The road to med school less traveled

New semester...new classes

2010-01-27T09:18:00.000-07:00

I'm still around, but I still haven't found that consistent blogger inside of me.

Maybe one day he'll emerge...and maybe not. Hopefully more to follow soon!

Ethical question...

2009-11-05T00:02:00.000-07:00

Here's a problem I've run into recently in my Organic Chemistry class. I'm sure of you have face similar situations or even been on the opposing side.

We all know that OChem can be one of the trickiest courses to score well in on the way to completing med school pre-requisites. We all (or at least most of us) have to work our fricken butts off to even achieve a decent grade (B or C) let alone pass the course. So, some of the students in the class have taken to cheating in various ways. This includes handing out old exams from previous semesters, working together on tests (in class!), hiding notes in calculators...you get the idea.

The question is, do I follow suit and cheat as well? Normally I am highly against this; not only because it's wrong, but because I actually want to push myself and feel good about my accomplishments. Many of my fellow students are pre-med also so these are the people I will be competing against when applying to med school. So if they cheat and get an A, and I stay responsible and get a C, I'm the one who looks like the worse student. Now granted I understand that the decision between me or them is not soley based on this grade, but hey it really just isn't fair. Also, it's not like I can go into a med school interview and say "oh and if you noticed that my OChem grade is lower than some of my classmates it's because they cheated and I didn't."

How do I combat the gunners? What would you do?

No wonder no one reads this thing....

2009-10-23T16:16:00.005-06:00

I suppose if I made an attempt at posting once and a while I might actually get some feedback on this blog of mine! Ha

Many thing have happened since my last post. When was that? Four months ago!!

Since then I've been in school since August (working on pre-reqs and gpa repair), I've been working full-time (still), and I've been volunteering in the ED at my local trauma 1 hospital. In other words life has been kicking my butt as of late.

I was sick last week and went to the doctor to get tested...no flu, no mono, and not strep!? How curious is that? My tonsils were the size of golf balls, no cough, slight fever, headache, aches and pains, chills, etc. I even had the classic white bacterial spots in the back of my throat. Not strep?? So I still don't know what I had, but I'm all better now. Unfortunately though I missed an OChem test which I wasn't able to make up. Murphy's Law is a bitch!

For now I'm doing okay and I haven't given up. Hopefully I'll be taking the MCAT in the spring and applying this summer! I may not be competitive, but dammit I'm persistent!

Tonight however is my night and I'm going to a hockey game! A rare treat for a Friday night normally spend in the ED. Go AVS!

And back....

2009-06-05T12:33:00.001-06:00

Wow I'm really horrible at this blog thing...talk about lack of consistency when it comes to posting! It's been almost two months now!

I actually just got back from another trip overseas. I was gone for nineteen days so that did contribute a bit to my lack of postingness. I plan a much bigger post with hopefully a few pictures within the next week. Today I'm off to the mountains for some camping and whitewater rafting. I'll update soon!

As always, thanks to my readers...if there are any at all! Hah!

Trying to be patient

2009-04-11T15:16:00.003-06:00

By nature I think I'm a very patient person....when it comes to interacting with people. When it comes to my personal growth however I can be very impatient. At this point I'm fighting the urge to be annoyed and pissed and all over bummed.

I haven't recieved my letter (accepted or declined) from SBU and it's working against my nerves. I know everyone says don't put all your eggs into one basket but I was really hoping to get in. I wanted to get in not only because it would be a great school to do my post-bac at, but also because I think it would be a great experience. In light of what has happened I've realized that I may be confined to Denver for the next semester. As much as I wanted to get out of here for a bit I'll have to tough it out. In the meantime I will be putting together another application for spring semester at SBU as well as applying to UT Austin. I'm not to keen on the idea of moving to Texas but because of family connections there it is an option that I have to consider. For now though all I can do is apply to my alma mater to start my post-bac career.

My trip to Europe is coming up in the middle of May so at least I can be excited about that! One last hoorah before I have to buckle down and work myself to death with school and a full time job. I'm excited though about getting back into the academic swing of things and to me the motivational part seems like half the battle.

