Eric J. Shelton/Reporter-News Abilene Christian University graduate Kate Huggins was recently accepted into the University of Tennessee's medical school.

Throughout her year-plus odyssey to enroll in medical school, Kate Huggins' faith was challenged continually.

After the 2011 Abilene Christian University graduate received the news she had been accepted into Texas A&M her first medical school of choice she learned the university had overfilled its class by 80 students.

To soften the blow, Texas A&M officials offered incentives to students who were open to deferring for a year, including a "significant tuition scholarship." Since Huggins graduated from ACU when she was 21, she was open to waiting a year.

"I decided to take this option and move to Tennessee to explore my relationship with my boyfriend, who is attending medical school at University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis, Tenn.," said Huggins, who took her GED to graduate a year early from Abilene Christian Schools.

"I moved to Memphis and after a few months of living there, had decided that I would like to stay if I could. I spoke with the dean of admissions at the University of Tennessee and he encouraged me to sort out the issue with the dean of admissions at A&M."

Huggins, now 22, spoke with the dean at A&M and he agreed to let her apply to Tennessee without losing her spot at A&M within a set time frame. Besides the fact that Tennessee's medical school had 20 fewer spots than A&M's 200-student school, Huggins took a leap of faith by applying on the final day applications were being taken.

"Against huge odds including being told there was 'absolutely no way' by an adviser that Tennessee would accept an out of state med student she applied on the last possible day," said Huggins' father, Dan.

Kate Huggins added: "I had come so far, I was under so much stress that I thought there was at least a very slim chance."

But the allotted two-month time frame came and went without Huggins' hearing from Tennessee. She would now forced to give up her A&M acceptance and "waited in faith" to be accepted at Tennessee.

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Medical school journey tests ACU grad's faith