have put into my craft has been paying off.
Q: What was your biggest academic accomplishment or your greatest accomplishment in general?
VM: My greatest academic achievement was getting into UCSD (dream school) out of high school with a human biology major, and getting second author in a research publishing.
Q: Was there anyone or any resources that you used to help you get this point?
VM: My dad tutors me for physics and my mom helps me in applying and keeping up with my research work. I also used resources like khan academic and youtube to help me study for my classes.
Q: If someone wanted to follow in your footsteps, what is one piece of advice you would give them?
VM: I would tell them to stay diligent, work hard, be consistent and believe in themselves.
Q: If you could go back in time to change one thing about the process leading up to your success, what would it be and why?
VM: I would not change anything about the process leading up to my success.