Leading with Empathy: Samantha Cajamarca’s Path from Advocacy to Medicine
For Samantha Cajamarca, advocacy began at home. Growing up in Queens as the eldest daughter in an immigrant family, she often found herself navigating the complexities of a new country on behalf of her parents — translating at doctor’s appointments, managing paperwork, and caring for her younger siblings. “Those early responsibilities taught me what it means to advocate for others,” she reflects. “They also gave me a deep sense of empathy and a front-row seat to how barriers like language and income shape lives.”
Those formative experiences became the foundation for her studies in sociology at the Colin Powell School, where she explored the systemic challenges that underserved communities face. “I saw how systems often failed families like mine,” she says. “Studying sociology gave me the tools to not only recognize those injustices, but also think critically about how to address them.” Through her education, Samantha has cultivated a vision rooted in advocacy, equity, and public service — and she’s determined to make that vision a reality through a career in medicine.
Now in a transitional phase post-graduation, Samantha is taking a gap year to deepen her clinical and research experience while applying to medical school. Her time at the Colin Powell School was instrumental in shaping both her goals and her confidence. “The Fellowship program and the community I found at CPS gave me a sense of clarity about my purpose,” she says. “I realized how connected leadership and service really are.” Through mentorship and support, she began to see her passion for healthcare and justice not just as aspirations, but as achievable goals.
Looking ahead, Samantha hopes to become a physician who not only provides compassionate, culturally responsive care, but also works to address the systemic inequities that impact marginalized populations. “Medicine, for me, is about more than just treatment — it’s about advocacy,” she says. “It’s about showing up for communities that have too often been overlooked.”
To current students, she offers heartfelt advice: “Believe in your own potential, even when things feel uncertain. Ask for help, take the opportunities that scare you, and remember that it’s okay to move at your own pace. Success doesn’t look the same for everyone.”
Asked to describe the Colin Powell School in three words, Samantha doesn’t hesitate: Supportive, empowering, impactful. Much like her own journey — one shaped by service, sustained by purpose, and led by empathy.
