Donating to BioLife

Personal Academic Essay I don’t like to admit it, but I am the stereotypical college student. Like many of my peers, I enjoy the freedom I have during this time in my life: no longer living under my parent’s roof, but am not yet tied down with a family and career. Unfortunately, this situation puts many young adult in quite an unstable place, namely, financially. I lie about the amount of cheap fast food I consume. I quit smoking because I can’t afford cigarettes. M y car is currently (and seemingly always) running on empty. Our whole campus is full of malnourished student all trying to make ends meet. I’m currently working two jobs to pay for my tuition, living expenses, etc. Working a ‘clock-in, clock-out’ job isn’t the only way young people are making money though. Today I’m going to inform you on one of the trendy and legitimate, young people are paying their bills: by donating to BioLife Services. I’ll get you up to speed on BioLife’s background, as well as, their identification process, security precautions, and the pros and cons of donating to BioLife. BioLife is part of Baxter Health Corporation. Baxter International formulates products for people with serious diseases such as hemophilia, kidney diseases, and immune disorders; while BioLife “...is an industry leader in the collection of high-quality plasma that is processed into life-saving plasma-based therapies” You may have heard or seen BioLife advertisements, inviting you to become a ‘BioLifer’, or a plasma donator. To be a plasma donor, you must be between the ages of 18- 69 and have a weight of at least 110 pounds. Donating plasma takes an hour to an hour and a half. Many donators do this twice a week. BioLife compensates for that time. The amount of compensation varies by location, all donators receive a Visa Debit card that is automatically refilled after every donation. In my personal experience, the money is totally worth being strapped up to a machine for an hour. My first donation

Cited: "BioLife Plasma Center Rolling Out Quicker, Easier Screening System." Herald-Times, (Bloomington, IN) (2007)Print. "BioLife Plasma Services." 2013.Web. . "BioLife Plasma Services." 2013.Web. . "Plasma Donors Save Lives." m82 PRESSWIREsept. 5 2012 2012. Print.