Getting Into Medical School: A First Hand Account
As I start this blog on September 1, 2007, I'm just beginning my senior year as a pre-medical biology student. My goal is to become a medical doctor soon after. From the books and testimonials I've read, there are many tricks of the trade, do's and don'ts, and general info you don't get anywhere except from the source. I don't know everything yet, but I plan to live it. And maybe one day I'll be o |
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Articles from Getting Into Medical School: A First Hand Account |
Personal Statements, Letters of Recommendation, and UC Davis.
2008-04-15 02:24:00
Progress filling out the Medical School Directory (at 2medschool.com) is coming along slowly, but it's getting there.The emails I've sent to the admissions departments to some of the schools are finally getting back to me. Here's a response from the University of California Davis after inquiring about Personal Statements & Letters of Recommendation:Jonathan: Our medical school uses the AMCAS service. You have only 5300 characters for personal statement - approx. equivalent to one page. As for letters or recommendation, our school does not ask for these letters from everyone. Less than 1/2 of the applicant pool are invited to submit their letters of recommendation. We suggest at least 3 to 5 letters of recommendation with 2 of those letters from science professors that know you well beyond the grade received in their class and letters from research mentors, employers and/or community service/clinical volunteer supervisors or coordinators. I suggest that you go to www.tomor ...
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Personal Statement (2nd Draft)
2008-04-14 02:05:00
I've made most of the (many) changes marked all over my 1st draft. This isn't the final draft.Please consider my application to Stanford University School of Medicine. The day I decided to pursue a career in the medical field is still very clear in my mind. It was nearly five years ago. A co-worker of mine asked me to take ‘a class’ with him. I can still remember that first class period. I was taken by surprise by the teaching style and intrigued by the subject matter. By the end of the second class, my mind was made up and new life goals began springing up in my head in all the right ways. I had seized on something life-altering and I knew it. A career in patient health care was the right path for me. This class that I speak of turned out to be an Emergency Medical Technician Certification class.I was 20 years old at the time, working at IKEA as a cashier, out of school and looking for some direction in my life. Through a series of events beginning with the EMT classes ...
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Emergency Room Doctor = Glorified Triage Nurse?
2008-04-13 02:59:00
"What do you want to specialize in?""Emergency Medicine.""So you want to be a glorified triage nurse? lol."This is a quote that I've posted once before and I think it's an honest response. The person I was talking to online had just got accepted into medical school. He was half joking when he said that (he was intending to go into surgery). And if there's one thing that I've taken away from my (short) time in the emergency room, it's that Emergency Medicine is very different from many other specialties.The fact of the matter is this: As an emergency room doctor, you do what you can with what you have in the time that you have. Anything more than that and it's out of your hands.Unlike the majority of other types of doctors, you don't have very much to work with and you have even less time. The fact is that you only have a few hours max to deal with the problems that the patients bring in with them.Now the emergency room (at least the one I was shadowing in this entire time) ...
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MCAT Exam Registration
2008-04-12 02:04:00
I finally got my date."News: Registration is open for the April through September administrations of the MCAT exam in the U.S., Canada, Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and some parts of Asia."I've been checking back every other month or so since last Fall. They've finally opened MCAT testing dates up until September. Before this, I believe test dates were only open for May.It'll cost you $210.MCAT testing locations fill up quick. One of my classmates (last year) had to take the test in Arizona because she waited so long to register. And even now, just a few minutes ago, one of the locations I was looking at for August was already full. If you're looking to take the test this Summer, you better register when you can.My date is August 22. What's yours?AAMC: MCAT Exam RegistrationWARNING: This is something that's stated over and over again on the AAMC website. It's important, so I'll say it again here. You will not be able to take the test if the name you enter during ...
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Dominican University of California
2008-04-11 02:01:00
A little about me:I've never really spoken about this openly for some reason. Some people have asked, most people have never heard of it, but if anyone's been wondering these past 6 months about the school I'm attending currently...Dominican University of California.It's a small private school in northern California. It's in San Rafael, which is north of San Francisco, in Marin County. (For those who aren't familiar with northern California geography, the Golden Gate bridge connects San Francisco to San Rafael. The Bay Bridge goes inland to the east. The Golden Gate bridge runs north & south.)It's a very expensive private school. Now, I don't say that to impress anyone. From kindergarden, to elementary school, middle school, and high school, I've been a product of the public school system. That being said, I think Dominican is an excellent school. I recommend it, if anyone's wondering. The class room sizes are small (20 to 40), the Biology & Chemistry depart ...
