med school: how do you think it will be---how it will actually be....

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entropy

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feel free to predict what med school will be like, and repost once you are in medschool.
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there are some threads on this in allo right now

does anyone like medschool?

what do you wish you had known?
(or something like that, it has drifted down the page a bit)

good stuff in those threads.
 
Thought it would be like college, for 4 more years!
Actually, it's twice as much work as college, in half the time, since only the first 2 years are in classes. I'm hoping the next 2 years will be better though, have to be optomistic about something...
 
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I'm going into med school with the expectation that it is going to s*ck, so that I am not disappointed when it does. It will eventually pay off though.
 
Excuse the zen buddhist nature of this but, it will be how I decide it's going to be. A good attitude and outlook are all that it takes for me to feel confident and happy about a situation. You are the only person who can make you happy. ;)
 
Originally posted by mcbatuofa
Excuse the zen buddhist nature of this but, it will be how I decide it's going to be. A good attitude and outlook are all that it takes for me to feel confident and happy about a situation. You are the only person who can make you happy. ;)
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This is a great post! Unfortunately it may still suck!

:D
 
I dunno though, there are a handful of sick individuals who get off on studying. They're constantly in the library, love the material, and actually seem to get a kick out of memorizing the millions of little details that nobody will ever remember, or care about, but is necessary to get that high pass. It almost seems that any joy they should be getting out of doing normal things (outside med school) have been transposed onto studying and studying alone. These people may walk amongst you, without you even knowing it. Here are some things to look for:
1)sexual ambiguity, it may take you a second look before you can determine if they're M or F (kinda like "It's Pat")
2)You never see them doing normal things without incorporating studying, they're always eating with a book open, on the treadmill flipping through notecards, listening to lectures while driving, etc.
3)They worship Harrisons and UptoDate, some of them even have it memorized, while us mere mortals rely on class notes, and occasionally robbins
4)Any funny (or not so funny) stories or jokes they tell incorporate med school in some way
5)They always know the lecturers by name, possibly from numerous office hours, while the rest of us refer to them as "that guy with the ugly sweater" or "the foreign guy, who mispronounces every biochemical enzyme"
6)Finally, anytime you talk about having fun on a weekend, or getting plastered, they look at you with indignation, like you should be shipped back to college, all while silently calculating how many more hours they studied, while you were out reintroducing yourself to Jim, Jack and Bud
 
How I thought it would be: like college, when I had absolutely no time already, but worse.
How it actually is: I have MORE free time than in college, and I go out more and have more fun, and I still score above the mean.

I second the scores of other med students who say med school is a lot like high school: going to the same classes all day long with the same people whom you see day in and day out. Complete with lockers.

peace.
 
Originally posted by Buck Strong
I dunno though, there are a handful of sick individuals who get off on studying. They're constantly in the library, love the material, and actually seem to get a kick out of memorizing the millions of little details that nobody will ever remember, or care about, but is necessary to get that high pass. It almost seems that any joy they should be getting out of doing normal things (outside med school) have been transposed onto studying and studying alone. These people may walk amongst you, without you even knowing it. Here are some things to look for:
1)sexual ambiguity, it may take you a second look before you can determine if they're M or F (kinda like "It's Pat")
2)You never see them doing normal things without incorporating studying, they're always eating with a book open, on the treadmill flipping through notecards, listening to lectures while driving, etc.
3)They worship Harrisons and UptoDate, some of them even have it memorized, while us mere mortals rely on class notes, and occasionally robbins
4)Any funny (or not so funny) stories or jokes they tell incorporate med school in some way
5)They always know the lecturers by name, possibly from numerous office hours, while the rest of us refer to them as "that guy with the ugly sweater" or "the foreign guy, who mispronounces every biochemical enzyme"
6)Finally, anytime you talk about having fun on a weekend, or getting plastered, they look at you with indignation, like you should be shipped back to college, all while silently calculating how many more hours they studied, while you were out reintroducing yourself to Jim, Jack and Bud
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Awesome! :clap: This sums up some of the individuals in my class. Thank the Lord that they are the minority.:D
 
Why do you speak so poorly of individuals who enjoy learning? Just because everyone does not share in your enthusiasm to spend hours at a bar wasting money and drinking alcohol certainly doesn't make them any less socialized of an individual. Now if they avoid personal contact, conversation have no experiences outside of learning then there could be a problem. Or if they hinder others from learning via the sequestration of knowledge, then are truly too self involved.

