Hi All,
I am here to write about my experience at HES and to provide tips on how you might succeed.
Disclaimer: this is just my personal experience….hope it works for you!
Background: Worked in Finance and in my mid-twenties decided I wanted to go to med school sometime in early 2016. Began my post bacc at Harvard Extension in September 2016 and applied to medical school the summer/fall of 2018. Will start med school in a few weeks!
I lived at home during this time (love my family, saved money). I also worked in finance for the first year of my postbacc (2016-2017) until I moved to healthcare-specific work (think research, cna, scribe, volunteer, etc) part time from 2017 until now. I used my earnings and savings for cost of post bacc, cost of applying to med school (mcat prep, app cost, etc), and everyday life expenses.
Most important tip: Have a plan and stick to it. Know how you are going to support yourself, know when you are going to take what classes, know when you’re going to leave that finance job you hate to become a minimum wage health employee, know when you’re going to start studying for the MCAT, etc. At this point you should have decided that you simply can’t go on in life without trying to become a physician and you should have zero second thoughts. You are going to get through this post bacc, get into med school, and that’s that.
My class schedule: Chem 1, Physics 1 (Fall 2016) Chem 2, Physics 2 (Spring 2017), Bio 1 (Summer 2017), Orgo 1, Biochem (Fall 2017), Orgo lab, MCAT Prep, take MCAT (Spring 2018), Application prep, interviews (Summer and Fall 2018). Orgo 2 (Spring 2019-after I already had acceptances!!)
Notice that I didn’t take more than 2 courses at any point (if you did well in undergrad and you do well in your post bacc, the whole “med schools want to see a full schedule” is overrated, especially if you’re working full or part-time while you are doing your coursework. Notice the extensive time I left myself for MCAT prep. The key is to not rush your studies but to STICK TO YOUR PLAN!!!
How to succeed in each course
If you stick to this method I don’t see how you’ll get less than an A- in any course.
These courses are all essentially applied math/problem solving with a health sciences twist. I found these courses to be very difficult but manageable due to my very regimented plan on how to attack them.
What I didn’t do: I did zero work in preparation for/before each weekly lecture, I attended no lectures or sections that were not mandatory. I literally just stayed home or went to work. What I did do: went to every mandatory lecture (ie exams) or section (if they took attendance). I handed in assignments electronically whenever I could.
My gameplan: After each lecture (usually 3 hours, once per week) the video was posted on the Harvard website 24-48 hours later. Each lecture is essentially the professor walking you through a 12-20 page packet of the material. For each and every lecture recording I spent around 6 hours watching and taking notes on what was being taught (took me double the time due to pausing, rewinding, writing my notes, etc.) My noted were always detailed and ranged from 3-6 pages. I then did the corresponding homework assignment which was always due right before the following lecture (I never stressed the homework too much because as long as you studied the lecture and worked with a friend it was never too difficult to get through. For any question that was too difficult I consulted my friends or the TF.) So watching lectures and doing the homework took me around 10 hours per week, per course. I only spent 1-3 hours per day during the week (because of work) but spent around 5-7 hours per day on weekends (for example I’d usually just watch the entire orgo lecture Saturday morning/afternoon then do the beginning of the biochem lecture Saturday night and wrap it up on Sunday just in time for NFL at 1pm). Also this is kind of an aside but I made sure to use my sick days/time off from work on the days leading up to my exams.
How I studied for exams (these were extremely high-yield for me): First note that each exam covers 3 lectures (exception is final exam). I began preparing for each exam around 7-10 days prior. I only did 3 things to study for my exam (1) I rewrote/condensed my 3-6 page notes on each lecture into 3-6 page exam prep study guides. These took me 2-3 days to do and were incredibly helpful because they were a review of the material and left a guide that I could then use to study for my final exams. (2) I identified the 2-4 questions on each homework set and each practice problem set that I thought best represented the material. So 3 HW sets + 3 Practice problems (there are practice problems usually reviewed in section for each corresponding lecture x 2, 3, or 4 = around 18-24 problems. I spent 3 days doing these 20 or so problems around 2 or 3 times (Identifying and mastering representative problems was the single most high-yield thing I did). (3) I did the 1 or 2 practice exams timed in an uncomfortable setting. For finals, I did the exact same process only instead of condensing the notes from my 3 lectures I condensed the study guides from the previous exams, and instead of 20 practice problems I had around 60 practice problems to get through (of which I picked maybe the 40 I thought best represented the material). Then of course I did the practice final exams.
Regarding labs: Just show up and don’t burn/spill anything. I really disliked lab but it was never too difficult. Great time to socialize with lab partners.
I also made sure I saw my advisor 1-2 times per semester (this is the person who will write your committee letter for med school. The more they know you/see your dedication the better their endorsement.
What I wish I would have done: I wish I would have chosen 2 professors I liked and gone to their office hours either weekly or every other week. This way I wouldn’t have had to awkwardly ask 2 professors who didn’t really know me for recommendation letters (they were nice enough to write them anyway…after I basically told them what to write). I also would have ingratiated myself more with TFs (professors rely on them for the recommendation letters).
One last thing: During winter and summer breaks after each semester I suggest cross-referencing what you learned in class with what you’ll be expected to know for the MCAT. There’s a 100+ page guide on what you have to know for the MCAT on their official website which I recommend using as a source to make sure you’re covering all the points in class. You can also use this to know what you need to learn via other resources that weren’t covered in class. (BTW, this 100+ page guide includes no actual material, it’s just a super long table of contents. I know, scary.)
Hope this helps! Feel free to message me with questions.
