Blessed

[Gumshoe]

Sometimes I wonder if it is destiny, if networking or connections are or really are not all about you. It's crazy. For some reason or another I am believing that the will of a higher power is at work, but I won't change myself because of this realization. You've heard my stats decently --- but I have come to realize that this goal of being a doctor is mine, and I haven't even got an interview! It's in the bag. A mortal LOCK.

Good luck to all. I don't need luck. May truth guide me.

Gumshoe

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[agent]

i feel the same way.. i feel as if ive had like a religious calling or experience..

one day i just knew this is what i had to do..

now i just have to do the work..

 

[drumming207]

word... it seems as if i was created to be a physician. i feel it is an intrinsic part of who i am. i am amazed that some people become physicians because they have tried everything else and they figure "what the heck i think i liked science once, maybe i should give the doctor thing a try." it is good to hear that other people have every fiber of their being aching to be the physician they were meant to be--talk about a blessing for society.

 

[agent]

yeah i was reading a post about this guy who was saying he doesnt care about helping ppl and he's all in it for the money..

those ppl make me sick.

he says he doesnt care if ppl get better at all...

 

[relatively prime]

I felt the same way in highschool about being a playboy model. I could almost hear God telling me... "pose nude.... pose nude" but unfortunately I realized that you need a lot of connections to get into playboy... and more importantly, a perfect body. Two things I don't have. So I guess I won't be following my divine calling... but this doctor stuff looks pretty fun too.

 

[Gumshoe]

i'm not sure what you're trying to say with that, RP. I sense a bit of sarcastic irony ...

You'll find out when(if) you get to be a doctor the truth that is out there, but then again, maybe you'll avoid it.

Do it for the right reasons. You know what they are. I do, and that's why I'll get in.

Gumshoe

 

[kaos]

Originally posted by relatively prime
I felt the same way in highschool about being a playboy model. I could almost hear God telling me... "pose nude.... pose nude" but unfortunately I realized that you need a lot of connections to get into playboy... and more importantly, a perfect body. Two things I don't have. So I guess I won't be following my divine calling... but this doctor stuff looks pretty fun too.

You're hilarious! But I'm not too sure about "divine calling" rather than "something I'd love to do."

 

[agent]

some ppl just get the "divine calling"

if you're one of them, believe me you'll know.

i strongly believe a good deal of the non-trads i talked to had this experience.

 

[neoisthe1]

It's kind of funny, but I've been seeing snakes everywhere. If I go trail running, I see snakes. After the mcat, I had nightmares about getting bit by rattlesnakes.

The strangest thing, I was walking my dogs and I saw two snakes twining, just like a caduceus.

It seems as if this is more than sheer coincidence, but how do you truly know if your calling is to allopathic medicine or some other modality.

Who knows, maybe I should become a faith healer. In the end it's all the same....

 

[agent]

i guess im just too religious..

but im going to say" God works in mysterious ways.."

edit>> i know that'll probably strike a chord with all the ppl who are just in it for the money and prob. dont believe in God..

 

[CRAZYTERP]

Originally posted by agent
i guess im just too religious..

but im going to say" God works in mysterious ways.."

edit>> i know that'll probably strike a chord with all the ppl who are just in it for the money and prob. dont believe in God..

I know and agree many indivuals enter medicine bc they feel they are being "called." Personally I do not feel I can see myself doing anything else with my life than helping and caring for people as long as I live. However, let us not get into a discussion whether or not those who enter the profession believe in God or not. It is not an argument, and no one will win.

 

[Toots]

I'm non-trad too, and I also feel like I have the "calling". Weird, isn't it? I only wish I got the calling 10 years ago.... oh well!!

 

[DeathRush]

I agree with most of what you people said. I think by preparing for my first interview I became to realize that all of the experiences I had in my life have lead me to this decision of becoming a doctor. Its strange, and yet true that by reflection of your qualities you beggin to see the bigger picture. I have never thought that I was destined to being a doctor when I was in HighSchool or something like that. I know that some would say that they were born doctors but thats just a bunch of bull. What you do need to see is that it is the experiences of your life that lead to your decisions and not a bunch of mombo jumbo and divine intervention etc. etc...

