So the panicky emails go something like these...
- Help! I took pre-med class X in the spring of last year but didn't pass it so I need to take it again. The question is should I take the MCAT before or after I retake the class? Because if I wait, then it might be too late to apply this year... yada yada yada....
or
-What should I do?????? I haven't heard back from any schools, should I contact the Dean? Or should I not bother them? Because I know you are supposed to assert yourself but I don't want to be annoying...
or
I got into 2 med schools and I don't know which one to go to. One is near my parents house and I can live at home for free... but the other school is way more prestigious and six times the price....
Sigh. If I could go back in time... say oh, 10 years, and tell my young semi-pre-med self just ONE thing.... it would be that NONE of this matters. Seriously. It doesn't matter if you make a phone call or send an email. It doesn't matter if you take the MCAT in April or September or even 2 years from now. It doesn't matter which school you choose.
All that matters is that you
1) try your best to make reasonable decisions that minimize your stress level and are conducive to you being happy and an overall ethical person
2) don't give up.
Really. I swear. That's it. Things will work out the way they are supposed to, when they are supposed to. And it won't be because Thank GOD you took physics before O-chem, or because you wrote a thank-you note on paper instead of sending a thank-you email. That stuff doesn't matter at all.
Yep, you're right, Ella.
ReplyDeleteI'll add some advice too(because I know you are studying for Boards, darling...good luck!):
1. The class order/grades doesn't matter that much. Just make sure you're redeeming yourself. E.g. If you get a B or B- in something, make sure you get an A in (most) everything else.
2. If you're unsure about whether to retake your MCATs, ask the schools, not current med. students (because honestly, we don't know). For what it's worth, I had an "average" score for my May MCAT. I emailed every single school I had a secondary from to ask what to do. Only two said to retake, but I retook that summer, and still applied in the same cycle. (And yes, I got in that cycle, even though my second MCAT was taken in August.) But, ask the school for your own circumstances.
3. Send the update letters if you're wait-listed or didn't hear back. And, send a LOT. Even if they think that you're "annoying," they'll remember your name when it comes time to bump people off of the list. Just make sure that you're making valid and worthwhile points about why you want to go to that school. Don't be unethical and don't whine.
4. Send the email thank you over the hand-written one. They'll get it faster--when they still remember who you are. BUT, some schools explicitly tell you not to send thank yous, so listen to instructions!
5. If going to the cheap school near home isn't going to make you happy, go to the expensive one. Regret is harder to live with than debt. (But you'll probably be happy wherever you go.)
6. Relax, breathe, and say, "This is going to be fine." Repeat!
I haven't written you a panicky email, but boy have these things been going through my head!! MCAT scores on Tuesday and essay writing sucks, so THANK YOU for being so amazing and saying the right thing at the right moment--just thanks!
ReplyDeleteThank you soooo much for this post! I seriously needed it.
ReplyDeleteWell said.
ReplyDeleteThankfully, I don't get any emails from pre-meds freaking out. Of course, I'm not in medical school yet. But even if I'm accepted, I don't see how that would enable me to answer any of those types of questions.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go meet with a professor to try and clawback 1.5 points in a lab so I can get my A- corrected.
Thank you Ella. I'm in my first year of post bac right now and struggling with confidence in school and balancing that with trying to have some semblance of a life. Hearing encouragement about not giving up really helps.
ReplyDeleteGood advice Red Steth... but my point was kind of that it doesn't matter WHAT you do. It will end up ok if you just keep at it.
ReplyDelete"It will end up ok if you just keep at it. "
ReplyDeleteI hear that. But sometimes I think this sentiment really only makes sense when you've got admission in the rear-view mirror.
That list of people you've got on the sidebar is a great example. Looking at your friend that was 29 with a 3.8 and 40 MCAT getting punked by every school she applied to twice isn't going to convince me that "it will all end up ok".
You don't think it's possible that she didn't get into medical school because she gave up too soon? Or what about the possibility that her priorities changed? I know for a fact that she is a professor now, married and has a new baby.... and is sublimely happy. Things "worked out" for her just fine.
ReplyDeleteI think the sooner one accepts the fact that life is a ride, and that you don't REALLY have control over all that much... the happier you will be. And trust me. Doctor or not, things will work out if you just keep working towards something.
ReplyDeleteI think I misunderstood you the first time - I see what you mean now.
ReplyDeleteLol...oops. I read this post last night and my first thought was, "LEAVE ELLA ALONE TO STUDY!!!" My friends who are second years right now are a little...stressed...at present. :)
ReplyDeleteRed Steth... I know I'm supposed to be studying for Step I .... but it hasn't really happened yet. I'm officially a 3rd year now and neck deep in my IM clerkship. Step I will happen... eventually. I'm thinking August-ish... maybe...
ReplyDelete@medschoolodyssey... you crack me up. your comments are written like a true pre-med... lol. Stop stressing!!! It will all be ok :-)
ReplyDeleteI probably stress a lot less than your garden variety premed. I just tire of the goat rodeo of breaking into the medical profession.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your awesome posts. I'm a second year med student in a foreign school and I think I am going to print out your two instructions in the post and put them on my wall. I read them to my partner and his response was, "Listen to her!"
ReplyDelete