I'm still curious who else out there is on a path similar to mine. If you're heading back to school for post-bacs because of a low gpa and you've read this, then please comment! I would love to get in touch with others in the same situation as myself. For all those med blogs that I read...keep posting! Reading your blogs helps to keep me motivated in my downtime. Keep on keepin' on!

Unmotivated

2009-03-31T15:55:00.002-06:00

Holy crap...it's been almost 2 months since I've posted. As the title states I just feel very unmotivated to post. This is mostly because things relating to the "road" ahead are slow and I'm looking for that instant gratification! I know that I've got to keep focused and keep chugging along. As I've stated before I have a long road ahead of me until I can even apply to Med School, but I can't let my self stray.

I also realize that the more I post the more it will help keep me on track. I'll probably recieve more comments (if only a few) which will also help to keep me motivated. Funny how blogs begin more as a personal journal, but as they garnish more attention they can almost morph into a sort of forum.

I'm still reading med blogs and dreaming of becoming a doc. To keep myself organized, here is what is in the pipeline as of today:

- After 3 weeks of health screening and 3 more weeks of interviews and meetings I have one last meeting with the head volunteer at my hospital where I will hopefully start volunteering on friday nights. I'm excited and terrified at the same time. I can't wait.

- Still waiting for an acceptance letter to the school I applied to. This is for my post-bac work. Obviously if I don't get in I will just take my post-bac classes here; although I was really looking to switch things up a bit and gain some new life experience while also going back to school. I'm tired of my life revolving around a job, and I'm ready for it to revolve around school again.

- Once I've got next semesters class schedule figured out I'd like to enroll in a MCAT prep course. I hear Kaplan is better than the Princeton Review. Any opinions on this matter? I've also been thinking about getting my basic EMT certification. I figure it can't hurt.

So that's where I'm at right now....pretty boring right! I'm ready to get moving! I need something to stimulate my brain. I need to hurry up and get on that "road less traveled!" I know...I'm just impatient. Hahah

As always, any advice, comments and/or constructive criticism is welcomed. I've got a lot to learn!

Update & Article

2009-02-09T11:48:00.005-07:00

So, obviously I made the change to the new template although I'm not sure if I like it yet. I'm thinking it is just too green for my tastes.

To update, today is my interview at the hospital for my first volunteer position. I've gotta say I'm somewhat nervous and I don't know why. I also went to another information session over the weekend about volunteering at the new health exhibit at our local museum, unfortunately I don't think I'll be able to participate because of the required commitment time. I could lie and not tell them I'm moving out of state, but I feel like that would take away the idea of giving back when it comes to volunteering.

On a completely different side note I saw a really interesting article on the NSF website.

NSF Scientists found a fossil of a snake that is around 60 million years old. Unfortunately this picture is only an artists rendition. I would really like to see the fossil of the snake. They say the snake was around 2,500 lbs and 42.7 feet long. Holy crap that's a big snake. I wonder how fast that giant was? Anyways, if you're interested in reading the full article you can click on the pic above...assuming I linked it right.

Boo urns...

2009-01-27T00:32:00.003-07:00

So I decided that I wanted to change the template on my blog. Who knows why I got bored with the current template...maybe I just wanted to do something I hadn't seen on anyone else's blog before.

Needless to say I found a new template and after I uploaded it and clicked "save" I realized that it had cleared my widgets. That meant that the other blogs I was following, plus my links, and all that side bar stuff was cleared out. I suppose I should really pay more attention next time!

I'm just completing my applications for volunteer positions. The process takes about two weeks, so hopefully by mid-February I'll be volunteering.

Back in the swing of things!

2009-01-16T16:41:00.003-07:00

I've been back at my full-time job for the past few weeks, and have come to realize again how much I hate it! At this point I'm really in the wrong profession. I know most people dislike their jobs, but I'm truly starting to despise mine. I can't handle it anymore! I won't go into details; let's just say that management isn't what it used to be.

