Recent Headlines
Mighty Oak Monday: Karar Abed
Major: Biochemistry
Hometown: Baghdad, Iraq
Class of ’27
Karar Abed might be one of the busiest people you’ve ever met – and one of the most driven. When he’s not leading tours as a student ambassador or studying to maintain his high GPA, you can find him conducting cancer research in collaboration with SUNY Upstate Medical University and serving as the chemistry department senator for ESF’s student government.
“Time management is important, and I couldn’t do it all without support,” said Abed. “Everyone from my family to my mentors here at ESF plays a big part in helping me succeed.”
His road to ESF is linked with the Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VA). While participating in a shadowing experience that sparked his interest in cardiothoracic surgery, he met Dr. Lee Newman, chair of ESF’s chemistry department, working with veterans in the Therapeutic Horticulture Rooftop Garden program. She became a mentor who gave him valuable advice for his future.
“She told me the biochemistry major would prepare me for my medical field goals. I was even able to work with my advisor at Onondaga Community College to plan my associate degree around my transfer plans.”
Abed is motivated by his desire to help people. He grew up in Baghdad and moved to the United States to enter eighth grade.
“I couldn’t help people the way I wanted to when I was younger,” he said. “I knew I could eventually train as a doctor and make a difference.” He worked hard, learning English and two other languages during his first few years of high school and completing collegiate-level work during his senior year at East Syracuse Minoa Central High School.
His future is brighter than ever. “I recently had a paper published on the safety of two organic solvents. I’m looking forward to eventually taking the MCAT to meet my goal of becoming a surgeon. A philosophy that guides me and my work is ‘a better tomorrow is not a gift we wait for. It’s a destiny we forge.’”