Student Spotlight: Joe Mauch

As a fifth-year student applying for a residency in internal medicine, with hopes of specializing in cardiology or critical care medicine, Joe Mauch (’23) has found his experience at CCLCM to be a whirlwind, filled with great learning experiences and wonderful friendships.

“CCLCM attracts amazing people who you get to know so well and who support each other over the course of medical school,” he says.

Originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, Joe completed his undergraduate degree at the University of Dayton where he double majored in biology and psychology. Prior to attending medical school, Joe worked as an EMT with a local 911 service and found it rewarding to be able to help people. This experience helped validate his choice to attend medical school and continue to help people.

For Joe, one of the most alluring aspects of CCLCM was the opportunity for both research and clinical experience, bolstered by the support of both Cleveland Clinic and CWRU. When he was initially discussing medical school with his undergraduate advisor, he found the five-year experience to be a perfect choice for him because he was looking for a program that involved research and one in which he could explore various medical specialties.

“I was drawn to Cleveland Clinic, where there are leaders in every field and many opportunities to explore a career,” he says. CCLCM’s five-year program gave him the space to explore, and he eventually ended up pursuing a master’s degree in the Clinical Research Scholars Program (CRSP), which focuses on research methodology and advanced statistics.

While at CCLCM, Joe and his class dealt with a lot of change, from assisting in the transition to the new Health Education Campus as part of his role on the College Board of Student Representatives to pivoting to online classes and clinical rotations during the pandemic. As he finishes out his final year, he commends the students for their resilience and the faculty, who continue to put the students at the forefront of their commitments.

Thinking back on what he would have appreciated knowing prior to attending CCLCM, he emphasizes the importance of reflecting on what you value and what programs will best support the kind of doctor you want to become.

“Be honest with yourself about what you value — geography; culture and diversity; residency match list; research opportunities — and don’t be afraid to take chances or make adjustments as you go. Hardly any career path is a straight line,” he says.

Joe recently had the opportunity to give an oral presentation at the American Heart Association conference in Chicago on his research, which involved studying the role of oxidative stress in cardiorenal syndrome and diuretic resistance in acute heart failure. During his research year, Joe performed both translational research, developing and applying an enzymatic assay to patient samples, and clinical research, evaluating the clinical risk score for diuretic resistance. In addition, he assisted in the screening, consenting, enrollment and study collection process for a clinical trial that just finished.

“I loved the wide variety of opportunities that I took advantage of during research year. Presenting at the American Heart Association conference was a great honor and opportunity to share some of results and network with other medical students, residents and attendings,” he says.

As he looks forward to residency, Joe says that he is proud of his many CCLCM experiences including community service, research and clinical work, which he is excited to put to use in residency. Joe and his fiancée, whom he met in the program, will be couples matching next spring.

When he’s not chin deep in his studies, Joe loves to run. He completed his first marathon last spring and will begin training in the spring to run another.