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“If my life were a concerto, it would have the themes of curiosity and compassion with sports on the percussion.”

- Michael Garcia

As linebacker on the Vanderbilt University football team, Michael Garcia learned lessons on the gridiron that instilled in him the benefits of discipline, hard work and organization — traits he believes will serve him well as he enters the UCF College of Medicine.

“If my life were a concerto, it would have the themes of curiosity and compassion with sports on the percussion,” Garcia wrote in his medical school application. “It may be uncommon to prepare for a career in medicine by playing football … although the orthopedic experiences alone were lessons in anatomy and function.”

The son of an OB-GYN, Garcia says he has wanted to be a doctor since childhood. As a young man he loved science, biology and animals, and was fascinated by creatures like the lizards that he found in his backyard. But his greatest inspiration was his father, who had forgone a career in professional football and baseball to become a doctor. “When I saw how positively he affects people’s lives, I wanted to follow in his footsteps,” says Garcia.

As a student-athlete, the demands of sports and academics shaped Garcia’s daily routine: Morning rehabilitation and weightlifting at 6 or 7 a.m., class until the early afternoon followed by football film study; practice at 4 p.m. followed by dinner and studying. He suffered a nearly career-ending knee injury, followed by multiple surgeries and nine months of grueling rehabilitation. “It taught me balance and being organized,” he says. “If you get behind you can really, really be hurting.”

During his junior and senior years he also fit in time in the laboratory, conducting research to map how the brain interprets and responds to sound. Garcia says he’s always been interested in the brain – “and as a linebacker, I’ve sure taken a lot of blows to the head.” He also worked as a research technician at Massachusetts General Hospital’s cardiac surgical lab. And his decision to attend UCF’s young medical school was influenced heavily by founding dean Dr. Deborah German’s story, attitude and vision. During his campus visit interview, he also liked the college’s welcoming and inclusionary culture, its openness and its commitment to student success.

About Michael

Hometown

Jacksonville, Florida

Education

Earned his bachelor’s degree in neuroscience from Vanderbilt University

Earned his master’s degree in medical science from Boston University

Accolades

Played linebacker for the Vanderbilt University Commodores

Competed in the Gaylord Music City Bowl in Nashville, Tennessee

Meet the UCF M.D. Class of 2019

4,875 verified applicants for this year’s class – a record number that even more than 2009 (4,307) when the college offered full scholarships to the entire charter class

121 enrollees – this is the medical school’s third class of full enrollment; the entire college will be at full enrollment (480) in 2016-17

24 UCF undergraduates — the most to date and the first class where UCF undergraduates outnumber graduates from any other Florida state university

Students’ alma maters include John Hopkins, Harvard, Yale, Duke, Notre Dame, Vanderbilt, UCLA, USC, Auburn, Northwestern, Boston University and Emory

4 military veterans, 2 Ph.D./J.D. and 14 students with master’s degrees

65 females and 56 males

Fluent in 30 languages besides English