During her time in Cegep, Sabsabi was involved with the Muslim Student Association (MSA) and the Champlain student association (CSA), volunteering to help organize and run events on campus. She said it was a time in her life where she made many important friendships and was inspired by teachers who shared their passion for science and particularly biology with her.
Like many students vying for the chance to study medicine, Sabsabi said she felt the pressure of competition among her peers and said she fixation on grades and the R score proved a source of stress.
“There’s more to life than that. I always looked up to people who were not fixated on that so much,” she said.
With her master’s research into Health Science Education, Sabsabi is interested to learn more about the learning dynamic she herself experienced and hopes it will positively impact her teaching at McGill.
At the Children’s Hospital, Sabsabi spends her clinical time working in neonatal and perinatal care, saying she was drawn to the specialization due to her interest in emergency medicine and acute care.
“I enjoyed the relationships you build with families in a neonatal environment. It’s a very vulnerable moment for families. I am just honoured to be in this kind of medicine, to be a part of their lives for just a short time,” she said.
Sabsabi’s advice for current students and recent grads: “There’s so much pressure to know what you want to do when you’re in Cegep. It’s okay to not know what you want to do. You don’t have to know everything. At the end of the day, you’re still discovering who you are at 18. Take the pressure off. Wherever you will go, you will go.”
