"Funny quotes from 'less informed' pre-meds," On-Topic Edition

[swolesoul]

"Getting into medical school is super competitive. The acceptance rate is like 40%"

The acceptance rate is 40%. The latest AAMC data shows around 50,000 applied and 20,000 got accepted.

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[What is up doc?]

The acceptance rate is 40%. The latest AAMC data shows around 50,000 applied and 20,000 got accepted.

She meant at each individual school

 

[swolesoul]

She meant at each individual school

Gotcha. Yeah, wouldn't that be nice?

 

[chizledfrmstone]

An older coworker was talking to me about my major and plans after undergrad. When he found out I want to go to med school he was very supportive but a little confused.

"Oh, this is such a great state for that, because if you are a resident of this state and make a certain GPA you are guaranteed a spot."

No. I wish. I explained to him that the state schools have matriculating GPAs a little below average and there is a strong preference for state residents but that no one is actually "guaranteed" a spot. We work with a lot of pre-meds so I'm wondering if any of them actually believe this or if he just decided that's how it works.

I know we've all sad this a gajillion times but the whole "Oh do you want to be a nurse?" thing has only recently started bugging me.

Yes, I'm already a nurse, but here I am at our school, which does not have a nursing program, working on becoming a nurse.

It's amazing how quickly things change.

About 15 years ago my state school would give you an interview if your MCAT was above 23 and you were a resident.

I shadowed a physician who graduated from that school in the early 2000s and he was shocked to hear the application could be done online. He was telling me how they have to mail stuff in.

There was no guarantee you would get a spot but at least interviewing got your foot in the door.

I interviewed 2 years ago and the specifics I remember will probably be outdated by the time I'm a resident.

 

[mehc012]

And I think now with many doctors taking computers into the room to collect notes for paperwork, patients think they are simply googling the problem or something...

I mean, I've definitely seen docs Google stuff/search medical sites when they ran into something they hadn't seen (or not in a long while), but that's not really a bad thing. We have so much information available now, it'd be sillier not to refresh all of the salient details sometimes. The difference is, they have enough education behind it that it's a refresher/means more to them, and they actually know what to do with the knowledge once they look it over.

 

[Munty]

I mean, I've definitely seen docs Google stuff/search medical sites when they ran into something they hadn't seen (or not in a long while), but that's not really a bad thing. We have so much information available now, it'd be sillier not to refresh all of the salient details sometimes. The difference is, they have enough education behind it that it's a refresher/means more to them, and they actually know what to do with the knowledge once they look it over.

Oh yeah I've seen physicians use it to refresh the finer details which I would rather have than trying to take a best-guess. But people act like we have webMD-like software that does the job for doctors while they cash in the money or something.

 

[mehc012]

Oh yeah I've seen physicians use it to refresh the finer details which I would rather have than trying to take a best-guess. But people act like we have webMD-like software that does the job for doctors while they cash in the money or something.

Not disagreeing, just didn't want it to seem like docs shouldn't Google things

 

[Annabell Lee]

I mean, I've definitely seen docs Google stuff/search medical sites when they ran into something they hadn't seen (or not in a long while), but that's not really a bad thing. We have so much information available now, it'd be sillier not to refresh all of the salient details sometimes. The difference is, they have enough education behind it that it's a refresher/means more to them, and they actually know what to do with the knowledge once they look it over.

Great point. I think people forget/don't realize that, so once they see a doctor use online resources, they assume that the same results can be achieved with five minutes of googling. Because 4 yrs undergrad+4 yrs med school + ??? yrs residency + 5 minutes of google = 5 minutes of google.

 

[Almighty Saguaro]

Well to be fair, based on recurrent themes in this thread, the right side of that equation is more than likely "5 mins of Google plus some well-intentioned but misguided advice from Doctor X, patient's nephew and recent community college grad. "

Great point. I think people forget/don't realize that, so once they see a doctor use online resources, they assume that the same results can be achieved with five minutes of googling. Because 4 yrs undergrad+4 yrs med school + ??? yrs residency + 5 minutes of google = 5 minutes of google.

 

[sephora89]

I know someone who did an SMP at Georgetown and told people she was "in medical school." I guess she technically wasn't lying but I felt it was a bit misleading...

 

[WhittyPsyche]

I know someone who did an SMP at Georgetown and told people she was "in medical school." I guess she technically wasn't lying but I felt it was a bit misleading...

I know a few premeds who say "I have friends at the med school" referring to kids in SMP, and other postbac intro med/grade repair programs.

 

[sephora89]

I know a few premeds who say "I have friends at the med school" referring to kids in SMP, and other postbac intro med/grade repair programs.

I know but when she got into the SMP she told people she got into medical school haha

 

[WhittyPsyche]

I know but when she got into the SMP she told people she got into medical school haha

No I was agreeing with you. Unless you are meaning physically "at" med school, it's misleading. Someone always ask oh cool MS1/2/3 etc and the answer is what was expected obviously lol

 

[Lost in Translation]

I got a good one, said by yours truly during freshman year.