I think that these interviews are great because people that do come to this realiziation will convey these feelings to their interviewers. And those that dont have it will not get in. These interviews are all about who you realy are, not what you are on paper.

Anyhow these are my two cents.

 

[DeathRush]

Oh and if you say to your Interviewer that all you want to do is Help people to as long as you live, please give him some details cause he will surely ask or think that you can be a nurse or a person volunteering in a nursing home or something like that.

Many people want to help people but you have to be specific why being a doctor is whats bests suits you, and what distinguishes your motives from a nurse's motives.

 

[Bounty]

Originally posted by agent
i guess im just too religious..

but im going to say" God works in mysterious ways.."

edit>> i know that'll probably strike a chord with all the ppl who are just in it for the money and prob. dont believe in God..

Whoa whoa whoa...being in it for the money and not believing in God are not the same thing. There are plenty of people who want to go into medicine for all the right reasons and don't believe in God. No offense, but I find comments like yours somewhat disturbing.

 

[relatively prime]

Originally posted by Gumshoe
i'm not sure what you're trying to say with that, RP. I sense a bit of sarcastic irony ...

You'll find out when(if) you get to be a doctor the truth that is out there, but then again, maybe you'll avoid it.

Do it for the right reasons. You know what they are. I do, and that's why I'll get in.

Gumshoe

Well... under the humor there is a valid point I was trying to make... and that is that no matter what you might "feel" or what you might want... the real world doesn't always agree.

Why is it to be a physician one must have a "divine calling?" Are these requirements to be a garbage collector? No? Why not? Really, garbage collectors, bricklayers, coal miners, and custodial workers are just as important to society as doctors... yet you don't hear them bragging that they had a "divine calling"... nor do you hear people pestering them to make sure they are doing it for the "right" reasons.


Any reason you might have for wanting to be a doctor that leads you to being the best doctor you can be... is a "right" reason to be a doctor... be that for job security, honor, divine calling, or what have you.

I do not believe that you're belief that this is your "divine calling" will make you any better a phsysician than anyone else... nor do I believe it gives you any more right to be a physician than anyone else. It's nice that you have this thought... and I'm sure it serves as a good motivator. However, while your belief that you have some cosmic advantage in this whole process may make you feel more confident and reassured... it probably doesn't mean anything to admissions committees.

 

[relatively prime]

Originally posted by Bounty
Whoa whoa whoa...being in it for the money and not believing in God are not the same thing. There are plenty of people who want to go into medicine for all the right reasons and don't believe in God. No offense, but I find comments like yours somewhat disturbing.

I'm going into medicine because I love the field and because I like working with people... however, I respect anyone who does their job well and with dedication regardless of why they chose to do it.


But this subject has been beaten to death in other threads....

 

[Bounty]

Originally posted by relatively prime
I'm going into medicine because I love the field and because I like working with people... however, I respect anyone who does their job well and with dedication regardless of why they chose to do it.


But this subject has been beaten to death in other threads....

Thats what I was saying too!

 

[agent]

Originally posted by Bounty
Whoa whoa whoa...being in it for the money and not believing in God are not the same thing. There are plenty of people who want to go into medicine for all the right reasons and don't believe in God. No offense, but I find comments like yours somewhat disturbing.

hence i put in the comments "i guess i'm too religious" and "this will probably strike a chord," meaning I thought i might offend some people..

sorry about that.

 

[Raptor]

I wanted to become a track star in high school because that is what I excelled at. I excelled more in academics but that was overshadow by my achievement in atheltics. However, becoming a track star didn't pan out (however, I am glad because I don't see how someone can play a Division sport and study for all these classes). However, I knew in my heart that becoming a doctor was what God put me on this earth to become (pretty freaky because 12 years ago, my grandma prophesized that I will become the first doctor in the family, and my mom told me what she said one year ago, after my freshman year). And yes, God does work in mysterious ways.

