In fall 2025, Newman University junior Emily Pachta will start her next chapter at The University of Kansas School of Medicine (KU Med).
She was recently recognized as part of the Scholars in Rural Health program, which assures admission to KU Med upon completing requirements and graduation from the student’s undergraduate institution.
“I was very excited and surprised to learn I was accepted into this program,” Pachta said. “I had applied to this program during my study abroad time last spring, so I wasn’t as focused on my pre-med path as I previously had been, but I still knocked out my application. It felt very rewarding to be appreciated for my hard work over the past two years, and this program sets me up for a scholarship opportunity that is hard to ignore.”
Pachta is originally from Wamego, Kansas, and chose to attend Newman because of its great pre-med program and because her sister graduated from the university 12 years ago. She’s a psychology major with a pre-med concentration, which Pachta noted isn’t very common at Newman. This pathway enables her to form a solid foundation on which she’ll build on at KU Med.
“I feel very prepared, as Newman pre-med classes are rigorous and more in-depth than other universities,” Pachta said.
Currently, she hopes to become a psychiatrist, but she knows that during medical school she’ll gain new experiences and may enjoy other specialties.
“I am most excited to learn about the specifics of the human body and delve into my future career,” she said. “I am also excited to meet new classmates and start a new chapter in my life.”
Pachta explained that she’s always been interested in science. Her real passion for the field, though, was ignited when she was a senior in high school and faced some mental health challenges.
“I found that some of the family practitioners did not have the proper psychology training and didn’t understand my emotional struggles that correlated to my physical struggles,” she shared.
These challenges nearly prevented Pachta from going to college, but thanks to the help of therapy and medication, she was able to work through them.
“I am so appreciative of everyone who helped me get where I am,” she said. “I also had multiple heart surgeries when I was a baby, and learning about my anatomy and how I was different also piqued my interest in medicine. I feel I am in a great place now due to my friends and family, and I appreciate all my struggles because they only made me stronger.”
At Newman, Pachta not only balances her psychology courses and pre-med classes, but she also keeps busy as the captain of the Sloppy Joes Improv Troupe, the public relations chair for the Student Government Association, the president of Pi Gamma Mu, and the Rural Scholar representative for the Newman University Medical Professions Club. She’s also a recipient of the prestigious St. Newman Scholarship.
As she looks forward to her next chapter, Pachta hopes to share more information about the Scholars in Rural Health program to others who may be interested.
“I know there aren’t many rural scholar students, so if anyone has any questions about the program or the scholarship that KU Med offers, I would love to help,” she said.
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