Herp
 
Originally posted by Buck Strong
I dunno though, there are a handful of sick individuals who get off on studying.

2)You never see them doing normal things without incorporating studying, they're always eating with a book open, on the treadmill flipping through notecards, listening to lectures while driving, etc.
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Uh oh, I think this describes me while preparing for the MCAT, and even sometimes getting ready for exams! But at least none of the other descriptions applies to me, hopefully :)

I do kind of enjoy memorizing little things (though many times I make myself try to enjoy it so I will do better)...and I have an addiction to office supplies (I'm going cold turkey now because I can't afford them)!

So I hope I just have a FEW of those nerd characteristics you described...I do freely admit to nerd status...even though I do like to go out, have fun, etc.

But I also (ooh, hate to admit this!) had a good time on the treadmill listening to Audio Osmosis (though it didn't have a good beat to jog to, obviously!)...hmmm....:laugh:
 
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Originally posted by karen44

But I also (ooh, hate to admit this!) had a good time on the treadmill listening to Audio Osmosis (though it didn't have a good beat to jog to, obviously!)...hmmm....:laugh:
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There is nothing wrong with that. Audio Osmosis was entertaining, which is why I enjoyed it.
 
Originally posted by Buck Strong
I dunno though, there are a handful of sick individuals who get off on studying. They're constantly in the library, love the material, and actually seem to get a kick out of memorizing the millions of little details that nobody will ever remember, or care about, but is necessary to get that high pass. It almost seems that any joy they should be getting out of doing normal things (outside med school) have been transposed onto studying and studying alone. These people may walk amongst you, without you even knowing it. Here are some things to look for:
1)sexual ambiguity, it may take you a second look before you can determine if they're M or F (kinda like "It's Pat")
2)You never see them doing normal things without incorporating studying, they're always eating with a book open, on the treadmill flipping through notecards, listening to lectures while driving, etc.
3)They worship Harrisons and UptoDate, some of them even have it memorized, while us mere mortals rely on class notes, and occasionally robbins
4)Any funny (or not so funny) stories or jokes they tell incorporate med school in some way
5)They always know the lecturers by name, possibly from numerous office hours, while the rest of us refer to them as "that guy with the ugly sweater" or "the foreign guy, who mispronounces every biochemical enzyme"
6)Finally, anytime you talk about having fun on a weekend, or getting plastered, they look at you with indignation, like you should be shipped back to college, all while silently calculating how many more hours they studied, while you were out reintroducing yourself to Jim, Jack and Bud
Click to expand...

I don't know why you look down on people who are trying to do really well in med school. Some of us are interested in competitive specialties so we are willing to sacrifice being normal in order to get into ENT or what have you. I personally don't know if any amount of time I spend will allow me to honor my classes, but if I am capable, I'm going to try my hardest dag nabbit!
 
