Talking Admissions and Med Student Life

“I spent my time doing things that mattered to me, and in the end, I think that’s really what admissions committees want. They want to know you when you’re applying; they want to see who you are.”As Elynn prepared to apply for medical school, she didn’t take the typical pre-med route by getting involved in a premed club, but rather did things that were important to her that reflected who she was as a person. We talk about the three items she found helpful in her application journey, as well as how being involved in athletics not only assisted her goal in becoming a physician, but gave her insight when working with patients. Finally, we talk about her interest in Family Medicine and how her third year rotations have strengthened that desire, and the benefit of training in a rural area verses a higher patient population location.

“I spent my time doing things that mattered to me, and in the end, I think that’s really what admissions committees want. They want to know you when you’re applying; they want to see who you are.”As Elynn prepared to apply for medical school, she didn’t take the typical pre-med route by getting involved in a premed club, but rather did things that were important to her that reflected who she was as a person. We talk about the three items she found helpful in her application journey, as well as how being involved in athletics not only assisted her goal in becoming a physician, but gave her insight when working with patients. Finally, we talk about her interest in Family Medicine and how her third year rotations have strengthened that desire, and the benefit of training in a rural area verses a higher patient population location.

“I knew that third year was going to be demanding and I have a personal life outside of medical school which is also demanding.  I decided that I didn’t want to be miserable for an entire year, so I was just going to pick a few things on every rotation that I enjoyed about it and be hyper focused on those things so that I could be happy and try to convince myself that I loved what I was doing, and it’s worked so far.”While it is healthy to have a goal or focus about what you may want to do, third year rotations present opportunities to learn things you may have never considered.  Travis and I discuss what the students see as the most difficult rotation, and some tips on how to make it through long hospital days.  We talk about how third year experiences may impact decisions, and finally, what is “psy-cation”?

“I knew that third year was going to be demanding and I have a personal life outside of medical school which is also demanding.  I decided that I didn’t want to be miserable for an entire year, so I was just going to pick a few things on every rotation that I enjoyed about it and be hyper focused on those things so that I could be happy and try to convince myself that I loved what I was doing, and it’s worked so far.”While it is healthy to have a goal or focus about what you may want to do, third year rotations present opportunities to learn things you may have never considered.  Travis and I discuss what the students see as the most difficult rotation, and some tips on how to make it through long hospital days.  We talk about how third year experiences may impact decisions, and finally, what is “psy-cation”?

“If you focus so much on doing the things that you think you need to do, you’re going to lose touch with who you are and what makes you unique and interesting.” As a Pre Health Professions Advisor, Liz is often asked what major is the “best” to get into medical school.  We talk about the concept of “Parallel Planning” and creating a professional development pathway, as well as the biggest mistake made by students planning a career in healthcare. Finally, we discuss the premed club at #uidaho and student involvement within the community of Moscow, Idaho.

“If you focus so much on doing the things that you think you need to do, you’re going to lose touch with who you are and what makes you unique and interesting.” As a Pre Health Professions Advisor, Liz is often asked what major is the “best” to get into medical school.  We talk about the concept of “Parallel Planning” and creating a professional development pathway, as well as the biggest mistake made by students planning a career in healthcare. Finally, we discuss the premed club at #uidaho and student involvement within the community of Moscow, Idaho.

“When you get the questions wrong, I actually learn the most from them because I will never get that question wrong again.”While on 3rd year rotations or clinical rounds, “pimping” is something many medical students fear.  We discuss what exactly pimping is and how it helps one to learn and grow, as well as how involved a third year medical student is in the operating room (OR) during a surgery rotation.  Finally, Pete talks about his preparation for the Step 1 exam, offering some tips that helped him study and prepare, as well as his collegiate baseball career.

“When you get the questions wrong, I actually learn the most from them because I will never get that question wrong again.”While on 3rd year rotations or clinical rounds, “pimping” is something many medical students fear.  We discuss what exactly pimping is and how it helps one to learn and grow, as well as how involved a third year medical student is in the operating room (OR) during a surgery rotation.  Finally, Pete talks about his preparation for the Step 1 exam, offering some tips that helped him study and prepare, as well as his collegiate baseball career.

“I realize that if I found something at some point that I was really passionate about, I can always work towards it. Medicine is very open, there are always those possibilities.” As a third year student in a Nephrology rotation, “liquid gold” is a valuable teaching tool. We talk about Parvathi’s experiences in Nephrology and what rounds are like, how continuing to pursue your hobbies while studying is important and what it’s like to date a classmate. Finally, we discuss how third year impacts the field of medicine you choose to go into.

“I realize that if I found something at some point that I was really passionate about, I can always work towards it. Medicine is very open, there are always those possibilities.” As a third year student in a Nephrology rotation, “liquid gold” is a valuable teaching tool. We talk about Parvathi’s experiences in Nephrology and what rounds are like, how continuing to pursue your hobbies while studying is important and what it’s like to date a classmate. Finally, we discuss how third year impacts the field of medicine you choose to go into.

“To really make groundbreaking change, you have to have new discoveries” Lorne chose the MD/PhD program to not only learn how to be a clinician, but to participate in research that will have an impact within the medical community. We talk about his background in research, what an average day is like for an MD/PhD student, and the research that he is performing now in his third year of the program. Finally, we talk about his experiences at Princeton during his undergrad years and what it was like to transition to UUSOM.

“To really make groundbreaking change, you have to have new discoveries” Lorne chose the MD/PhD program to not only learn how to be a clinician, but to participate in research that will have an impact within the medical community. We talk about his background in research, what an average day is like for an MD/PhD student, and the research that he is performing now in his third year of the program. Finally, we talk about his experiences at Princeton during his undergrad years and what it was like to transition to UUSOM.

“We have a pretty solid group of people here. The faculty is great, the students are awesome, I hang out with my friends still every day during the summer and you just kind of become a family.”With the summer break between first and second year med school drawing to a close, Erika reflects on what her most memorable experiences were as a new medical student. We discuss why it’s important to develop a study plan, the pros of having exams or quizzes every other week, and her ELO experience. Finally, we talk about the path she chose to follow over her summer break and why her decision to attend #UUSOM was based on a “feeling”.

“We have a pretty solid group of people here. The faculty is great, the students are awesome, I hang out with my friends still every day during the summer and you just kind of become a family.”With the summer break between first and second year med school drawing to a close, Erika reflects on what her most memorable experiences were as a new medical student. We discuss why it’s important to develop a study plan, the pros of having exams or quizzes every other week, and her ELO experience. Finally, we talk about the path she chose to follow over her summer break and why her decision to attend #UUSOM was based on a “feeling”.

“The people just felt like my people. They were, in my opinion, down to earth and interested in having a life outside of medicine.”As the end of her medical student journey draws near, Liz takes a few moments to reflect back on her time here at #UUSOM and what her future holds. We talk about her way of learning, what she would do differently, and why interpersonal skills are important to learn early on as a medical student. Finally, Liz shares why she chose to go into Internal Medicine and what drew her to the University of Washington for her residency.