When reflecting back upon childhood dreams, most would admit that they wanted to become either an astronaut, princess, or even the president of the United States. Of course, these dreams seem somewhat unreachable, especially considering how many people change their minds. However, for Olivia Gulotta, her childhood dream is about to become a reality.

Gulotta told her parents she wanted to be a doctor when she was 5 years old and has stuck with that decision over fifteen years later.

For many, it’s hard to choose what one wants to do at 18 years old, let alone during kindergarten. But, for Gulotta, the choice was simple after meeting her role model at such a young age.

Gulotta was sick when she was younger and was constantly in and out of the hospital. This experience ultimately lead her to her dream job, when she met her pediatrician.

“My doctor always made me feel comfortable and like nothing was wrong,” Gulotta said. “I’m actually still in contact with him today, but from knowing him, I wanted to be just like him when I grew up.”

Until high school, Gulotta toyed around with other career options, but continually came back to the idea of caring for children in the way she was cared for.

As a molecular and cellular biology major at the University, Gullota has had to sacrifice a lot in the order to succeed. Gulotta is a member of Alpha Chi Omega sorority; however, she has to pick and choose the few events that she has time for. Despite this, Gulotta refuses to surrender.

“I’ve gotten this far so there’s no turning back,” Gulotta said.

As for the future, there’s nothing but brightness in store for Gulotta. Instead of going directly to medical school, Gulotta plans on participating in a master’s program first.

“The average age of a medical student is going up so I’m not in too big of a hurry,” Gulotta said. “But, I want to be able to move out of my house and do stuff and be on my own for a little while before I start not having enough time to do anything ever again.”

When it comes down to getting a job after her master’s program and medical school, Gulotta is all about working at Rush Presbyterian in Chicago.

“That’s where my doctor was out of, he was the head of the sub-department there,” Gulotta said. “I always thought of Rush as this great hospital.”

Gulotta is living proof that following childhood dreams are an actual possibility. With a little faith and a lot of hard work, Gulotta knows she will make her own dreams come true.

“Just stick to it,” Gulotta said. “There’s going to be a lot of rough road ahead, but if it’s something you want to do, it’s definitely worth it.”