Originally posted by DrBodacious
I don't know why you look down on people who are trying to do really well in med school. Some of us are interested in competitive specialties so we are willing to sacrifice being normal in order to get into ENT or what have you. I personally don't know if any amount of time I spend will allow me to honor my classes, but if I am capable, I'm going to try my hardest dag nabbit!
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I don't think you're really getting what I'm saying...please read more carefully. I have no problem at all with people who do well. I do fairly well, and have friends who honor or high pass most of their classes who are awesome to be around when they're not studying. Also, by no means am i constantly going out and getting hammered, i go out about once or twice a month in med school. I have a problem with people who cannot make a separation between med school life and life outside med school, or worse yet, have no life outside med school. For example, the people i want to kill are those who approach me after an exam with a barrage of questions. "What did you get for number 15? How about number 25, the histo slide they showed was nothing like the ones on the path website???. How about that question on Ulcerative Colitis, i thought that was pretty ambiguous, could have easily been Crohns, har har har. Why don't we storm the professors office and complain....maybe if there are enough of us, he'll throw that question out and my grade will go up a fraction of a point!" The other thing i can't stand are people who take themselves so seriously that they think they're already doctors. They project that onto other people, like, if you're not home studying on a free weekend, they're better than you are, because you're going to end up killing some person, since you didn't memorize the Pentose Phosphate pathway as well as they did. I hope you understand that i'm venting toward a certain small subpopulation of med school, and you shouldn't be offended unless i've described you, or someone you aspire to be.

By the way, people who wear scrubs or their white coats excessively, especially when they don't need to, are complete tools!!!
 
Originally posted by Buck Strong
I don't think you're really getting what I'm saying...please read more carefully. I have no problem at all with people who do well. I do fairly well, and have friends who honor or high pass most of their classes who are awesome to be around when they're not studying. Also, by no means am i constantly going out and getting hammered, i go out about once or twice a month in med school. I have a problem with people who cannot make a separation between med school life and life outside med school, or worse yet, have no life outside med school. For example, the people i want to kill are those who approach me after an exam with a barrage of questions. "What did you get for number 15? How about number 25, the histo slide they showed was nothing like the ones on the path website???. How about that question on Ulcerative Colitis, i thought that was pretty ambiguous, could have easily been Crohns, har har har. Why don't we storm the professors office and complain....maybe if there are enough of us, he'll throw that question out and my grade will go up a fraction of a point!" The other thing i can't stand are people who take themselves so seriously that they think they're already doctors. They project that onto other people, like, if you're not home studying on a free weekend, they're better than you are, because you're going to end up killing some person, since you didn't memorize the Pentose Phosphate pathway as well as they did. I hope you understand that i'm venting toward a certain small subpopulation of med school, and you shouldn't be offended unless i've described you, or someone you aspire to be.

By the way, people who wear scrubs or their white coats excessively, especially when they don't need to, are complete tools!!!
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OK, I'll cut you a little slack, but you still sound somewhat judgemental to me as you admit that you have "problems" with certain people just because they are comsumed by med-school. You don't need to bring anyone down because they think of medical school as the overwhelmingly most important thing in their life. If people are looking down on you it is either because they are jealous that you are able to have your cake and eat it too (have a social life while being successful), or because they are intellectual snobs. With the latter you have every right to be annoyed. With the former you should be understanding and not judge these people as being lesser individuals. They do seem to have problems of their own and you having "problems with them" will help neither you nor them. Except that it may help you and your friends bond by gossiping about how so-and-so wore scrubs to class today and so-and-so came up and asked me about this test question...

Plus, I thought this was a pre-med forum and the whole idea of this thread was for pre-meds to make predictions about how they thought medical school was going to be...

No hard feelings Buck strong. You get my seal of approval overall (Anyone who wishes the Packers well in the playoffs is a friend of mine :)). In this case, I personally just get sick of the "I wanna kill nerds" story. I used to play that game in High School but I found it doesn't flatter me in hind-sight. And not because I'm a nerd, OK, I might be somewhat of a nerd since I started the whole med school obsession but I'm still fun, really, I am fun! (looking in mirror) I... AM... FUN! :p
 
I ADMIT that as a premed I was guilty of checking my answers with others after finishing each exam! And that's about as close as I come to Buck and company wanting to kill me!

I also am guilty of going out at least four nights a week while taking the bulk of my science classes. I by all means took my studies seriously, but I had my share of fun.

If I am accepted and begin school in the fall, I predict...

