Excitement of Getting into College vs. Getting into Med School

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For those of you who are in med school, have been accepted, etc., how would you describe the excitement, relief, and other feelings associated with what it felt like just getting into college vs. getting into med school? I'd imagine the two are incredibly different. Although, I suppose it could depend on what college you got into. For some it was probably incredibly easy to get into college if they didn't go Ivy League and then was actually a challenge getting into med school.
 
dumakey1212 said:
For those of you who are in med school, have been accepted, etc., how would you describe the excitement, relief, and other feelings associated with what it felt like just getting into college vs. getting into med school? I'd imagine the two are incredibly different. Although, I suppose it could depend on what college you got into. For some it was probably incredibly easy to get into college if they didn't go Ivy League and then was actually a challenge getting into med school.
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I haven't been accepted yet, but based on my anticipation, I can tell you the two will be worlds apart. Getting into college was comparatively extremely easy, and pretty much anyone can get into at least one college with the correct determination.

That being said, I was pretty pumped when I was awarded an undergrad scholarship I interviewed for, and I think that might be a bit more comparable.
 
dumakey1212 said:
For those of you who are in med school, have been accepted, etc., how would you describe the excitement, relief, and other feelings associated with what it felt like just getting into college vs. getting into med school? I'd imagine the two are incredibly different. Although, I suppose it could depend on what college you got into. For some it was probably incredibly easy to get into college if they didn't go Ivy League and then was actually a challenge getting into med school.
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They are not even close! For me, getting into college didn't mean much. I mean, there's not much you can do with a Bachelor's nowadays, especially one in Bio/Chem. Med school, however, was a whole 'nother beast! Super exciting! 😀
 
I also have not been accepted to medical school yet, but I know that it was way more challenging than college. I only applied to two colleges when I was in high school and they were both private and I got accepted to both. It was so easy that I was shocked when a friend of mine who had a better GPA said he applied to one of the schools I got into and he did not get in. Maybe it was the combination of GPA and high school test scores that helped but in medical school it's different, just look at all the people with great scores and high GPA who are anxiously waiting for acceptances and interviews. The competition is a lot different and it makes the acceptance that much better.
 
dumakey1212 said:
For those of you who are in med school, have been accepted, etc., how would you describe the excitement, relief, and other feelings associated with what it felt like just getting into college vs. getting into med school? I'd imagine the two are incredibly different. Although, I suppose it could depend on what college you got into. For some it was probably incredibly easy to get into college if they didn't go Ivy League and then was actually a challenge getting into med school.
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college is pointless and a waste of money. med school is awesome
 
JorgeWashington said:
college isn't pointless unless you make it pointless. also, what have you experienced in med school that makes it awesome?
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🙄 i'm pretty sure you know why med school is awesome, otherwise don't apply.

skills in college won't help in med school
 
No comparison. The amount of work and the personal sacrifices involved in medical school admissions far, far, far exceed those involved in college admissions (for me, at least). The medical admissions process has been longer, more difficult, more uncertain, and more competitive.

All of these things together add up to a greater sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. Simply put, there is nothing better than working hard for something and seeing that hard work pay off.
 
Where I come from going to college is sort of a given so there wasn't much excitement behind it. Medical school on the other hand...once I get in somewhere it's going to be a party!
 
matching in ophthalmology residency was greater than both!
 
taco bell said:
matching in ophthalmology residency was greater than both!
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Undergrad and medical school were simply the path that I was on. They didn't require a tremendous amount of thought or emotional investment. Certainly had my share of disappointments and excitements, but it wasn't the same as matching into Vascular. For the first time I felt like there was no backup. Every program having 1 or 2 spots meant that if there were a handful of people that wanted the programs that I wanted, I would drop 3-4 spots down my list. To match where I wanted was just so much more...
 
mimelim said:
Undergrad and medical school were simply the path that I was on. They didn't require a tremendous amount of thought or emotional investment. Certainly had my share of disappointments and excitements, but it wasn't the same as matching into Vascular. For the first time I felt like there was no backup. Every program having 1 or 2 spots meant that if there were a handful of people that wanted the programs that I wanted, I would drop 3-4 spots down my list. To match where I wanted was just so much more...
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Right, residency > med school >>> college.

