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Salih Hodzic (BIOL, M.S. BHPR ’24) knew he wanted to be a dentist since high school, but he didn’t want to go straight into a huge pre-medical program, so began searching for a more personal undergraduate experience.

The counselor at Lincoln Park High School urged Hodzic to visit Illinois Tech to see if the smaller university with personalized programming was the right fit. After speaking with faculty members and learning about the plethora of hands-on experiences in the program, he was sold.

“Being a student at Illinois Tech made me feel cared for. It made me feel like I belonged to a community, and it made me feel like I was able to leave a real impact on society through various student organizations,” he says.

Community work and outreach were a major part of Hodzic’s experience at Illinois Tech. RES-MATCH, a program that connects students with professors offering research opportunities, led him to oral microbiome research and metal organic frameworks, strengthening his organic chemistry background and providing him with valuable real-world experience. A trip to Ecuador as part of MEDLIFE (Medicine, Education, and Development for Low Income Families Everywhere) made a huge impact on his future.

“I was able to also take part in various student organizations, namely the Undergraduate Research Journal, MEDLIFE, American Medical Student Association, and Students for Justice in Palestine. Putting together events such as a food drive and a service-learning trip to Ecuador, publishing the Undergraduate Research Journal, and taking part in the Palestine Festival of Literature were all major highlights of my time with these organizations,” he says.

�鶹APP itself was a great teacher, allowing Hodzic to gain eye-opening career experience.

“I was allowed to shadow and work in many dental offices throughout the city and see many different patients from all different walks of life. Being that the city and Illinois Tech are so diverse, I was able to better understand different people and their life experiences, which in turn allows me to better treat them,” he says.