Sabrine Garrison is a senior on the Gopher women’s golf team. She’s also preparing for medical school.

You’re a month into your senior year, have you had to take on more of a leadership role?

Definitely. I mean, being a senior this year and having all the freshmen that we have, we have four of them, has been a lot to take on. They’ve been great and are pretty easy to deal with. We also have two juniors and a sophomore that have taken on a lot of leadership too. So, it hasn’t completely [fallen] on me, but it’s definitely been a step up. I think I have a lot to share in terms of my past experiences and it’s exciting to have the opportunity to finally do that. 

Are you doing anything different because you’re a senior?  

I think I’ve just tried to take on more of a motherly role with them, in terms of being there for them and letting them know that they have resources, and that we’ve all been there. I mean freshman year is a tough transition. There’s a lot of lessons and you learn a lot about yourself. Being able to reassure them that it’s a process and lead by example in terms of changing the culture of this team is big and something that we are really working towards. As a senior, I really have been taking that on because I want to make sure that when I leave this team, I’m leaving it better than when I came on in terms of the culture and team dynamic. So far, things have been great. Everyone is getting along, the values that we hold everybody agrees on them, and everyone is following through on their promise. 

What has you most excited about the rest of the year?

The tournaments that we have coming and all the potential that I see in all of our freshmen. I think we’re really ready to post some good scores. We have a hectic schedule. It’s tough to perform when you have three freshmen in the lineup and they’re still trying to figure it out, but we’re really close. I think we have a lot of exciting golf ahead.

You’re a pre-med student, has it been hard to balance school and golf throughout your tenure at the University of Minnesota?

Definitely, it’s never been easy, but it’s been something I’ve wanted to do. I’ve took on everything because I thought it would be a good experience and opportunity. I’ve been able to time manage and I’ve learned a lot. I’ve enjoyed the experience I’ve had outside of golf here at the U, all the research opportunities and the volunteer opportunities at the hospital. Everything I do I’m passionate about and that has really motivated me to push through and balance everything. 

What are your plans for after you graduate? Where do you see yourself in five years?

I applied to medical school over the summer and I took my MCAT exam. Now I’m just waiting to hear about interviews. If everything goes according to plan I’ll be in medical school come August, so in less than a year, I’ll be going to medical school back in Canada. In five years, I hope to be a family physician, probably will be doing my residency, and working towards that goal of opening up my own practice. I’m not exactly sure in terms of where I’m going to be in the medical field as of right now, but so far family medicine has my interests.

Editor’s note: This Q&A has been edited for length and clarity.