The Bachelorette star Jenn Tran talks reality-TV fame, her Dancing with the Stars partner Sasha Farber, plans to go back to medical school – and using her fame for good

Jan 19 , 2025

Former The Bachelorette star Jenn Tran. Photo: Sarah Cebulski

After becoming the first Asian-American star of The Bachelorette, Tran took on Dancing with the Stars – now she’s leaving reality TV behind to help with the California fires, then return to med school

On the second day of some of the worst wildfires in California’s history, Jenn Tran spent her morning contacting evacuation centres near her Los Angeles home to offer help. Tran, who rose to fame as the first Asian-American star of The Bachelorette, was at a safe distance from the flames but eager to gather resources and support those in need.

“In light of everything, what I’m most excited and grateful for is having a platform that allows me to reach so many people,” Tran shared. Since her breakout appearance in The Bachelor in September 2023, the cheerful New Jersey native and physician assistant student, who is known for her positivity and grounded personality, has amassed more than 600,000 Instagram followers. Now, Tran is using her fame for good.

Jenn Tran’s mission – opening doors to compassion. Photo: Kathy Garcia

“I’m so antsy right now,” she admitted. “I want to be out there, doing something – on the front lines, just like I would in a hospital setting.”

Tran, 27, is the daughter of Vietnamese immigrants. Her mother gave up her dream of pursuing a career in medicine to start a new life in the United States. Despite Tran’s recent fame – which embraced competing in Dancing with the Stars after her Bachelorette stint – she remains committed to her goal of becoming a physician assistant. She plans to return to her studies in March.

“My passion is still in medicine and helping people,” said Tran. “I’m excited to go back to school. It’s not going to be easy. I took a year off and it’s a matter of rebuilding all that knowledge. I want to get back to the same calibre I was at before I left.”

Tran is keenly aware that her reality TV identity may follow her into her medical career. “I went on a TV show where I cried my eyes out and let everyone in on all my vulnerabilities,” she said. “I understand that a lot of people will assume they know me. It’ll be interesting to be that person diagnosing them and giving them medical advice.”

Jenn Tran – TV star and future physician assistant. Photo: Sarah Cebulski

While Tran’s season of The Bachelorette (the show’s 21st) had its fair share of scenic moments – with trips to Melbourne and Auckland – it didn’t have the fairy-tale ending she had envisaged. In the final episode in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, Tran proposed to Devin Strader, a 28-year-old transport company owner from Houston. He accepted and proposed back, but their engagement ended abruptly a month later, before the finale even aired.

“He was basically telling me that he would do anything, that he couldn’t live without me,” she said during the finale. “And then suddenly, the next day, it was like – nothing. He denied ever being in love.”

In hindsight, Tran said of her Bachelorette experience: “It was different from what I thought it was going to be. I thought I was going to be engaged and happy, that I was going to get married. But I’ve had some time to reflect. Things happen for a reason, and life had other plans. I’m so happy another door opened for me.”