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Introducing: www.2medschool.com
2008-04-10 02:34:00
Here is what I was hinting about earlier. I was going to wait until more was done. It's very early, but I'll go ahead and reveal it anyway:I purchased the url to www.2medschool.com about a week ago. This is going to be the 2nd website I've ever attempted to put together. I only know the very minimum amount of HTML needed to get one up and running so don't expect anything too fancy.Aside from the blog, I only have two other sections planned:MCAT PrepMedical School DirectoryThe Medical School Directory is going to be an index for all the medical schools showing the answers to all the questions that I always say you should know. I'm collecting the information from a number of sources including the 2008-2009 Medical School Admissions Requirements book, the school websites, and through email. There are only two schools up right now (Stanford, UCSF) and I'm not done with their information as of yet. (I still am waiting on a couple emails to some of my questions.)I have no idea i ...
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Organic Chemistry - Carboxylic Acids, Amines, Anhydrides, and More Esters
2008-04-09 22:50:00
What can I say? The entire class screwed up.I could tell you why, but it would be an excuse. Last week was the toughest week so far this semester, for me and for everybody else in my Organic Chemistry class. Tests, quizzes, homework assignments, papers, and presentations across all classes all landed in one week.Looking at the test, it was straight forward enough and probably easier than most others. Everyone bombed it. Out of 50 points, over half of the class got less than 25, everyone but two students got less than 30, one person got 31, and another got 40.Instead of curving the test for scores so low (for a class who wouldn't have learned a thing), the teacher made us re-take it open notes / open book. The workload that week was the reason everyone did bad. Me not sticking to my study plan was the reason I did bad.Now I just need to find out what I got on my Biochem test...On a positive note, I found out that one of my friends got accepted into Pharmacy School at Boston Coll ...
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Kaplan MCAT Classroom Course
2008-04-08 19:42:00
I made the plunge and put down $1849 to enroll in one of the Kaplan MCAT Classroom Courses here in San Francisco just a few moments ago. I was looking for something to do in the Summer and I was looking to get back on track with my MCAT prep. I'm looking to accomplish both this Summer starting in June.I have other plans for the Summer and my MCAT coursework... something that I'll reveal by the weekend. I've been working on something this past week, but it's not quite ready yet. Let's just say my inner nerd really came out and I found myself another (unconventional) way to study for the test.Anyway, about the Kaplan course. I've always had it recommended to me by teachers at my school. I've been yelled at and have been given the stink eye & shakey finger by my adviser when I told him I wanted to study on my own. It's something that's been recommended by other students -- recent alumni and current seniors both. It's something that I've been fighting and wanted to spend ...
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Emergency Room Stories - 40 Hours
2008-04-06 08:18:00
After what happened last time I said I'd try to stop going to the hospital at night. I said I'd stop, but there are only so many hours in the day, only so many days left in the semester to get it done, and only specific times the doctor would be on for me to shadow. I went anyway and I'm almost done. 1 more shift and 5 more hours should do it and conclude a great experience.In these past few days I've seen so many laceration injuries and suture procedures, I can't even recount to you now exactly how many I've witnessed. Fingers, faces, thumbs, arms, legs, and ankles. As tough as the human body is (and the human skin in particular), sometimes it needs a little help.While the lacerations were interesting, there was something else that's been standing out to me over these past few days..."I want to help people." you say to yourself and to others as you announce your interest in medicine.But what do you do when the person in front of you is a homeless person, on crack cocaine, ...