1. I may or may not have much of a social life in the first, few months, depending on where I attend. A certain high ranking public university has a reputation for piling on the work as soon as day one, while a well known private university with a knack for pbl has a reputation for giving its first years lots of down time until about the five month mark.

2. No matter what, after the first, few months, I will be lucky to go out and I will find it difficult to see or even stay in touch as much as I would like to with friends in the outside world.

3. I am going to love the people I meet!

4. I am going to enjoy the classes med students typically enjoy and not enjoy as much the classes med students typically don't enjoy.

5. I am going to do as well as I can - and I am going to remain human (as opposed to the small subpopulation mentioned earlier).

6. I am going to stop making lists.

I hope I get an opportunity to respond to this thread if all things work out in the admissions process! Good luck to all!
 
Originally posted by DrBodacious
No hard feelings Buck strong. You get my seal of approval overall (Anyone who wishes the Packers well in the playoffs is a friend of mine :)). In this case, I personally just get sick of the "I wanna kill nerds" story. I used to play that game in High School but I found it doesn't flatter me in hind-sight. And not because I'm a nerd, OK, I might be somewhat of a nerd since I started the whole med school obsession but I'm still fun, really, I am fun! (looking in mirror) I... AM... FUN! :p
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It's all good, i'm not trying to nerd bash, i'll be the first to admit i'm a big nerd/dork...I mean, on a normal day, I'm usually one of the last 10 people to leave the library, and I have often been kicked out of the library at closing time on the weekends. I'm just trying to convey to people, that you can study as hard as you want to, those are your priorities, just try to remain as human as possible during med school, you'll find you'll relate to your future patients better that way. By the way, I'm posting on this forum to try to reach you guys sooner, once the white coat ceremony is over, you're unreachable and set in your ways:laugh:
 
hey Super Rob, I hope for my sake you weren't talking about Pitt...
 
I predict medical school will be easy. I believe it will actually be easy.
 
I think med school is going to be tough. But i am pretty sure that if i work hard i can make it.

I have this huge fear that where i am now and all of my acceptances were by mistake. Thus fearing that i am going to be the very last in my class :( .

Anyhow i am going to develop a methodology in my studies and i will keep all of my hobbies and interests. I think that if you do things you enjoy out of school, it gives energy to do even better. At least for me.
 
the hardest thing is getting in!!!
 
I think the first year is not hard but we have a lot of information to process, if you plan/prioritize properly and study you should be fine.

I think medical school will be fun if you truly care to be there.
 
Med school can't be any worse than working. I had some difficult majors in college, but I was blown away by how much more difficult working is. For more than year, I was working 80+ hours plus traveling 10+ hours a week. I think I know how residents feel. You have to put in whatever time you need to to get the work done. Before ppl starting flaming me for having no life, I also traveled to many places, had lots of fun, and got to experience life. I plan to do as much work as I can to get the most return for my $45K/year.
 
Originally posted by STAC
the hardest thing is getting in!!!
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getting in is only the beginning, you'll think applying was a piece of cake.
 
I am not worried at all about the first two years. I am worried about the time when in the third, fourth and internship year when mistakes might be much more serious.
 
I am really excited for the subject matter that will be covered in years 1 & 2. It will be great--I will be studying material that I actually want to know. I think this will make the excessive studying easier.

On the other hand, I am really enjoying my non-school life right now. I get home from work and I get to do what I want to do, instead of having to study. I am very happy that I took this year off, as I think it will be a lot easier for me to study next year.

I imagine that I will get annoyed that I will be spending a lot of my time studying, and not doing other things. But, I just have to remember that I will be building an awesome life for myself. I think that will make me feel better.
 
Im really worried about the clinical years, the basic science years seem just like a much much harder undergrad, which isnt nearly as scary as having my decisions made during a time of great inexperience affecting the lives of others.
 
