Neuroscience student on the way to filling a role as dentist

Watching his parents use dentures inspired a young Hung Quach to become interested in dentistry.

“They grew up poor in Vietnam and didn’t have much access to healthcare and dental care,” he said. “As a result, both of them lost a lot of their teeth at a young age. I remember at 7 years old thinking: ‘Why do my parents have dentures?’ I wanted to understand how their teeth deteriorated so fast and how I could help people like them in the future.”

But it took a year at Binghamton University for Quach to develop the work ethic and mentality to re-discover the road to dentistry. The 21-year-old from Queens will graduate this month with a degree in integrative neuroscience before joining the Columbia University College of Dental Medicine this fall.

“Binghamton University helped me take my career path more seriously,” Quach said. “I began to research more about dentistry over winter break of my freshman year. I developed a passion for it and saw myself becoming a dentist someday.”

Quach admitted that he was “completely lost” and “confused” when he arrived at Binghamton in the summer of 2015.

“In high school, I was the opposite of the student I am today,” he said. “I was surprised Binghamton accepted me! My GPA was low and my SAT scores were not good. Nobody cared about (high school) in my environment.”

The summer Binghamton Enrichment Program from the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) was the first step in Quach’s turnaround.

“EOP saw a potential in me that I didn’t even see in myself,” said Quach, who emigrated with his parents from Vietnam in 2001. “EOP changed me: It taught me how to study and stay focused. As I got As my first semester, I thought: ‘My parents risked everything and moved to the U.S. I’m not going to waste my life. I’m going to work as hard as I can to give them something to be proud of.’”

The second step in Quach’s turnaround also took place in his freshman year, when the psychology major had a late-night discussion about neuroscience with a suitemate.

“We talked about how consciousness works and how networks of neurons can lead to our ability of perception, our ability to see and our ability to formulate thoughts,” said Quach, who switched his major to integrative neuroscience during his sophomore year. “I was intrigued by it and wanted to learn more.”

As a member (and later vice president) of the University’s Pre-Dental Association, Quach planned and ran outreach events at Johnson City elementary schools. He and a dozen other club members discussed the importance of brushing and flossing through question-and-answer sessions and interactive role playing.

“We tried to motivate them to care more about their oral health,” he said. “It was nice to see how enthusiastic they were about (the visits). They always asked good questions like ‘how many teeth does an adult have?’ and ‘what is plaque?’”

Quach also gained off-campus experience by shadowing New York City dentists. He said he was impressed by the interactions between the dentists and their patients.

“The dentists I shadowed were like family to their patients,” he said. “They basically watched their patients achieve life milestones.”

The artistic elements of the profession also appealed to Quach, who noticed dentists doing various crown preparations through teeth carvings.

Quach compared dentistry to one of his artistic endeavors: barbering.

“Both use your hands, you fix a person’s appearance and you make them feel confident and happy,” he said. “Barbers and dentists also talk and ask (patients) questions about their lives.”

In the Middle Ages, in fact, “barber surgeons” would often pull the teeth and cut the hair of soldiers on the battlefield.

Quach, who also enjoys surfing, began barbering four years ago after he became tired of paying for haircuts or waiting in long lines in New York City shops.

“I decided to teach myself how to cut my own hair,” he recalled. “I bought a barbering kit and watched some YouTube videos. I started cutting my hair. After I got good at it, I convinced my cousins and friends to let me cut their hair. Then they recommended me to their friends.”

Back on campus, Quach served as a Promise Zone volunteer at Binghamton High School, mentoring students in subjects such as algebra, trigonometry and physics, while discussing the importance of college applications and sharing his own success stories.

He has remained close to EOP. From writing classes to academic, emotional and career support, the program has always been a “supportive family” for him.

“I like how they guide you,” he said. “You slowly build your activities and slowly build your success.”

Quach has returned the support by serving as an EOP tutor in chemistry, biology and psychology.

Ryan Mead, coordinator for EOP’s academic support services, said Quach is “someone who is not only focused on success, but is also extremely caring and always looking to give back.”

In (tutoring) sessions, “Hung is able to balance empathizing with students he works with and the difficulties they might be having, to holding those students to high standards and challenging them to overcome any obstacles they may have,” Mead said.

Quach said he is eager to spend the next four years at Columbia University College of Dental Medicine, which is a short train ride from his parents’ home and features camaraderie-filled students in classes that are “small, but not too small.”

“Being able to work with an underserved population and help them lead healthier lifestyles is something that’s appealing to me,” he said.

Being at Binghamton University has been a challenging journey, Quach said, but it’s shaped him to become the person he is today.

“I’ve grown a lot as an individual,” he said. “Binghamton has helped me developed skills like writing and math. I know so much more about the world now and how it works. I will use the knowledge I gained here to get through life.”