I think good med schools are for those smart enough to become doctors, and good residencies are for those smart enough to become "good" doctors (specialists, interns, surgeons, derms, etc...).
 
I think you might say that getting into med school is like getting into your top choice college. It's the thrill of achieving something with a risk of failure. Anyone can get into A college.
 
to provide a different perspective.....

accepted to college (ivy league school): "omg thank you god, this is the best day of my life!!"

first med school acceptance: "oh crap, i really hope i'm not stuck in [undesirable location] for the next 4 years"
med school acceptance to current school: "what a relief, this place is way better in every way" ....then in the following months when i started thinking of how long the road ahead was.... "oh, god, what have i done?!"

....we'll see how match day turns out
 
Med school acceptance was far better. However, I didn't really play the college admissions game so I had never had the experience of putting a lot of effort in over a long period of time and reaping rewards from it. Applying for residency may or may not be better, but I'm a bit skeptical. Applying to medical school was a pretty damn exciting life experience.

(sent from my phone)
 
They were both exciting times for me. When I first got into college (I think a mid-tier UC) I was happy but not that excited since I knew I was going to get into college. However when I got into the HYPS schools, that was just as exciting if not more exciting than getting into med school.

I think I'm more excited about starting med school since it'll be the start of my career. With undergrad you don't really know what you're doing.
 
Lol college admissions was a joke. Although I wasn't an ivy gunner. Just Pac10/Big10

But if I had known I was aiming for med school I would have majored in English... which would be nice to do at an ivy.
 
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virtuoso735 said:
I think I'm more excited about starting med school since it'll be the start of my career. With undergrad you don't really know what you're doing.
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With med school you also don't really know what you're doing. Anyone who says otherwise likely thinks they know more than they do.
 
Agent B said:
Right, residency > med school >>> college.

I think good med schools are for those smart enough to become doctors, and good residencies are for those smart enough to become "good" doctors (specialists, interns, surgeons, derms, etc...).
Click to expand...

lol as oppposed to the bad doctors? Not to mention "intern" isn't a type of doctor.
 
definitely med school acceptance. College acceptance was "meh" at best. Probably because getting into college was almost a given, where as med school applications are far from that.
 
Though I shouldn't really have been "surprised", I was super excited when I got accepted to my first college. It really sunk in that I was really going on to the next level and that the whole high school thing was coming to an end.
 
I don't know but I think I was way more excited when I got into college. I was a pretty borderline college applicant and was very naive about colleges and so I just applied to a handful of my state schools. I got rejected from many of them(including my first choice) and so when I finally got accepted to somewhere I wanted to go I was incredibly elated. I remember finding out in 6 period English and jumping out of my seat and screaming.

Don't get me wrong, I was super happy to get into medical school but this process has not been as emotional as applying to college.
 
I applied to 4 schools for college. I got into every one of them and wasn't the least bit surprised.

I got rejected the first time I applied to 10 medical schools.

So when I got my acceptance letter the second time around, I was jumping up and down and screaming. It was leagues above the feeling I had when I got my college acceptance letters.
 
JorgeWashington said:
He said residency>>>med school~college, which seems like will be the case for me.
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To each his own. Medical school is much better than college no matter how you want to spin it. As most others have stated, medical school admission process is a real thrill, so getting admitted is a really good thing. I never interviewed at the college I got in.

calvnandhobbs68 said:
lol as oppposed to the bad doctors? Not to mention "intern" isn't a type of doctor.
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Ok, I'm showing my noobish behavior again... Can't wait to get into med school.
 
Agent B said:
college is pointless and a waste of money. med school is awesome
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Yeah 4 years of fun and maturing into a decent human being while figuring out what you want to do for the rest of your life is pointless! 😀
 
SixStringPsych said:
Yeah 4 years of fun and maturing into a decent human being while figuring out what you want to do for the rest of your life is pointless! 😀
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College is fun, but the work is lame (except to satisfy med schools). I won't mature until the med school apps kick in.
 
