3 answers
Emily
Student
San Luis, Arizona
1
Question
Asked
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Is there anything I need to be aware of before studying medicine?
Is there any specific information I need to master to really get the subject?
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3 answers
Raquel Davis
Registered Nurse, premed student
148
Answers
Providence, Rhode Island
Updated
Raquel’s Answer
Medical school is extremely rigorous and takes a lot of work to succeed. But there are a lot of things you can do to increase your success both of getting into medical school and once you are in school. In order to get into medical school you have to have a bachelor's degree, it doesn't matter what in, you just have to take all of the required prerequisite requirements. These can differ slightly from school to school, but in general you have to have one year of biology with lab, one year of general chemistry with lab, one year of organic chemistry with lab, and one year of physics with lab. There are also English and math requirements and most schools require some sort of psychology/sociology course as well. You need to have a high GPA to be competitive for medical school, generally you need at least a 3.6 but if you want to get into a more competitive school you really need at least a 3.8. You will also have to take the MCAT entrance exam. This is a 7 hour exam that tests biology, biochemistry, physics, general chemistry, organic chemistry, psychology, and sociology. It is extremely difficult and is what shows that you have the knowledge to be successful in medical school. The average score of accepted students in recent years has been 510-511. So you need to have a thorough understanding of these subjects and be able to apply them. You will also use this understanding once in medical school, lots of it remains pertinent to your studies and knowing it will make medical school easier. This is especially true for biochemistry, the things you learn in undergrad don't just go away. If you take your classes seriously and apply yourself, you should do fine. Learning to manage your time and use active learning strategies will also greatly help you once in medical school. Best of luck!
Rita Chuang
Physician
189
Answers
Henderson, Nevada
Updated
Rita’s Answer
I went into medicine without any experience or any family/friends to guide me. Knowing what I know right now, this is the advice and/or knowledge I would give you.
1. This is going to be a long and hard road. There are times you will want to give up. Just keep working and studying.
2. If you have a good memory, it will be easier. I learn very slowly but once I get the subject, I'm ok. Every day during class, they give you so much to memorize and I can't even remember those subjects and the next day, they pile on more information. I advise everyone going into medicine to work as a scribe. You get paid, they train you, you can speak with doctors/nurses, and you actually see what a doctor does daily. With this experience, when you go to medical school, it will be easier. Of the majority of medical students that rotate with me, the ones that worked as scribes are so much better.
3. The first two years of medical school, you are in the classroom. The next two years, you rotate in a particular field. You will be doing one month or so in each field-Pediatrics, Surgery, Family Medicine, etc. In the last two years, it's a different type of stress. The attendings (doctors who train/grade you) will be asking you questions in front of your peers. You will feel foolish and embarrassed if you don't know the answer. You will also need to learn to work with others. You may be working long hours and overnight taking care of patients. You will need to "present" your patients to the group. If the attendings don't like you, they will pick on you and keep asking you questions. I am very shy. I was voted shiest girl in high school. These last two years and residency were very hard for me. The attendings like people who know their stuff and speak up. If you are shy, you need to train yourself to speak up.
4. You will be giving up a lot. You will probably lose friends but develop new friends. When your friends want to go out, you will either need to work or you need to study and they won't understand. That's ok.
5. What you sacrifice will affect your family as well. When you are a physician, I always ask the medical students this question: Your son has a basketball game after work. You get a call from the hospital that one of your patients is in the hospital. Do you take care of the patient in the hospital or do you go to your son's game?
6. Most medical students are type A personalities. We have pushed ourselves to be the best and the top of the class in college. Now, you have a room full of type A, perfectionists. You are use to getting A's. One hard lesson I learned is it's ok to just pass. You will still be a doctor.
Good luck!!!
1. This is going to be a long and hard road. There are times you will want to give up. Just keep working and studying.
2. If you have a good memory, it will be easier. I learn very slowly but once I get the subject, I'm ok. Every day during class, they give you so much to memorize and I can't even remember those subjects and the next day, they pile on more information. I advise everyone going into medicine to work as a scribe. You get paid, they train you, you can speak with doctors/nurses, and you actually see what a doctor does daily. With this experience, when you go to medical school, it will be easier. Of the majority of medical students that rotate with me, the ones that worked as scribes are so much better.
3. The first two years of medical school, you are in the classroom. The next two years, you rotate in a particular field. You will be doing one month or so in each field-Pediatrics, Surgery, Family Medicine, etc. In the last two years, it's a different type of stress. The attendings (doctors who train/grade you) will be asking you questions in front of your peers. You will feel foolish and embarrassed if you don't know the answer. You will also need to learn to work with others. You may be working long hours and overnight taking care of patients. You will need to "present" your patients to the group. If the attendings don't like you, they will pick on you and keep asking you questions. I am very shy. I was voted shiest girl in high school. These last two years and residency were very hard for me. The attendings like people who know their stuff and speak up. If you are shy, you need to train yourself to speak up.
4. You will be giving up a lot. You will probably lose friends but develop new friends. When your friends want to go out, you will either need to work or you need to study and they won't understand. That's ok.
5. What you sacrifice will affect your family as well. When you are a physician, I always ask the medical students this question: Your son has a basketball game after work. You get a call from the hospital that one of your patients is in the hospital. Do you take care of the patient in the hospital or do you go to your son's game?
6. Most medical students are type A personalities. We have pushed ourselves to be the best and the top of the class in college. Now, you have a room full of type A, perfectionists. You are use to getting A's. One hard lesson I learned is it's ok to just pass. You will still be a doctor.
Good luck!!!
Grace Thomas
Tech
1
Answer
Ocklawaha, Florida
Updated
Grace’s Answer
Learning from the ground up is the best way to get into medicine. While in any medical school, it is so important to learn everything. The difference between this and other classes is that you are not just trying to pass a test. You have to actually learn the material and keep it in a database of sorts to draw upon when needed.