Meet the Team
Julia is a 5th year MD-PhD candidate with a masters degree in Neuroscience. She has experience with over 100 students across their medical careers, from premedical students preparing for MD and MD-PhD applications to medical students studying for preclinical and STEP 1 exams. She specializes in helping students manage their life stressors while obtaining an advanced degree. Julia founded Book with Bloomed after posting various STEP 1 tips on Tiktok and saw a need for a new form of USMLE tutoring. Julia plans to become a psychiatrist and integrate a career in clinical care, research, media, and entrepreneurship.
Julia Benville, MS
CEO & Senior Advisor
Dr. Vivian Kim, MD
Founder & Senior Advisor
Vivian is a graduated MD student who is pursuing residency in psychiatry. She started her educational career as an assistant ski instructor at age 12, and has tutored throughout high school, college, and medical school across subjects. Serving as a learning assistant for introductory physics courses while majoring in Economics and Spanish in college, she values an interdisciplinary approach to learning. Vivian has supported students across medical school classes, through clinical and STEP exams, clerkships, and residency and research applications while maintaining wellness and balance. She looks forward to working with children and adolescents in her clinical career as a psychiatrist. Her work has been published in Newsweek and MedPage Today.
Lyra Morina
Md-PhD Application Advisor and USMLE Step 1 Tutor
Lyra was born in Prizren, Kosovo and lived in Zambia and Uganda before settling in the United States in high school. She has a bachelor’s degrees in Biology and Economics from the University of Maryland, College Park. Lyra is currently a 5th year MD-PhD student at Washington University in St. Louis. She is passionate about developing cancer immunotherapies with improved outcomes and quality of life. In her free time, she works for a startup called Caralyst that matches professional students to therapists and mentors students applying to medical school and/or graduate school with Book with Bloomed. She has over 5 years of experience successfully guiding students in the application process. She is passionate about approaching her career path with balance and always aspires to help others find joy in their day-to-day journey while achieving their goals.