On the med school front I've been contacting a few hospitals in my neck of the woods about volunteer opportunities. I'm thinking about heading straight for the emergency room and see what they can throw at me. I know I won't get to do much, but I'm excited for all the patient interaction I can get. There really are some highly interesting people out there.

As of yet I haven't found any doctors that I'd like to shadow. The truth is I haven't even looked. I figured maybe I'd start volunteering and go from there. Is it really as simple as finding a doc in a field you're interested in and asking to follow them around sometime? Is there any real process to it? Why do I feel dumb for asking? Hahaha

More and more I'm finding great medical blogs, and I can't get enough of them. To all those who take time to share their experience with me...gratzi!!

It's about time...

2008-12-31T11:07:00.006-07:00

Wow, I haven't posted since the first week of December. It seems it's taking me a bit to get used to this whole blogging idea. I like it though.

Happy New Year's Eve everyone!

My December has been chalked full of fun and excitement. Since I have a full time job, and paid time off (before I go back to school for pre-med) I was lucky enough to take a sweet vacation this past month. My roommate and a few friends of ours went to Spain! We spent a good amount of time in a small town on the Costa Blanca called Denia. The people were amazing and the wine was delicious. We also decided to rent a car and were able to drive to Barcelona and Seville. I love the European atmosphere and the amazing architecture. The people over there seem to live a completely different lifestyle-they are much more laid back and they make sure to take time for themselves to relax. They think that here in the US we work way too hard and don't play nearly enough. I think we could definitely learn a thing or two from them. Below is a picture of us on our way to Barcelona.

As for any news about med school, I'm still waiting to hear back from an undergrad program to see if I was admitted. In the mean time I'm still off from work (awesome!) and I'm enjoying it to the fullest. Come Monday it's back to the grind of the full-time job. I will also be applying to a few volunteer positions and finding some interesting docs to shadow. If anyone has any suggestions for a particular field to shadow I'm all ears. At this point I think any kind of experience will be helpful, but I'm curious to know what others have done.

Also, I wanted to just thank frylime for her support so far. Even after a short period of time reading her blog she's already become an inspiration. Thank you!

The plan

2008-12-05T08:39:00.001-07:00

I feel like I should lay out my exact plan to help me organize. Comments are much appreciated.

First, I will be going back to school to do post-bac work to increase my GPA. Right now it is slightly below 3.0 and to any med school that looks pretty craptastic.

During my time doing post-bac work (around 2 years) I plan to volunteer and shadow as much as possible. I know extra curricular activities are important to show to med schools; unfortunately I'm not in any clubs. Will shadowing and volunteering be enough, or should I join some clubs?

After post-bac and taking my MCATs I'm assuming I'll have to get into an SMP (Special Masters Program). From what I've been told these are rigorous 1-2 programs where students take med school courses. Assuming you do well this looks really good on med school application. This is the route that many "non-traditional" med students look to take. The program essentially shows med schools if you have what it takes or not.

Assuming all of this goes to plan and I kick some major ass, I should be able to apply for school starting in fall 2011! That means I could be a doctor by the time I'm 32...not bad if you ask me.

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In other news, one of my best buddies and I painted (with food coloring) another friends lawn for her birthday today. We did it at midnight and it was all of 9 degrees outside. Well worth it though!

Gotta start somewhere

2008-11-26T09:08:00.000-07:00

I suppose I should start with some background information. I've recently decided that I want to attend med school. Ever since I was little I had a dream, but when it came time to make it a reality (college) things didn't go exactly as I had planned. I've been out of school now since 2006, and I've struggled to find something that I want to do. I've been working a full-time job and I'm just not happy.

Well, recently I went through what I like to call a mini-crisis. My friends are 3rd year med students and I'm...nothing. I'm not happy. Where did I go wrong? Why did I let my aspirations just fall through my hands? Anyways, I've been researching my options for getting into med school. I will be classified as one of those non-traditional students because I need to go back and up my gpa. In fact I've got a pretty rough road ahead, but I think I'm ready for the challenge.

I've been reading blogs created by residents, and med school students, and I thought maybe I should create one. More for myself so that I can see the progress I've made. To keep me motivated along this journey. Something to chronicle my accomplishments.