Richa Sharma - Cox Scholar

Many IU students hail from the Midwest—Indiana, Illinois, Ohio or Michigan. There are also many students from across the United States. Some may consider a California native to have "come a long way's to college."\nMany IU students also enjoy the luxury of having their parents help out—if not pay completely—for tuition. \nBut few IU students can say they both come from a long way's and be totally responsible for putting themselves through college.\nEnter junior Richa Sharma. Though a graduate of Warren Central High School on the east side of Indianapolis, she is originally from a small, hut-lined rural village called Sujnpur in India. She moved here when she was seven.\n"Because of the differences in school systems, I was two years younger than everyone else when we moved to America," says Sharma. "I didn't know any English. I was alienated, so I tended to get in fights."\nLackluster grades didn't help her situation, either. And with two other siblings living in a single parent household, money was tight. Sharma had to learn to make do early on.\n"I was working since I was 14," Sharma says. "I was a server at Steak 'n Shake and a sales associate at Reebok. I had to work both jobs at the same time on top of going to school to support myself and my family."\nBut the rocky road smoothed out after Sharma found a new love out of a required high school class: science. With a newfound interest in biology and chemistry, Sharma began flying straight, staying out of fights and buckling down with her studies.\n"I eventually got a research position at the IUPUI School of Medicine," Sharma says. "Working in the lab forced me to grow up. I had to wear high heels, look nice and stop getting into trouble. But I loved working hard and being surrounded by smart people."\nSharma is now attending IU on a full merit-based scholarship as one of 21 Cox Scholars at IU and as a Lilly Endowment Scholar, along with an arsenal of eight other scholarships she earned in the past couple of years. \n"I never thought I would get into IU," Sharma says.\nShe is currently preparing for the MCATs this year and applying to med school at IUPUI. She is also continuing her research and insists that she is living proof that hard work leads to success.\n"Hopefully I can also work hard at a professional career. I want to be a doctor or a psychiatrist--I love to help people," Sharma says.\nBut she also knows that there always has to be time for equally important endeavors.\n"I always take some time out to watch Family Guy," she says, laughing.