If I could turn back time…
Although I subscribe to the motto regarding “no regrets,” it has taken me years to bring into practice. The best way I can move on from my mistakes is to give advice to others to help avoid the problems I have encountered. Throughout my college career there are endless pieces of knowledge I could have used. This post highlights my favorites.
Things I wish I would have known:
TAKE THE W!
When I first began college I remember a counselor telling me the horror stories of “W’s” on transcripts. She lectured about how it shows that a student has “given up” or isn’t serious about the class. This stuck with me much too long and in the end bit me in the ass. There were times in my college career that I went through an entire class getting a C, D, or F when I should have just withdrawn. A withdrawal on your transcript usually tells the story that you were probably not going to pass the class (of course there are special circumstances) but overall its not the best situation. As a pre-med student we all shoot for A’s and B’s are seen as barely acceptable. However life is not linear and things do happen. If you are not going to receive the grade you desire in a class take the W. I used the “grade replacement” strategy instead which became a problem when starting my AAMC application for medical school. AAMC does not replace your grades like your institution. Meaning when I received an F for Ochem before later replacing it with an A, my college gave me a 4.0 rating for that class. However, the AAMC considers both grades into my GPA to a 2.0. This shattered my GPA on my application. My graduating GPA was 3.229 from California State University Fullerton (very low for a pre-med student but not impossible to work with). However my AAMCAS GPA is a whopping 2.7! That is extraordinarily low and some schools even tell you not to bother to apply. It was even worse when I considered switching to becoming a PA. The overwhelming majority of PA schools had a 3.0 threshold to apply. I reached out to 10+ PA schools seeking advice on my application. This 3.0 minimum was a hard limit for every school I spoke with, meaning there was no amount of clinical, post-bac programs, volunteer work, etc. that would make them look at your application with a GPA less than 3.0. An extra problem is while trying to correct my GPA I was oversaturated with units. This means that when taking a course to “raise my GPA” an A on a 5 unit class will not touch the 200+ units I have completed.
It’s a marathon, not a sprint.
Becoming a physician is one of longest career roads. This road is filled with challenges, struggles, and delayed financial gratification. When exploring what you are required to do as a pre-med it can feel overwhelming. There are so many classes, extracurriculars, volunteering, etc. required to be competitive to apply. When I first started my journey (around 26) I was like a horse at the starting gate. I darted out taking 15 units at a time, seeking leadership positions in academic clubs, and working full-time. This affectively overwhelmed the hell out of me and man that showed. I was able to give all I committed to about 75% effort. I wanted so badly to complete my courses as quickly as possible so that I could “start my life” and become successful ASAP. In reality if I would have just taken each class or extracurricular one at a time I would have shown by abilities. I eventually built up my tolerance a little at a time which helps me balance work, school, and family much better.
Write down your volunteer hours.
The last ten years I have been a part of countless bake sales, leadership positions, goodwill events, food drives, etc. Make a google document and take 25 seconds out of your day to log the event. Log the date, hours worked, organization name, and activities completed. This will help you build your CV with much less effort.
Close your ears to those who don’t align with you.
Taking pre-medical courses exposes like-minded students to one another which can be a great source of support. However it can also be the source of added pressure and feelings of inadequacy. When talking to others share your story humbly and attract those who do the same. Medicine has a tendency of attracting people with big egos and that is not the best environment for me. Whenever someone boasted about their 14 acceptances, 515+ MCAT score, or most of all saying that something was “easy” when someone else is struggling, I was immediately put off by them. I spent a lot of time working through all the self-doubt that these situations created. Eventually I learned to respectfully create a space between myself and these people because I don’t need a reason to feel less than. When applying to medical school you are asking to be judged, paying to be told “not at this time”, and readying yourself to the undeniable ridicule that awaits during residency. Protect yourself while you can. Enjoy learning from others, help those who are struggling, and just take a pass on the know-it-alls.