Author: Adiki Puplampu
Date: 25 September 2026
This summer, aspiring doctor, Ryan Koffi spent eight weeks immersing himself in the ELITE Program experience and working on diabetes research under the supervision of Dr. Mourad Ferdaoussi at the University of Alberta’s Francophone Campus Saint-Jean. An incoming Grade 12 student at Alexandre-Taché high school in St. Albert, Ryan first learned about the ELITE Program after a presentation at his school by ELITE Program director Dr. André McDonald and incoming director, Dr. Natacha Louis. Interested in gaining hands-on work experience and encouraged by a program alumni who credited her ELITE Program experience with helping her prepare for portions of the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), Ryan applied and was accepted as an intern. With his passion for chemistry and biology, this lab environment was his ideal training ground.
His work, part of an existing and ongoing project in the lab, involved working with liver and heart cells to catalog their reactions to different treatments. Through this daily lab work, Ryan learned the rhythms of the lab and the patience required to wait for treatments to take effect. He was surprised by and enjoyed the collegial environment of the lab where everyone worked hard but had fun at the same time and his internship hosts provided many opportunities for direct involvement in lab processes, supporting the depth and breadth of Ryan’s learning.
Like most interns, Ryan enjoyed his time in both the Entrepreneurship Design Series and the Wellness and Coaching Series, taking away memorable experiences and learnings from both. From the step by step start-up development process in the Entrepreneurship Design Series to the relationship building conversations in the Coaching Series, both these experiences, but the Wellness and Coaching Series in particular, helped Ryan feel like he was part of a community of like-minded interns.
For Ryan, the opportunity to network was one of the biggest opportunities and takeaways from his summer with the ELITE Program. A more introverted person by nature, Ryan was encouraged by his cousin, also an ELITE Program alumni, to take advantage of the opportunity to make friends and build relationships.
“I’m naturally a shy person. I don’t really talk to people that easily, but this has made it really easy for me to meet new people and see new perspectives.”
Already deeply involved with his high school community as a member of the debate team, student council, and writer for a school publication, we have no doubt that Ryan will continue to expand and strengthen his network as he continues on the path to medical school.