I am now almost 6.5 weeks into medical school! That sounds so short when I say it, but I have learned so much already that it feels much longer. I know without a doubt that SLU is the best place for me – I am so grateful I ended up here. I have been able to start projects that interest me, get involved in meaningful ways, and give back to the community that is my”home.” Medical school has been a wonderful so far. I’d say it was 100% wonderful, but I don’t think I feel that way at midnight the night before an exam. I had no idea what it would be like before I dove in, so here are ten things that have surprised me about medical school. 1. Each Day Is Different Prior to starting I was curious what my schedule would be like. When are classes? How often? Would I just sit at home each day and learn on my own, or where there lots of things I had to be on campus for? Turns out each day is different. We upload our calendar from the SLU website (usually onto google calendar or iCal) and have to check it each day to see where we have to be. Classes start at different times, small groups and other lectures are thrown in all over the place…each day is totally unique! Our teachers are all working physicians and so our schedule is partially created around when they are available to lecture. A general outline for my first CMB block is lecture from 9-12 and then some sort of small group or additional lecture right after lunch before we are out for the day. When anatomy starts in a few weeks the schedule will get completely switched up again. The variety is great. 2. There are SO many things to do outside of classes. Here is a list just off the top of my head of things I want to be involved in: Volunteering at the Health Resources Center on the weekend Christian Medical Association St. Vincent DePaul young adult group and volunteer project Research with a physician A class officer position The wellness learning community An elective where you get trained to be a doula for women from domestic abuse situations, called Labor of Love. A business in medicine group and elective Project LEAN which does health education outreach to underserved areas Volunteering on the pediatric oncology unit An AAMC national leadership position A music therapy elective The ER Ambassador Program The edical education learning community and distinction I could go on and on. There are a million emails (more like 50, but seriously 50) a day and a lunch meeting or three every day about some group or elective or committee. It’s SO hard to not sign up for everything, but the whole passing your classes thing is pretty important too. I’m disappointed to miss out on some cool opportunities, but choosing to do just a few things that I’m really passionate about. Right now my top priority is my self-designed elective with a friend and the Dean of Curricular Affairs about establishing the Wellness Learning Community and distinction. I’m also volunteering a few places, applying for a leadership position, and going to some intro meetings about a few other things to see what their about. I thought medical school was all studying– Not at SLU! It’s definitely a lot of studying, but it’s also pass/fail so that we can immerse ourselves in other opportunities outside of classes that will enhance our studies and make us better physicians in the future. 3. The Social Committee is On Top of it Maybe I’m just old and lame at this point, but wow, people go out a lot There’s always some bar special, fundraiser, BBQ, hike, sporting event or party going on. This weekend it’s girls’ night on Friday and beer olympics Saturday afternoon. The class social committees send out email and Facebook invitations and are so inclusive. It is often M1 & M2, if not M1-M4. You really get to mingle with everyone, and there is no shortage of things to do. Work hard, play hard right? 4. I love the problem solving aspect of medicine. How did I not realize this before? I love puzzles and mysteries, and being a physician can be similar to being a detective. You get clues, use your knowledge and experience to create a differential diagnosis (a list of possible diagnoses given the symptoms and exam) and then ultimately discover the final diagnosis. It’s SO fun, and actually really funny at this point because I know so little that trying to diagnose someone is impossible. Basically I think everyone has a brain tumor, meningitis, diabetes, or some rare mitochondrial storage disease. LOTS to learn. 5. That I could worry so much about just passing a test or quiz. Worried about how high of an A you’ll get? Think again. For us type-A, overachieving new medical students, gone are the days of hoping for a 4.0 so that our applications will be as good as possible. Thankfully that’s not even an option or concern with my school’s pass/fail system, but we still study our butts off hoping we’ll simply pass. The tests are hard and cover so much material. Someone described it to me as “deconditioning” ourselves — we have to get out of the “must be at the top of my class” mindset now that we’re in medical school. 50% of us are going to be in the bottom half – that’s just how it works. But you know what they say, “P=MD.” (Just have to pass to graduate and become a doctor!) 6. I can be a “non-class” person sometimes. In college and post-bacc I always went to class. Always. I felt so guilty skipping, even if I knew it probably wasn’t worth it. Only if I had to be out of town or was super sick would I let myself miss. Now? If the lecturer isn’t the best or I just am not comprehending well in class, it’s way more efficient for me to spend that time on my own reading and learning at my own pace. I actually got my best grade on a test for which I barely went to any classes. Sometimes the subject just lends itself better to self study and rewatching the lectures later for review. 7. How much I’d love being back in a university environment. Being at SLU makes moving back home feel like a totally new city. I love that university environments bring together people from all over the country and world that all want to explore and learn their new home for the next 4+ years. People want to try new restaurants, go to local parks, check out different cultural events…it’s so great! Plus there are always lectures and events going on. It’s a super active and enriching culture. 8. There is actually a nutrition element to some classes. At least in biochem, which studies metabolism and the breakdown of the macronutrients in your body, we talk about nutritional topics. It’s not in-depth, but our lecturers weave in some nutritional information (Omega 3s vs. 6s? Do we eat too many carbs? Is cholesterol really bad? How does a ketogenic diet work?) Granted that’s probably about as far as we’ll get. I wish that nutrition would be incorporated in my future classes too, but it’s nice that there is at least a little bit. 9. I actually try to look nice for class. Sure there are the lazy days when it’s spandex and a sweatshirt, but more often than not I actually put on real clothes and make myself presentable. There are always lunch meetings and small groups with physician leaders that could end up being mentors, writing recommendation laters, or even be our colleagues in the future. In someways going to school just feels like “part one” of my medical career. I want to put my best foot forward. 10. The more you learn, the more you realize you don’t know. Medicine is so awesome. The body is so complex and so fascinating. It’s brilliant. How does it know how to do it all? Have we really figured this much out, and so many ways to correct or heal it? Is there still that much more that we have to learn? WOW. I have learned so much, but I cannot believe how much there is to learn. It’s never ending. I can’t wait!! Written by Clare , Medical Student at her blog here