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MCAT Woes
2008-04-05 23:34:00
If there's one thing that I've dropped the ball on, it's sticking to my MCAT study schedule. It was even part of my new year's resolution and I failed to meet it.Ideally, I would have taken at least one hour a day dedicated to MCAT material. I underestimated my schedule this semester and now I'm exactly where I didn't want to be. I can't help but think this may have to do with my stubbornness to commute to school everyday where a round trip takes 2+ hours (depending on traffic).If I had taken those 2 extra hours a day and used them to study for the past 3 months...But!All isn't lost. Don't get me wrong, I have looked through the MCAT books that I do have occasionally. But I haven't been strict with myself, I haven't gone through the material systematically, and I've only taken one practice test.A few of my friends and myself are set to enroll in the Kaplan MCAT course this summer. I won't be working. I won't be in summer school. (And for those of you who have been ...
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Foundations of Medicine
2008-04-03 02:03:00
One of my "Duh" moments. Let me explain...In a recent seminar I attended, they passed out the usual informational packets about the school they were promoting. It had all the normal non-specifics that you get everywhere else, but they also had some of the specifics that I like:The Foundations of Medicine.It was a table breaking down the courses that you'll be taking during the first four semesters of medical school. It's also one of those pieces of information that you wonder why you haven't stumbled upon before.Semesters 1 and 2Developmental and Microscopic Anatomy IDevelopmental and Microscopic Anatomy IIBiochemistry and Genetics IBiochemistry and Genetics IIDoctor, Patient, and Society IDoctor, Patient, and Society IINeuroscienceGross Anatomy IGross Anatomy IIMedical Physiology IMedical Physiology IISemester 3Microbiology and Immunology IPathology I: GeneralMedical Pharmacology IBehavioral SciencesSemester 4Microbiology and Immunology IIPathology II: Systemic and ClinicalMedic ...
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Stanford School of Medicine Timeline 2007-2008
2008-04-02 03:54:00
In the past I've said that my top schools were (in order):University of California San FranciscoStanfordI think they've switched, mostly due to a conversation I had with a doctor not too long ago. The number one thing UCSF is known for is medical research. They are excellent in many other things, but research tops the list. If you were going for PhD / MD program, UCSF should be near the top of your list no matter what your home state is.I have no desire to pursue a Ph.D. This doctor said UCSF was a good school but I wouldn't really be taking advantage of its campus if I wasn't going heavily toward research. Between the two schools, she recommended Stanford.Now these are both high in the sky schools and I have no illusions about my chances. I'm still going to apply. I've briefly looked through Stanford's Admissions Page on their website. It looks like they only accept incoming students in the fall (nuts) but their timeline that they posted is worth taking a look at if you ...
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Howard Hughes Medical Institute - MIT Summer Research Program (Part I)
2008-04-01 06:55:00
Howard Hughes Medical Institute - MIT Summer Research Program for UndergraduatesThis is something that I've been working on for the past month and a half. I haven't spoken about it here because I'm been waiting patiently for their reply. It's a 10 week paid summer research program at MIT. I wasn't looking for something out of the country for the summer, but I was looking for something out of state. MIT in Massachusetts sounds good to me. (Whatever you think of the fairness of it all, I do believe that prestigious schools matter in the grand scheme of things in the educational world. Once you get out of the educational world is a different story. But as long as you're in it, like I am, you are kind of forced to play the game.)My application was filled out, my official transcript was received, and my essay was written all by March 10th. The website states that all students will be notified of their application status by April 1st. Well, it's April 1st and I hoped to be po ...
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The First Doctor in My Family
2008-03-31 18:02:00
This is something that came up a few weeks ago when talking to my dad.I think I came home from a seminar and we got to talking about medical school admissions in general. The topic of the Personal Statement and Interview came up. He wanted to know if there was a chance for me to let the schools know that I would be the first in my family to become a doctor. He was giving advice, but I don't think it was good advice. Maybe some (of you) will drop that little bit of information, but it sound more like a crutch to me. It's one of those things that isn't banking on your knowledge, know how, or experience, but by random chance of which family you were born into.I didn't include it in my Personal Statement. I'm not trying to dissuade you if you've included it in yours. I could see it fitting if that was part of the story I was trying to tell, but it wasn't. Not for mine.That's not to say I come from a poor family. My mother is a nurse with a Bachelor's Degree in Nursing and ...
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