Becoming a physician has always been the main objective for Zamarud Aminy ’17, but her ultimate goal is to serve underprivileged communities by bridging the gap between the mind, body and medicine.

As a Northern California native, Aminy had her sights set on attending and graduating from UC Davis.

“Even in high school I would refer to UC Davis as my dream school.” Aminy said. “I knew I wanted to pursue medicine and become a doctor, so that was one of the reasons why I chose Davis.”

At UC Davis, Aminy studied human development and psychology while participating in various extracurricular activities. She volunteered at the NICU at the UC Davis Medical Center and served on the board of directors for the UC Davis Afghan Student Association. 

Growing up as a first-generation Afghan American in an immigrant household came with high hopes and expectations, she said. Her parents had fled war-torn Afghanistan to pursue better opportunities for her and her brothers. Aminy added that she set high expectations for herself very early.

At 19, Aminy began her journey of self-actualization, or the process of fully understanding the person that one is becoming. She began writing out her revelations about self-identity, while merging her Afghan and American identities, into a manuscript.

“An author who read my manuscript told me, ‘You should get this published. It could help someone,’” Aminy said. “At the time I loved reading self-help books, so I was looking forward to helping others who would read my book.”

Aminy self-published Reaching the Light of Consistency in 2016.

Aminy is currently in her first year of medical school at the American University of Antigua, College of Medicine. For her residency, she plans to come back to California to serve Davis and the greater Sacramento communities. 

“I want to come back and serve the community as a future physician,” Aminy said. “As cliche as it sounds, helping others has always offered me an intrinsic feeling.”