RPCV Dr. Autumn Beavers–Fulbright Scholar–To Tanzania

Dr. Autumn Beavers is a surgical resident at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and heading to Tanzania as a Fulbright Scholar.

Sometimes the road to success comes with detours. That’s what Dr. Autumn Beavers discovered after taking a long break between college and medical school.

The demands of medical school are well known, and Beavers said she is so busy she’d nearly forgotten about her application for the prestigious scholarship program.

“I had just arrived home from a long day at work. And I opened my email and it said you’ve been awarded the Fulbright,” she said. “And I was like, oh yes, I remember I applied for this. It was very exciting.”

Fulbright scholars get the opportunity to study, teach, and do research in other countries. While in Tanzania, she will be working at a local hospital, continuing research started by a fellow University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) doctor.

“I’ll be working with traditional healers on improving early breast cancer detection,” said Beavers. She will be collaborating with traditional healers. The Birmingham native’s path to a medical career has been unconventional. After graduating from Georgia State University, she took a five-year break from school.

“I had been out of school for about five years before I returned to medical school. So, I was a nontraditional student and just getting back into the swing of school. And the demand of medical school was very challenging for me.”

But Beavers says she persevered because she always knew she wanted to wear a white coat and carry a stethoscope.

“My mom always tells a story that when I was about six, I told her that I wanted to be a doctor. Where exactly that came from, I’m not sure. But it stuck, and I stuck with it,” Beavers said.

Those five years before med school weren’t years lost. They helped her find deeper meaning and more motivation to complete her education. She joined the Peace Corps in 2014. The program sent her to Burkina Faso to teach science.

“And I realized just kind of being in the community, seeing what the needs are, that there are needs that affect people close to me,” Beavers said. “The same needs exist right here in Birmingham.”

She also learned, like many of her students, she could survive on extraordinarily little.

“I lived in a small village in the Peace Corps. It was without electricity. I didn’t have running water. The classroom was a four-wall concrete building with few windows. We had about 100 to 115 students per class. We had to grow or hunt for our own food.”

Beavers said teaching was such a rewarding experience it made up for what she lacked in comfort.

“Challenging, for sure, but it was incredible,” she said. “Because of it, I would say to never give up on your dream, and chase the uncomfortable. And get comfortable being uncomfortable.”

Autumn Beavers’ first medical experience was in Ecuador when she studied abroad for a semester.

“This was my hands-on experience. We set up a medical clinic free for one of the poorest towns that needed basic medical care. We checked their vitals and went into the community. We also made house calls. And on our off days, we vaccinated cats and dogs.”

This experience spoke to Beavers’ heart, as she strives to focus on global surgery, which allows that connection with rural medicine.

Her 11th-grade history teacher spoke about his time in the Peace Corps, and it intrigued her. She started college and until one day, in a class of 250 students, a classmate who had just returned from Uganda sat beside her and was telling Beavers about her time in the Peace Corps. Beavers didn’t delay this time! She got in touch with a recruiter and was assigned to West Africa.

“I had to learn French,” Beavers said. “I taught Animal and Plant Biology in French. While we were there, we raised funds from American corporations, who contributed to building a community library in Burkina Faso.”

While there, Beavers had 105-115 students per class, mostly sixth and seventh graders. At one point during her service, she taught Kindergarten-ninth grades.

“The students look out the windows of the classroom to see when the teacher is coming,” Beavers said. “They want to carry your bags and books into the classroom. On days they would see me with a specific bag, they knew I had my camera, and they would just lose it because they knew that meant we’d be taking pictures. They loved it!”

A health care initiative Beavers educated young women on during her time in Burkina Faso was menstruation.

“It’s taboo to talk about there,” Beavers said. “I held menstruation sessions for families with middle-school-aged girls. We had to make pads and tampons because there are no stores. And they had to navigate things differently because there’s no bathrooms either, just four to five latrines for the whole camp.”

After the Peace Corps, Beavers continued her exploratory travels/studies and headed to Thailand. She attended Mahidol University, where the King of Thailand’s children also attended school.

Outside of loving to learn, Beavers loves to travel. A few of her favorite travel spots have been Bali, Morocco and Spain.