 

[tBw]

call me crazy, but I try not to listen to the voices in my head....

 

[tBw]

ps that was just intended as a lighthearted joke...sorry if it offended anyones sensibilities...

 

[Thundrstorm]

one day i just knew this is what i had to do

Me too! I definitely felt that "calling."

I have always loved science but was never sure what I wanted to do with my life (well, actually, I wanted to be an astronaut when I was in middle school lol). My mom kept pressuring me to go pre-med, but I never really felt led to do so. Well, my senior year of high school I was waiting in the hallway of Children's Hospital in DC while my mom visited her goddaughter in a nearby room; I couldn't go in b/c she had a weakened immune system and they were limiting visitors. So, I'm standing there, just twiddling my thumbs when these 2 doctors walk by in their lab coats, discussing a patient. The next thought in my head was "I want to be a doctor." I seriously felt like I had been struck by lightening or something! I just knew that I had to be a doctor. That was almost 2 years ago and I have never wavered in my decision to be pre-med. I have since decided that I would like to do an MD/PhD program and (if my wildest dreams come true) work for the CDC. But anyway, I still want to be a doctor with every fiber of my being. I really feel that it is my calling.

 

[cipher]

Originally posted by relatively prime
Well... under the humor there is a valid point I was trying to make... and that is that no matter what you might "feel" or what you might want... the real world doesn't always agree.

Why is it to be a physician one must have a "divine calling?" Are these requirements to be a garbage collector? No? Why not? Really, garbage collectors, bricklayers, coal miners, and custodial workers are just as important to society as doctors... yet you don't hear them bragging that they had a "divine calling"... nor do you hear people pestering them to make sure they are doing it for the "right" reasons.


Any reason you might have for wanting to be a doctor that leads you to being the best doctor you can be... is a "right" reason to be a doctor... be that for job security, honor, divine calling, or what have you.

I do not believe that you're belief that this is your "divine calling" will make you any better a phsysician than anyone else... nor do I believe it gives you any more right to be a physician than anyone else. It's nice that you have this thought... and I'm sure it serves as a good motivator. However, while your belief that you have some cosmic advantage in this whole process may make you feel more confident and reassured... it probably doesn't mean anything to admissions committees.

Well put, primey.

 

[Tweetie_bird]

Originally posted by the boy wonder
ps that was just intended as a lighthearted joke...sorry if it offended anyones sensibilities...

LOL, did the other voice in your head tell you to put this disclaimer?

 

[Katie]

Originally posted by Bounty
Whoa whoa whoa...being in it for the money and not believing in God are not the same thing. There are plenty of people who want to go into medicine for all the right reasons and don't believe in God. No offense, but I find comments like yours somewhat disturbing.

I agree, and I also find the fact that you feel that many non-trads have the "calling" while the "rest of us" have silly and immature reasons disturbing. I am sorry that you have not received any interview invitations, I didn't receive any until October and after then they actually came at a slow and sporadic rate so I can sympathize with your frusturation. But, it is not the fault of money-grubbers, atheists, people straight out of college with no kids and no supposed "real-life experience", etc. that you have not received an acceptance letter or interview invitation yet. When I applied in 98-99 and was not accepted, I was pissed that people from my undergrad who had snotty attitudes got in and I didn't, but I knew that in order to have a chance I had to keep learning all I could about medicine and bring up my MCAT score. I did those things, and while I ended up sitting on 6 waitlists before I got in in July 2001, I am currently a med student and am truly blessed to be at a great school where I can learn to be a doctor. The application process can be totally crappy and unfair and painful, but the only way to be a doctor is to get through it. I'd also like to say that great doctors come in all shapes, ages, sizes, and from all states and schools. My school, like many others, realizes this, as we have older students with spouses and children, people who changed careers, people who applied 1, 2, and 3 times before they got in, people from Ivy League Schools, people from big state schools, people from small midwestern schools, people who got in straight out of undergrad via guarenteed admissions. I don't think that the Ivy League kids will necessarily make heartless, socially inept, crappy doctors; and the "non-trads" will not necessarily make compassionate and wonderful doctors.

