Julius Membrere Orejudos, FACES Oakland alumnus Class of 2009, was born and raised in Oakland, California. He is a first-generation college student and proud son of Filipino immigrants.Julius earned his Bachelor of Arts in Integrative Biology from the University of California, Berkeley, in 2013. He is an Oral Lee Brown Foundation scholar who fully funded his undergraduate education. Afterward, he juggled between working part-time as an emergency medical technician, a hyperbaric technician, and an emergency department scribe, all while completing an informal post-baccalaureate program at UC Berkeley Extension. He also researched with his former professor, Dr. Richard Sprott, at California State University, East Bay, CA. Through this, Julius co-authored a publication entitled “A queer boundary: How Sex and BDSM Interact for people who identify as Kinky” (2020) in the Sexualities Peer-reviewed journal. Outside academia and work, he is passionate about helping underrepresented students within his community by serving as a teacher and mentor for the Oral Lee Brown Foundation, the Mentoring in Medicine and Science’s Healthy Ambassador Program, and the FACES Summer Medical Academy.
Julius then earned his Doctorate of Podiatric Medicine degree from the Dr. William M. Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine at Rosalind Franklin University, North Chicago, IL, in 2023. While there, he was the recipient of the Angelo P. Creticos, MD Memorial Endowed Scholarship, the William Caponigro Memorial Endowment Scholarship, the APMA Educational Foundation Scholarship, and the Distinction for Excellence in Interprofessional Healthcare, demonstrating high standards of intellectual knowledge, fundamental skills, passion, and commitment to the field of podiatric medicine, interprofessionalism, and Scholl College. Julius was elected as the Illinois Podiatric Medical Student Association’s (IPMSA) Chief Technology Officer, where he managed the IPMSA website and technical aspects of virtual and in-person events. He served as the Executive Officer of Medical Informatics for the Interprofessional Community Clinic (ICC), where he optimized patient documentation while training faculty and volunteers on using the EMR system. He also served as a Scholl Student Ambassador, working directly with visiting and prospective students. Through the ICC, Julius helped organize and supervise the Thursday free clinics providing primary care, podiatry, physical therapy, and behavioral health services to uninsured residents of Lake County, IL. Additionally, he has presented on developing an interprofessional telehealth model through the ICC at the Society for Student-Run Free Clinic’s 21st Annual Conference. He also gave a poster presentation about how he developed an online EMR training at ICC at the same conference.
Julius will be completing his 3-year Podiatric Medicine and Surgery Residency with a credential in Reconstructive Rearfoot and Ankle Surgery (PMSR/RRA) at Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center and John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County in Chicago, IL.
As a non-traditional medical student (i.e., delaying his start into medical school by six years rather than going in straight from undergrad), reaching this point in his career means so much to him. Throughout his career, he developed an imposter syndrome severe enough to make him question whether he deserved to be in medical school. He discounted his accomplishments of getting this far in his career despite environmental academic handicaps and delay into podiatry school. However, through the mentorship of various mentors, including Dr. Tomas Magaña, he realized those differences set him apart from his peers, and those real-world experiences taught him how to communicate and empathize with his patients.
Julius is truly blessed to be a part of such an excellent program like FACES. He is grateful for the exposure, collaboration, and mentorship he gained through clinical rotations at several hospitals in Oakland, encompassing the following departments: pharmacy, clinical research, anesthesia, medical surgery, and pathology. Undoubtedly, FACES catalyzed his growing passion and motivation to pursue medicine.
Julius acknowledges, “FACES is more than just a program; it is family. There is never an uncomfortable moment whenever you see another FACES alumni out in the field working or on the streets even after so many years.” Even after graduating from FACES many years ago, Dr. Magaña continues to serve as a fantastic role model for Julius, advocating and guiding him throughout his medical career.