Medical School Advice

1. Medical School Advice

2. Congratulations on getting into Medical School and Good Luck this coming year! Remember, this school is not here to try to get you out, they are trying to make the most competent doctors possible. So enjoy and don’t take life so serious!

3. Insight from the Med School Survival Guide

4. Remember Who You Are (and don’t forget it) • Welcome Change (it is inevitable) • Trust The Admissions Committee (they know you can do it!) • Don’t Complain (stay positive)

5. Have Fun! (and enjoy the little things) • Give Up Being The Best (but don’t lower your standards) • Remember “This too shall pass” (think BIG picture) • Refrain From Gossip (most of people talking is rumor, besides . . . whose business is it anyway)

6. Develop Your Staying Power (what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger) • Don’t Expect Others To Understand • Compose A List Of 30 Things You Want To Do Before You Die (work to accomplish them) • Understand That Others Feel The Same Way

7. Remember – It’s Your Choice • Celebrate The Small Victories (key to a sane and productive life) • Get Organized (saves time and anxiety) • Skip Some Classes (your time my be better spent elsewhere)

8. If You Don’t Pass An Exam, Move On • Settle Disputes Early (drama interferes with your focus) • If In Doubt, Throw It Out (don’t keep inconsequential things) • Ask For Academic Help (we all need it anyway!)

9. Appreciate Your Teachers (they are there to help you, not hurt you) • Nurture Your Friendships (don’t let Med School replace your friends) • Make Friends In Your Class (they may be your best and strongest friendships of your life) • Do Service (helping others is much more rewarding and educational than studying)

10. Don’t Date Classmates (if you do, at least find ways to share parts of yourself, other than school) • Share Your Talents (we are all unique and bring such diversity to this family) • Practice What You Fear Most (underneath your fears is a hidden potential of the person you can be) • Drink Some Barium (how can we have compassion for our patients if we don’t know what they are going through)

11. In The Face Of Death, Remember The Power Of Love • Do Small Acts Of Kindness • Stop Looking For Praise (what really matters is what you think of yourself) • Forgive Others (stay positive, you don’t know what they are going through)

12. The following is a humorous advise list meant more for a High School or College student interested in going to medical school, but it may supply some insight (and truth) into what we all are experiencing now. Enjoy!

13. Everyone, including my doctor, told me to get the hell out of medicine before I got in

14. I busted my ass in high school and college ... to get into med school Once in medical school, what you did to get you there no longer matters

15. Be prepared to study .... then study some more …. and a little more ... and then be prepared to NOT do well on the test

16. Be prepared to accept the reality that you may be an idiot (this came as a shock to me)

17. Be thankful that everyone else in your class is also an idiot and no one expects you to know everything, all at once, for every test

18. Realize that getting ahead in med school means making lots of friends ... those who step on toes to get to the top are quickly shunned by the rest of the class. This is very bad since people tend to get a hold of old tests, helpful hints, book recommendations, etc…that will be of great benefit to you. If you are the smartest person in the class ... don’t try to show off and be cocky. There will be plenty of opportunities for people to undermine you if they decide they don’t like your attitude. In short, have fun, be nice .... make sure you are likable to a large number of people

19. For me, the first year was NOT the hardest. This is because I was used to busting my ass to get into medical school that I never slowed down. For some, it is a "wake up call" if you never studied in college

20. The second year IS the hardest, its survival of the fittest. They want you to know everything about everything, and some more in between. People quit after every exam

21. Once thru your second year, the rest is cheesecake. You dress like a doctor, Work like a doctor, and hopefully start acting like a doctor

22. Once thru your second year, you realize the first two years were pointless . . . you know nothing . . . and can't remember the rest

23. Its relatively easy to PASS medical school, it requires more Dedication than genius to get a High Pass, and a mixture of both to Honor

24. Remember that P=DO (meaning that if you PASS you will become a doctor). Also, remember that P is not equal to ENT, SURGERY, OBGYN, DERMATOLOGY, etc... so basically, everyone who graduates is a doctor, but not everyone who graduates is the doctor they may want to be

25. In the middle of the second year, they could not pay you enough to be a doctor . . .

26. In the middle of the second year, you can’t afford to quit because you now have a huge loan to pay back

27. The best years of your life are while you are in medical school …

28. The worst years of your life are while you are in medical school

29. Dating in medical school is close to impossible. If you can find someone who understands your language, your schedule, your attitude, your financial situation … marry them first, ask questions later

30. Sleeping and eating right become luxuries in medical school

31. No one will ever understand your schedule or what the hell you are doing (like why you have to study 2 weeks before a test)

32. You will have to study 2 weeks for a test

33. You will have to learn to budget your time wisely if you want to ever have a life. Same goes for your money

34. Some people go out every night and do exceptionally well in medical school… If this is you… Great! If this is not you … Sorry

35. The jerk who always aces every test and never studies is everyone in medical school BUT you

36. The fact that your favorite class in college is Biology is unique because the smartest people in medical school today are NOT biology majors and, in fact, have never taken such a class

37. The fact that you have taken such classes will help in the first year, and give you more time for other things while your classmates are … "learning how to use the microscope"

38. You may have thought that all the pointless classes you took in high school and college would come to an end when you got to medical school … Sorry… they are still there

39. You won’t believe the amount of information they want you to know …

40. You won’t believe the amount of information you can forget.

41. Old tests can save you … They can also sink you if you just memorize answers

42. Drugs are bad, don’t do drugs. If you need help staying awake, you are too tired to study… Go to sleep

43. Never listen to a previous medical students advice on medical school. They have been run though the meat grinder and couldn’t think of putting anyone else thru such torture. They tend to leave out the good stuff like parties, good friends, fun memories, their first patient contact, someone calling you DOC, getting to wear a white coat, and knowing what the hell is going on during ER

44. To the rest of the world, you are not a doctor until you graduate the 4th year. To your family, you are a doctor two weeks before you start your first year. If ever asked any medical questions, follow your answer with a disclaimer (…but I would go to your doctor if you are worried about it because I don't really know). Be careful what you say, because people are listening

45. That crap about "helping people" will get you nowhere your first 2 years. We are all in medical school because we want to "help people" but this alone will not get you a degree. You need to be dedicated to yourself, your studies, your talents, and your life as a whole just to get thru the first 2 years. Any outside pressures you have will burst while you are in school so be prepared to handle that.

46. We are not special in any way, we are not geniuses, but, we are willing to work hard … and that, my friend, is what will make you successful in medical school.