I sincerely wish all you of you the best of luck; keep your chin up and keep in touch with the schools to see what is going on, regardless of your age, gender, ethnicity, shoe size, etc..

 

[agent]

Originally posted by cipher
Well put, primey.

hardly..

you're just playing it safe.

 

[pathdr2b]

Originally posted by Thundrstorm
Me too! I definitely felt that "calling."

"I have since decided that I would like to do an MD/PhD program and (if my wildest dreams come true) work for the CDC. But anyway, I still want to be a doctor with every fiber of my being. I really feel that it is my calling.

"


Well said and I agree with you. I'm also planning to pursue MD/PhD however as a "nontrad" myself, I don't think other nontrads are intentially trying to offend the traditional applicant to med school or trying to imply that they are silly or immature. However, there are MANY lessons in life that you will ONLY get by living a few more years. For example, I recently lost my Dad to colon cancer. Now I know that you can experience the death of a parent at any age but things like this don't usually happen to people until they are in the 30's in 40's. My Dad's death added to my overall life expereinces a situation that I would have handled a lot worse had I been in my 20's (I kind of had that "my parents will live forever attitude"). I just see life very differently now than I did then.

So yes, for many nontrads pursuing med school at an older age is a calling, since you make many sacrifices that the average 20 something year old has yet to deal with like spouses, children, high 5 figure salaries ( I still can't belive how easily I gave this one up) in the pursuit of a life long dream. Nontrad v trad neither is "better" than the other, just different from each other.

 

[tBw]

Originally posted by Tweetie_bird
LOL, did the other voice in your head tell you to put this disclaimer?

very funny tweetie

Nah, it was past experience with upsetting people with my sense of humor...me, upset people?? surely not.....

 

[Thundrstorm]

Originally posted by pathdr2b
"

However, there are MANY lessons in life that you will ONLY get by living a few more years. For example, I recently lost my Dad to colon cancer. Now I know that you can experience the death of a parent at any age but things like this don't usually happen to people until they are in the 30's in 40's. My Dad's death added to my overall life expereinces a situation that I would have handled a lot worse had I been in my 20's (I kind of had that "my parents will live forever attitude"). I just see life very differently now than I did then.

What you said is true. With age does come experience and in many cases, with experience comes wisdom. But don't assume that your age necessarily means you're giving up more to be a doctor or that you've experienced more traumatic things. There are many people who have trying experiences at a very young age and I am one of them. I'm not disagreeing with what you said, but you shouldn't assume that all 20 year olds now have had the same experiences that you did at 20. I haven't lost a parent (and I'm very sorry for your loss), but I don't think that makes me any more naive or any less determined than you are. Because you don't know me, you don't know that I am a very responsible and mature person and that I have dealt with tough experiences already, despite my young age of 19. I'm grateful and blessed to even be in college right now for various reasons and I work very hard both in school and in my jobs to make my life worthwhile. Good luck in your pursuits and I hope both of us become doctors, although we are taking different paths to get there.

 

[agent]

Originally posted by pathdr2b
"


Well said and I agree with you. I'm also planning to pursue MD/PhD however as a "nontrad" myself, I don't think other nontrads are intentially trying to offend the traditional applicant to med school or trying to imply that they are silly or immature. However, there are MANY lessons in life that you will ONLY get by living a few more years. For example, I recently lost my Dad to colon cancer. Now I know that you can experience the death of a parent at any age but things like this don't usually happen to people until they are in the 30's in 40's. My Dad's death added to my overall life expereinces a situation that I would have handled a lot worse had I been in my 20's (I kind of had that "my parents will live forever attitude"). I just see life very differently now than I did then.

