By ZACHARY ROMAN

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A Caledon student pursuing her dream of becoming a pediatrician has received a prestigious scholarship.

Rita Elraheb, now in her first year of a Health Sciences degree at Wilfrid Laurier University, was the recipient of the university's Laurier Scholars Award. 

It's the institution's most prestigious entrance scholarship and is valued at $40,000. 

Aonghus Kealy, a Communications Officer with Laurier, notes the scholarship “supports high-achieving students in their studies and career development through mentorship, experiential learning opportunities and community engagement.”

To qualify for the scholarship, applicants must have a final admission average of 90 per cent or higher and show leadership in extracurricular activities. 

“Out of 450 applications from exceptional applicants across Canada, the Faculty of Science awarded Rita,” said Kealy. 

When she learned she won the scholarship, Elraheb said she was surprised and very happy. 

“It was very surreal,” she said. 

Elraheb explained she chose Laurier's health sciences program as she's interested in medicine. She said there's many doctors in her family that have inspired her to follow in their footsteps. 

“I'm a very artistic person. I like to do a lot of art, but I'm also a very logical thinker and I really like maths and sciences. I feel like medicine is a really good career for me because I get to use really creative solutions to solve science-based problems,” said Elraheb. “I also really love to work with kids. I'm a swim instructor and skate instructor at my community center — I always wanted to be a pediatrician, and that was also really inspired by my own pediatrician.”

Elraheb said when she was younger, she had a lot of health issues and would often see her pediatrician once or twice a week. She said her pediatrician gave her a lot of hope, was a really big part of her life, and truly inspired her to go into medicine.

Working hard towards her goal, Elraheb has a full slate of classes like chemistry, biology, psychology, and calculus. She's also beginning to work with a professor at Laurier to help with her research on brain structures and activity in children and adults with different forms of neurodivergence. 

“I'm very interested in neuroscience and how children develop,” said Elraheb.