Originally posted by Gleevec
Im really worried about the clinical years, the basic science years seem just like a much much harder undergrad, which isnt nearly as scary as having my decisions made during a time of great inexperience affecting the lives of others.
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I'm the opposite, as a non-science major who hasn't been in full-time school for basically 2 years... things are going to be tough when the notes pile up during the first month or so-- especially knowing that almost all of the class will not have been out of school this long or will have majored in science or both. I feel ready for the clinical stuff because of the daily work I do with patients...

But the bottom line is I was scared of not getting in which was an illegitimate fear apparently and hopefully my fears of biochemistry, anatomy, and everything are not warranted as well.
 
Well, for me, there is a difference between working with patients and actually having a huge stake in the outcome of their care. Its not the interaction persay that bothers me (with the exception of delivering grim news).

Right now, if I dont know something on a test or get it wrong all I lose are some meaningless points. But if I mess up in the clinics Ill actually cause real harm. That worries me considerably more than losing a few points on a test, undergrad, med school, or otherwise.
 
I think there are usually enough safety nets in place where you cant do any real damage as a MS3 or MS4
 
Originally posted by Buck Strong
I think there are usually enough safety nets in place where you cant do any real damage as a MS3 or MS4
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I realize that, but it still bothers me. Cant really explain it any other way.

In school where all you have are tests, mistakes have rarely mattered to me. So what, you score a few points lower, big whoop. It just seems like a whole new ballgame in the clinics.

Im absolutely sure you are right about the safetynets Buck Strong, because students will make mistakes, but for some reason that still doesnt make me feel any less bothered by it. Though I could very well be making this into a much bigger deal than it actually is, and like most things, the fear will probably go away almost immediately as I actually start doing it.
 
<<By the way, people who wear scrubs or their white coats excessively, especially when they don't need to, are complete tools!!!>>


Scrubs during exam time is just a nice way to avoid doing laundry.....we have a great scrub service....we wear they wash, we get new pair.

We don't have anyone that wears the white coat excessively though.

Stephanie
 
Originally posted by Gleevec
Well, for me, there is a difference between working with patients and actually having a huge stake in the outcome of their care. Its not the interaction persay that bothers me (with the exception of delivering grim news).

Right now, if I dont know something on a test or get it wrong all I lose are some meaningless points. But if I mess up in the clinics Ill actually cause real harm. That worries me considerably more than losing a few points on a test, undergrad, med school, or otherwise.
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Well said Gleevec!

That's another huge fear of mine!!!
 
Regarding causing harm:

It is fairly unlikely that as a medical student you will do too much that causes serious harm to anyone as the system doesn't usually give you that much responsibility. On the other hand, depending on what field you choose, there is a real chance, and actual likelihood, that as a resident or specialty fellow you will do something that will significantly harm a patient. This may be due to lack of knowledge and experience or just failure to succeed at an important procedure. How you respond to that will be the key. Eventually, you will come to understand that, especially in dealing with critically ill patients, we all make mistakes or don't do things in the best way we could. No doctor can help very sick patients without occaisionally causing harm by accident.

In addition to the learning experience of these events, I think this serves as a good "ego check" for us. It serves to humble us in our approach and to gain confidence in ourselves when we do the right thing, which will usually be the case.

Finally, I would note that this worry never goes away completely. I have been an "attending" for more than 15 years in a critical care setting and daily face the opportunity to be humbled by wrong decisions. This is part of the medical care process and one adapts to it. Ultimately though, facing these issues and dealing with them is one of the reasons that medicine remains a true challenge worth the drugery of medical education that is rather eloquently described on this board.....

Giving very bad news to people is always hard and never gets any easier. However, after a while, one gains a certain sense of satisfaction when one has done the best you can to tell the truth and do your best for families. I think that it remains the most difficult thing I do though.

good luck

"oldbear professor"
 
First getting in. When I am in, my biggest fear is whether or not I would do well in anatomy. I have heard horror stories about people flunking anatomy in med school
 
Is it my understanding that the level of difficulty your first year does have something to do with where you are attending medical school?
 
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