Sivamrutha (Siv) Kayilaasan |
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Running for:
VP External
About me:
Hi, I’m Siv! Before starting medicine, I completed my MSc in Kinesiology, where I researched women’s health and exercise physiology and represented graduate students on the Faculty Divisional Science Council. Grad school is where I really fell in love with research, advocacy, and learning from others—especially through conferences, where I loved meeting new people and hearing about work happening outside my own little research bubble.
Outside of school, I love baking and trying new foods, watching hockey and baseball, hiking, longboarding, and pretty much anything involving cats. I’ve also recently become a plant person, with varying degrees of success! I’m usually up for trying something new and tend to get a little too excited when I find a new interest. I’m also a bit of a certified yapper, so if you see me around, please come say hi!
My platform:
One of my favourite parts of starting medical school has been meeting people, hearing their stories, and finding ways to connect with others. As VP External, I’d love to bring that energy beyond Mac and make our wider medical student community something our class can benefit from.
Medical school already feels busy, and I know how easy it can be for great opportunities to get lost in everything else going on. I’m passionate about bringing forward relevant awards, events, initiatives, and opportunities so everyone in our class has the chance to explore experiences beyond McMaster. I also want to bring back ideas from other medical schools, to help us learn from what’s happening outside our own program.
Having previously represented graduate students on the Faculty Divisional Science Council, I’d bring that experience to representing our class and making the most of the connections and opportunities available for us.
How do you plan to ensure that EDI is integrated in your role(s)?
Starting medical school has opened my eyes to inequities in medicine that I honestly wasn’t fully aware of before. Learning about gaps in representation, research, and healthcare has been upsetting at times, but it has also made me want to be more intentional about how I contribute to the spaces I’m part of. My background in women’s health research has similarly shown me how much it matters who is included in the questions we ask and the opportunities we create.
I want to carry that awareness into VP External by making sure the opportunities brought to our class reflect the diversity within it. I hope to highlight awards, initiatives, events, and experiences relevant to different communities, identities, and interests, particularly those historically underrepresented in medicine. When representing our class externally, I also want to actively seek perspectives beyond my own..
VP External
About me:
Hi, I’m Siv! Before starting medicine, I completed my MSc in Kinesiology, where I researched women’s health and exercise physiology and represented graduate students on the Faculty Divisional Science Council. Grad school is where I really fell in love with research, advocacy, and learning from others—especially through conferences, where I loved meeting new people and hearing about work happening outside my own little research bubble.
Outside of school, I love baking and trying new foods, watching hockey and baseball, hiking, longboarding, and pretty much anything involving cats. I’ve also recently become a plant person, with varying degrees of success! I’m usually up for trying something new and tend to get a little too excited when I find a new interest. I’m also a bit of a certified yapper, so if you see me around, please come say hi!
My platform:
One of my favourite parts of starting medical school has been meeting people, hearing their stories, and finding ways to connect with others. As VP External, I’d love to bring that energy beyond Mac and make our wider medical student community something our class can benefit from.
Medical school already feels busy, and I know how easy it can be for great opportunities to get lost in everything else going on. I’m passionate about bringing forward relevant awards, events, initiatives, and opportunities so everyone in our class has the chance to explore experiences beyond McMaster. I also want to bring back ideas from other medical schools, to help us learn from what’s happening outside our own program.
Having previously represented graduate students on the Faculty Divisional Science Council, I’d bring that experience to representing our class and making the most of the connections and opportunities available for us.
How do you plan to ensure that EDI is integrated in your role(s)?
Starting medical school has opened my eyes to inequities in medicine that I honestly wasn’t fully aware of before. Learning about gaps in representation, research, and healthcare has been upsetting at times, but it has also made me want to be more intentional about how I contribute to the spaces I’m part of. My background in women’s health research has similarly shown me how much it matters who is included in the questions we ask and the opportunities we create.
I want to carry that awareness into VP External by making sure the opportunities brought to our class reflect the diversity within it. I hope to highlight awards, initiatives, events, and experiences relevant to different communities, identities, and interests, particularly those historically underrepresented in medicine. When representing our class externally, I also want to actively seek perspectives beyond my own..