Ever wonder what a person does in a specific job? Sometimes I do. My uncle’s title of “organ preservationist” sounds very scientific, but I wondered what does a person with that title do. So, I decided to interview my uncle so that both I, and kids everywhere, would better understand this job. This medical career is one you don’t hear much about.

1. What is your job title?
I am an Organ Preservationist Specialist

2. What degree do you have to have for this job?
I actually have 3 degrees and board certification to my name. First, I have two Bachelor of Science degrees from Kansas State University in Biology and Nutritional Science. Second, I have a Masters in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Missouri. Finally, I have a certification from the American Board of Transplant that allows me to do my job officially.

3. How many years of schooling is needed for this job?
Most people have bachelor degrees at least, some people have masters or are Physician Assistants. School years thus vary, at least four.

4. For this position could you have other degrees? If so, what would they be?
Most people in my field have a least a Bachelor of Science (BSN) in nursing or higher. I am an anomaly in my field.

5. What do you like best about your job?
The stories that come back to you about the recipients that have received an organ and how for the better their lives have changed.

6. What do you like least about your job?
The hours can be grueling at times. It is not uncommon to be up for more than 24 hours.

7. What would you change to make your job better?
I would increase skills and knowledge in various other parts of the transplant process, for example, matching of donors to recipients on the lab side. Unfortunately, in the operating room (OR) we are asked how someone is matched and not others. This is at the digression of our physicians and we sometimes do not have all the information/knowledge we need to give informed answers.

8. What advice would you give a high school students who aspires for this job, or a similar job?
Education is the key. Regardless of your background you have to have the paperwork behind you in order to just get through the door to a job like this.

9. What classes would you recommend a high school student take for this job?
For high school I would concentrate heavily in the sciences, regardless of what they are in.

10. What do you wish that you would have known about this job when you first started?
The volatile nature of the job, one week you may only do two recovers. The next week you may be so busy that you may not see your love ones for quite some time.

There you go, what it is like to be an organ preservationist and tips on high school classes.