So yes, for many nontrads pursuing med school at an older age is a calling, since you make many sacrifices that the average 20 something year old has yet to deal with like spouses, children, high 5 figure salaries ( I still can't belive how easily I gave this one up) in the pursuit of a life long dream. Nontrad v trad neither is "better" than the other, just different from each other.

very well spoken.

 

[Katie]

well said, Jessica! While it is true that wisdom accumulates with age, it is not necessarily true that some relevant life experiences only happen with age. One of my best friends who is 24 lost her father to cancer last year, and while her grades did slip a bit for a while, she had the strength and maturity to continue on with law school and will graduate in May. She might have handled it better if she were 30 instead of 24, but that doesn't mean that she didn't have to deal with a tough life experience and take the bull by the horns, and I admire her for it regardless of her age! Her (somewhat reluctant) fiancee, on the other hand, is a 30 y/o lawyer who was spoiled rotten as a child (by his own admission), and acts neurotic, panicky, and whiny if he and/or my friend picks up a runny nose (I mean he acts as if they had contracted the plague or something!). I'm not saying that these two individuals are representative of the whole population, just that it is good to be a little cautious before completely equating age with wisdom and youth with naivete' because there are certainly plenty of exceptions.

I also still maintain my opinion that it is not cool to blame others for taking "your place" in med school. Non-trads shouldn't blame younger applicants and vice-versa, URM's shouldn't blame whites and Asians and vice-versa. If you do not have the stats and/or necessary clinical and research experience than go get it, end of story.

 

[Thundrstorm]

Katie, you went to U of MD? College Park? I'm from MD and my sister goes there (and I almost did too). How did you like their science depts?

 

[Katie]

Jessica,
yes, I went to UMCP for undergrad and thought it was a big, fun school. Their engineering departments are top-notch, and while Biology (used to be Zoology) and Chemistry were a bit underfunded when I matriculated in 1995 and not among the strongest depts. on campus they really have moved up in reputation over the years. I think they built a whole new Chem building on campus after I left. Most of the faculty I met as an undergrad in the Biology-Zoology Dept. were outstanding. I felt very well-prepared for med schools courses like Cell Bio and Immunology and Biochemistry b/c of my undergrad training. The UM medical school up in Baltimore also has great research facilities, not Hopkins or anything but excellent for a state school. I must say that I strongly approve of your current location though I LOVE Boston and would have had a tough decision to make if UMAB had accepted me as well. Even though it sounds cheesy, I take a lot of pride in where I went to undergrad and in the mighty Terrapin men's b-ball team! Woo hoo!

Good luck in the application process to all.

 

[Raptor]

Originally posted by Katie
well said, Jessica! While it is true that wisdom accumulates with age, it is not necessarily true that some relevant life experiences only happen with age. One of my best friends who is 24 lost her father to cancer last year, and while her grades did slip a bit for a while, she had the strength and maturity to continue on with law school and will graduate in May. She might have handled it better if she were 30 instead of 24, but that doesn't mean that she didn't have to deal with a tough life experience and take the bull by the horns, and I admire her for it regardless of her age! Her (somewhat reluctant) fiancee, on the other hand, is a 30 y/o lawyer who was spoiled rotten as a child (by his own admission), and acts neurotic, panicky, and whiny if he and/or my friend picks up a runny nose (I mean he acts as if they had contracted the plague or something!). I'm not saying that these two individuals are representative of the whole population, just that it is good to be a little cautious before completely equating age with wisdom and youth with naivete' because there are certainly plenty of exceptions.

I also still maintain my opinion that it is not cool to blame others for taking "your place" in med school. Non-trads shouldn't blame younger applicants and vice-versa, URM's shouldn't blame whites and Asians and vice-versa. If you do not have the stats and/or necessary clinical and research experience than go get it, end of story.

I agree