Agent B said:
College is fun, but the work is lame (except to satisfy med schools). I won't mature until the med school apps kick in.
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I understand what you mean, but that should be a good thing. You might as well enjoy life pre-med school while you can
 
College I didn't even care about at all. It wasn't like I wasn't going to get into all the schools I "applied to". College applications are a joke.

Med school acceptance was huge. I worked harder then I've ever worked to obtain even one acceptance. If I do get accepted to my #1 this cycle I will be even more excited, probably way more than I was for my first acceptance.
 
College admissions is a joke. I smoked weed and banged bitches in high school. The only thing I took semi-seriously was the ACT and rocked it. Decent grades + good ACT/SAT score is all you needed in 2001 to get accepted to good schools. I applied to two schools, LUC and Northwestern and got into both. I chose LUC cuz I got a 70% scholarship over NW's nothing (so **** them).
 
Excitement of getting into college <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< Excitement of getting into medical school.
 
College:

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Med School:

cqCDQ.jpg
 
I was pretty lucky to get my first college acceptance in November and first med school acceptance on 10/15. definitely so much more excited and relieved with the med school acceptance just because the amount of work and effort I put into the whole process. I don't have a lot of interviews, so I was extremely nervous
It is still really early in this cycle, good luck to everyone applying this year and in the future 😀
 
Think I'm kind of an exception but I was definitely more excited about getting into college. I remember just so much adrenalin pumping. If I don't end up going to medical school now, there are other professional options out there. College degree is much more of a necessity than a medical degree.
 
When I applied to colleges, there was one in particular that I fell in love with, I knew that was where I wanted to go. A counselor told me it would not be easy to get in, and an admissions rep from the college straight up told me I didn't stand a chance at getting accepted regular decision.
My high school stats were pretty mediocre due to two years of not being serious. So I worked my butt off junior/senior year to try and rescue my past grades and my test scores.

One day I opened the mail box and found a big envelope from that college, the one no one expected I would get in to. To my surprise it was an acceptance, to my top choice. My family and I celebrated, and that is still one of the happiest and most memorable days of my life. 🙂

Long story short...for me anyways, college acceptance was pretty awesome and I'd easily say it's right up there with my med school acceptance. To be honest, as weird as this sounds,my first med school acceptance was probably less exciting than my college acceptance. I got the acceptance in the middle of the semester when I had a bunch of other things to do, so I called my parents, told a few friends and went back to work as if nothing had happened. If I get into my top choice med school....that might be a different a story. 😳

For me...top choice med school acceptance > top choice undergrad acceptance > med school acceptance >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>undergrad acceptance
 
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Agent B said:
Right, residency > med school >>> college.

I think good med schools are for those smart enough to become doctors, and good residencies are for those smart enough to become "good" doctors (specialists, interns, surgeons, derms, etc...).
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+1

Residency >>>>>>>>>>>med school>college, mostly because you only match at one residency program whereas you can be accepted to multiple colleges and med schools. Even tho you have your rank list for residency, I think getting into the program that will train you to practice in your field of choice for the rest of your career is much more exciting than anything else.
 
mcworbust said:
+1

Residency >>>>>>>>>>>med school>college, mostly because you only match at one residency program whereas you can be accepted to multiple colleges and med schools. Even tho you have your rank list for residency, I think getting into the program that will train you to practice in your field of choice for the rest of your career is much more exciting than anything else.
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Right, but you only matriculate at one place for medical school and for undergrad. You may only match at one place, but you can definitely be ranked by several programs. I'm assuming your point is that you never really know who ranks you, you only know where you end up... and so it's a completely different feeling.

I don't doubt the order at all though (residency > med school > undergrad), I'm sure it feels absolutely amazing to match where you want to.
 
I suppose it depends what college (or med school) we're speaking of. If you get in to the Ivies, you'd be excited. Some colleges are fairly easy to get into, though. Same with med schools, if you're highly qualified and get accepted into your "safety" you'll be less excited than getting accepted to Hopkins.
 
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