I am here to write about my experience at HES and to provide tips on how you might succeed.
Disclaimer: this is just my personal experience….hope it works for you!
Background: Worked in Finance and in my mid-twenties decided I wanted to go to med school sometime in early 2016. Began my post bacc at Harvard Extension in September 2016 and applied to medical school the summer/fall of 2018. Will start med school in a few weeks!
I lived at home during this time (love my family, saved money). I also worked in finance for the first year of my postbacc (2016-2017) until I moved to healthcare-specific work (think research, cna, scribe, volunteer, etc) part time from 2017 until now. I used my earnings and savings for cost of post bacc, cost of applying to med school (mcat prep, app cost, etc), and everyday life expenses.
Most important tip: Have a plan and stick to it. Know how you are going to support yourself, know when you are going to take what classes, know when you’re going to leave that finance job you hate to become a minimum wage health employee, know when you’re going to start studying for the MCAT, etc. At this point you should have decided that you simply can’t go on in life without trying to become a physician and you should have zero second thoughts. You are going to get through this post bacc, get into med school, and that’s that.
My class schedule: Chem 1, Physics 1 (Fall 2016) Chem 2, Physics 2 (Spring 2017), Bio 1 (Summer 2017), Orgo 1, Biochem (Fall 2017), Orgo lab, MCAT Prep, take MCAT (Spring 2018), Application prep, interviews (Summer and Fall 2018). Orgo 2 (Spring 2019-after I already had acceptances!!)
Notice that I didn’t take more than 2 courses at any point (if you did well in undergrad and you do well in your post bacc, the whole “med schools want to see a full schedule” is overrated, especially if you’re working full or part-time while you are doing your coursework. Notice the extensive time I left myself for MCAT prep. The key is to not rush your studies but to STICK TO YOUR PLAN!!!
How to succeed in each course
If you stick to this method I don’t see how you’ll get less than an A- in any course.
These courses are all essentially applied math/problem solving with a health sciences twist. I found these courses to be very difficult but manageable due to my very regimented plan on how to attack them.
What I didn’t do: I did zero work in preparation for/before each weekly lecture, I attended no lectures or sections that were not mandatory. I literally just stayed home or went to work. What I did do: went to every mandatory lecture (ie exams) or section (if they took attendance). I handed in assignments electronically whenever I could.
My gameplan: After each lecture (usually 3 hours, once per week) the video was posted on the Harvard website 24-48 hours later. Each lecture is essentially the professor walking you through a 12-20 page packet of the material. For each and every lecture recording I spent around 6 hours watching and taking notes on what was being taught (took me double the time due to pausing, rewinding, writing my notes, etc.) My noted were always detailed and ranged from 3-6 pages. I then did the corresponding homework assignment which was always due right before the following lecture (I never stressed the homework too much because as long as you studied the lecture and worked with a friend it was never too difficult to get through. For any question that was too difficult I consulted my friends or the TF.) So watching lectures and doing the homework took me around 10 hours per week, per course. I only spent 1-3 hours per day during the week (because of work) but spent around 5-7 hours per day on weekends (for example I’d usually just watch the entire orgo lecture Saturday morning/afternoon then do the beginning of the biochem lecture Saturday night and wrap it up on Sunday just in time for NFL at 1pm). Also this is kind of an aside but I made sure to use my sick days/time off from work on the days leading up to my exams.
How I studied for exams (these were extremely high-yield for me): First note that each exam covers 3 lectures (exception is final exam). I began preparing for each exam around 7-10 days prior. I only did 3 things to study for my exam (1) I rewrote/condensed my 3-6 page notes on each lecture into 3-6 page exam prep study guides. These took me 2-3 days to do and were incredibly helpful because they were a review of the material and left a guide that I could then use to study for my final exams. (2) I identified the 2-4 questions on each homework set and each practice problem set that I thought best represented the material. So 3 HW sets + 3 Practice problems (there are practice problems usually reviewed in section for each corresponding lecture x 2, 3, or 4 = around 18-24 problems. I spent 3 days doing these 20 or so problems around 2 or 3 times (Identifying and mastering representative problems was the single most high-yield thing I did). (3) I did the 1 or 2 practice exams timed in an uncomfortable setting. For finals, I did the exact same process only instead of condensing the notes from my 3 lectures I condensed the study guides from the previous exams, and instead of 20 practice problems I had around 60 practice problems to get through (of which I picked maybe the 40 I thought best represented the material). Then of course I did the practice final exams.
Regarding labs: Just show up and don’t burn/spill anything. I really disliked lab but it was never too difficult. Great time to socialize with lab partners.
I also made sure I saw my advisor 1-2 times per semester (this is the person who will write your committee letter for med school. The more they know you/see your dedication the better their endorsement.
What I wish I would have done: I wish I would have chosen 2 professors I liked and gone to their office hours either weekly or every other week. This way I wouldn’t have had to awkwardly ask 2 professors who didn’t really know me for recommendation letters (they were nice enough to write them anyway…after I basically told them what to write). I also would have ingratiated myself more with TFs (professors rely on them for the recommendation letters).
One last thing: During winter and summer breaks after each semester I suggest cross-referencing what you learned in class with what you’ll be expected to know for the MCAT. There’s a 100+ page guide on what you have to know for the MCAT on their official website which I recommend using as a source to make sure you’re covering all the points in class. You can also use this to know what you need to learn via other resources that weren’t covered in class. (BTW, this 100+ page guide includes no actual material, it’s just a super long table of contents. I know, scary.)
Hope this helps! Feel free to message me with questions.
