When faced with unexpected challenges, prospective med students shouldn't abandon their physician dreams. Students dealing with life-altering challenges should talk with their advisers and develop an academic plan. People die, accidents happen and illnesses occur. How you handle unforeseen events builds grit and determination that is integral to success in life – and this includes the medical school application process. A calamity is not a single bad grade but a life-altering event, such as the death of an immediate family member, personal or parental illness such as cancer or a major event that interrupts your studies. Given the importance of your undergraduate years to preparing for medical school, what should you do – or not do – as a prospective medical student when faced with a significant unforeseen circumstance? Here are several do's and don'ts for handling unforeseen situations as you prepare for medical school. • Don't ignore the situation: You cannot continue business as usual when life stressors pile up, whether that's a parent's death, housing disruptions or financial problems. Not dealing with the situation could significantly affect your grades, undermining your medical school dreams. Ask for help. Speak to a family member or trusted mentor and develop a plan to determine your options and create a path to success, such as taking reduced course load, determining whom at university to inform of new events and deciding whether professional counseling is necessary. • Don't give up your dream of becoming a physician: If the unforeseen situation pauses your undergraduate academic pursuits or leads to a dip in your grades, look for alternative ways to accomplish the necessary next steps to get to medical school. Have a candid conversation with your premedical adviser to craft a distinct strategy, which may include expanding your medical school applications to schools with a proven track record of accepting students from your undergraduate institution, from out of state or in your GPA and MCAT score range. You may also consider delaying your medical school applications so you can pursue a postbaccalaureate program or even a master's program in science. Every path to becoming a physician is distinct; simply because you won't meet the timeline you originally envisioned does not mean that becoming a physician is out of reach. Resist the impulse to compare yourself with other classmates who are also applying to medical school. This calamity can further cement your dedication to becoming a physician. • Do talk with advisers: Know you are not alone. Your major, college or premed advisers have heard a lot of stories. They can provide suggestions on how not to amplify the bad along with methods to mitigate the aftermath in different ways, such as an emergency loan, funds for students or extensions for projects, possibly even by interceding with a professor on your behalf. Then when the time arrives for you to request medical school recommendations, these advisers can address the unforeseen circumstances you endured and highlight why these make you an extraordinary candidate. When my mother was undergoing chemotherapy for lymphoma, I spoke with my major adviser. She provided a compassionate ear and concrete advice, as well as spoke with my teaching assistant and professor on my behalf to ensure they understood the extreme stress I was under and the affect it could have on my studies. • Do identify lessons learned and use your personal statement to discuss the impact:Use your medical school personal statement to write what you learned from this unforeseen event. For instance, did you learn how to create a realistic budget to prevent financial shortfalls or how to better balance life and school by honing time-management skills? Did you take time to practice self-care and communicate your need for support? Personal experience with death and dying may have driven home the fragility of life and now you are more empathetic. Or direct involvement with the health care system from the patient's perspective may have improved your communication and given you a greater perspective on how to speak to future patients. Remember, calamity does not encompass the totality of a person, although it may be a further motivation for you pursuing medicine. • Do prepare to use the medical school interview to expound on the event: Remember that anything you include in your application is fair game for the medical school admissions committee to ask in interview questions. The admissions committees may ask you about the lessons your learned, request an update on your current status or ask about the situation's applicability to a career in medicine. For example, in my personal statement, I discussed my mother's illness and then prepared to share further in person. Embrace the line of questioning as a golden opportunity to infuse more humanity into your application, creating a memorable impression. If asked during interview, be as candid as you feel comfortable without oversharing. And focus on lessons learned and how they are applicable to your success in medical school and life. Persevere after adversity with support from family, friends and your advisers so that you may successfully navigate the event and identify the good. Then use your medical school personal statement and interview to give admissions committees context for the incident. Rebounding from calamity not only contributes to the richness of life experience, but it also it fortifies resilience in you that is indispensable for medicine. Source
