“I was always interested in science,” Fisher says. “I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t. I was given really super science experience within the lab. That lab experience, as well as the medical experience as an EMT, really helped define what I wanted to be.”

Fisher has learned to adjust to the hectic pace. “I sleep whenever I can,” she says. “You get used to the schedule after a while. Plus, I knew what I wanted to be, and I knew what I didn’t want to happen, and that kept me going. I also had some great advisers here and so many people willing to help.”

A native of Prince George’s County, Maryland, Fisher grew up next to the University of Maryland with her parents and two younger brothers. She is only the second member of her extended family to finish college.

“I was always interested in science,” she says. “I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t.”

Fisher used her love of science to excel in her classes as well as the lab. She has worked since her sophomore year in the lab of Assistant Professor of Biology Fern Finger. Fisher’s research helps Finger better understand the role of specific proteins known as septins that are believed to be very important in human development. In her research, Fisher mutated a portion of a septin protein to see how the mutation affects the nervous system of a model organism, the nematode worm. The findings could have important implications for studying human development and disease.

“I was given a really super science experience within the lab,” Fisher says. “That lab experience, as well as the medical experience as an EMT, really helped define what I wanted to be.”

Fisher was officially commissioned as an Army officer in March. She aspires to be an Army surgeon, but is keeping her options open on what exact field of medicine she will take on once she arrives at medical school. She has already been accepted to many top medical schools, and is currently leaning toward Tufts University. Next summer, she will attend her first military training. Following medical school, she will be matched with a military residency and then serve at least four years on active duty.

“I look forward to the experience and training the military will provide,” Fisher says. “I will have the opportunity to live anywhere in the world.”

And what does the student who has already given her all have to say about giving her service to the military? “It will be a great experience, but I also want the opportunity to give back to my country.”