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- Apr 20, 2011
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This isn't an answer to the title, although, as a non-traditional student with nearly a decade's worth of depths-of-despair-avoiding techniques under my belt, it really should be. This unnavigable world of pre-med is really getting me down and I'm not ashamed to admit it. As I gaze upon the horizon that is my future, all I can see is this black wall (Lord of the Rings-esque, if you will) obstructing any attempt at procession in any direction including backwards. I can't seem to prevent myself from concluding that I'm just too old or too stupid or too alone, or too...something. My mind is capable of producing an endless list of excuses for failing, and I'm only in my first semester of pre-requisites!
So, here's a little about myself to aid you in your attempt at understanding where I'm coming from:
27 years old
graduate degree in theology
3.1 graduate GPA, 3.3 undergraduate degree GPA (graduate was distance learning degree, and most of the undergrad was earned via distance learning); I received three C's as a result of a computer virus (all in the same semester). I know, it's a pathetic excuse, but that's what happened. Will medical schools buy it, if I get that far, that is?
Currently enrolled at CU Boulder for Pre-Health, MCDB, and Neuroscience
I have taken absolutely none of the science prerequisites for medical school.
No research of any kind
I have worked 4 years in a hospital lab as a phlebotomist and lab assistant
EMT-B/IV certification
I've travelled abroad several times for Spanish language and medical shadowing
volunteer with CU Boulder's student EMS organization
volunteer with health fair
volunteer teaching English with Intercambio once a week
Currently attending CU Boulder. I expect 3 A's out of four courses.
Failed one exam in INTRO to chemistry (the primary reasoning behind the creation of this entire post; failing this exam has thrust me deeper into The Pit than I've ever been), but am getting A's in the homework. Class average for exam was below 60%. This exam score is really causing me to re-consider moving any further with my possibly unreasonable aspirations.
Oh yeah! I also had to drop out of school entirely last semester due to this little problem called Test Anxiety. I was failing courses left and right. How could anyone with test anxiety (the name hardly does this "issue" justice, by the way) possibly become an M.D./D.O.???
So...I realize that I'm not a competitive candidate for much of anything at this point, particularly now that I have an F under my belt. As my name indicates, I really don't hold out much hope of success, and yet I just can't seem to convince myself to quit. There are far more intelligent and more capable individuals than I out there pursuing the same field; how do I compete with them? Medicine is what I want. I've had years and years to think about it, to try to convince myself that I wanted something else, and to always come back to medicine.
What kind of support system did those of you who have been successful have? Did any of you have checkered academic pasts that you had to overcome? What was the reasoning you gave to medical school boards for past (and fairly recent) failures? What was your class load like and do medical schools consider this (I'm enrolled in 13 credits for the semester and am also working 30 hours a week)? What did you do to make yourselves competitive candidates? How did you prove that the extra time you had was well spent? And, finally, what do you think of my chances? Oh, and does anyone know of a good psychologist in the Boulder area? Thanks! I'm about to scream!
So, here's a little about myself to aid you in your attempt at understanding where I'm coming from:
27 years old
graduate degree in theology
3.1 graduate GPA, 3.3 undergraduate degree GPA (graduate was distance learning degree, and most of the undergrad was earned via distance learning); I received three C's as a result of a computer virus (all in the same semester). I know, it's a pathetic excuse, but that's what happened. Will medical schools buy it, if I get that far, that is?
Currently enrolled at CU Boulder for Pre-Health, MCDB, and Neuroscience
I have taken absolutely none of the science prerequisites for medical school.
No research of any kind
I have worked 4 years in a hospital lab as a phlebotomist and lab assistant
EMT-B/IV certification
I've travelled abroad several times for Spanish language and medical shadowing
volunteer with CU Boulder's student EMS organization
volunteer with health fair
volunteer teaching English with Intercambio once a week
Currently attending CU Boulder. I expect 3 A's out of four courses.
Failed one exam in INTRO to chemistry (the primary reasoning behind the creation of this entire post; failing this exam has thrust me deeper into The Pit than I've ever been), but am getting A's in the homework. Class average for exam was below 60%. This exam score is really causing me to re-consider moving any further with my possibly unreasonable aspirations.
Oh yeah! I also had to drop out of school entirely last semester due to this little problem called Test Anxiety. I was failing courses left and right. How could anyone with test anxiety (the name hardly does this "issue" justice, by the way) possibly become an M.D./D.O.???
So...I realize that I'm not a competitive candidate for much of anything at this point, particularly now that I have an F under my belt. As my name indicates, I really don't hold out much hope of success, and yet I just can't seem to convince myself to quit. There are far more intelligent and more capable individuals than I out there pursuing the same field; how do I compete with them? Medicine is what I want. I've had years and years to think about it, to try to convince myself that I wanted something else, and to always come back to medicine.
What kind of support system did those of you who have been successful have? Did any of you have checkered academic pasts that you had to overcome? What was the reasoning you gave to medical school boards for past (and fairly recent) failures? What was your class load like and do medical schools consider this (I'm enrolled in 13 credits for the semester and am also working 30 hours a week)? What did you do to make yourselves competitive candidates? How did you prove that the extra time you had was well spent? And, finally, what do you think of my chances? Oh, and does anyone know of a good psychologist in the Boulder area? Thanks! I'm about to scream!
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