At 3AM in a big city on my way to the ER because of a cut
Me to the RA on duty who was taking me: I want to be an EM doc because I like big cities during this hour so it'd be sweet to get called to come in and walk through this calm atmosphere on my way to the hospital. (Or something to that effect)

 

[deleted407021]

I got a good one, said by yours truly during freshman year.

At 3AM in a big city on my way to the ER because of a cut
Me to the RA on duty who was taking me: I want to be an EM doc because I like big cities during this hour so it'd be sweet to get called to come in and walk through this calm atmosphere on my way to the hospital. (Or something to that effect)

Almost all of us have enbarrasing premed moments from our HS/freshman days.

 

[Spinach Dip]

It's amazing how quickly things change.

About 15 years ago my state school would give you an interview if your MCAT was above 23 and you were a resident.

I shadowed a physician who graduated from that school in the early 2000s and he was shocked to hear the application could be done online. He was telling me how they have to mail stuff in.

There was no guarantee you would get a spot but at least interviewing got your foot in the door.

I interviewed 2 years ago and the specifics I remember will probably be outdated by the time I'm a resident.

The obsession with ECs is a relatively new thing on the block... so I wouldn't be surprised if, a decade or two from now, some new 'unwritten requirement' was considered normal.

 

[Buck Winters]

The acceptance rate is 40%. The latest AAMC data shows around 50,000 applied and 20,000 got accepted.

Grizzly Adams DID have a beard

 

[mehc012]

Almost all of us have enbarrasing premed moments from our HS/freshman days.

Mwahahaha I wasn't a premed until I graduated college, I am safe from that particular phenomenon!

 

[leonardoson]

In gen chem today with two other pre-meds in my group:

Premed 1: What's a DO?
Me: explains the difference between MD and DO.
Premed 2: They are *ok* at Internal Medicine.
Me: There are DOs in every field
Premed 2: yea, but they are suited for internal medicine
Me: Don't be that guy....

 

[AspiringERMD]

Lol this could not be more true! Upon telling people that I want to go to medical school, I have many times had to clarify that I mean I want to be a doctor. The conversation is always something like this...

Me: I want to go to medical school.
Other: Oh awesome! So you want to be a nurse? Or physical therapist? Dentist?
Me: .... MEDICAL school.

My partner is very overqualified for his job and works with a lot of idiots. When he told each person that we moved to a new state because I'm in medical school, the listener rarely understood that that meant I'm going to be a doctor. Examples:

"Oh, cool, what kind of nurse does she want to be?"

"My niece just started a Master's to be a... what is it... a nurse practitioner, I think. Is that similar to medical school?"

"Wait, so she's not going to be a nurse?"
"...no."
"Well, what's she going to be, then?"
".............a doctor?"
"Ohhhhh!"

And my favorite, which occurred after they'd known eachother several months:
"I bet you're only with her because she's going to make a ton of money." My partner insists he was not joking. Maybe he's one of those people who is severely uncomfortable with the idea of a female primary breadwinner and a "Mr. Mom"... can't stand those types.

 

[Doctoblast]

Overheard this in one of my classes

Pre-med 1: "I heard it's getting harder and harder to get into Caribbean schools nowadays."
Pre-med 2: "Yeah, I mean have you seen pictures? It's beautiful down there. Can't really beat that."

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

Overheard this in one of my classes

Pre-med 1: "I heard it's getting harder and harder to get into Caribbean schools nowadays."
Pre-med 2: "Yeah, I mean have you seen pictures? It's beautiful down there. Can't really beat that."

It's so beautiful I hear no one even leaves to do residency in the US!!!

 

[Doctoblast]

There's a girl I know who pretends she's in med school on instagram. It's absolutely hysterical. It's all she posts about, but Arcadia doesn't have a med school.

Her best one was "Ugh, med school is SOOOO hard. I have to take the MCAT next week. #drgen"

Her insta is [redacted] if anyone wants to look. I sit there and laugh about how ridiculous it is sometimes!

Tell her to make her instagram not private lol

 

[benzyne]

Tell her to make her instagram not private lol

I wish haha it is so funny!! She posts tons of pictures of herself in scrubs and a white coat, but they all say PCT (patient care tech) on them hahaha

 

[MD2BE92]

I wish haha it is so funny!! She posts tons of pictures of herself in scrubs and a white coat, but they all say PCT (patient care tech) on them hahaha

Requested to follow just for the lolz
Some people are so dense haha

 

[WhittyPsyche]

Requested to follow just for the lolz
Some people are so dense haha

I must admit I am incredibly curious. But alas, don't have Instagram. Guess I'll just have to imagine the ridiculousness.

 

[ugagrad1116]

Requested to follow just for the lolz
Some people are so dense haha

*Instantly gets 100 follow requests.

 

[giraffesuptop]

There's a girl I know who pretends she's in med school on instagram. It's absolutely hysterical. It's all she posts about, but Arcadia doesn't have a med school.

Her best one was "Ugh, med school is SOOOO hard. I have to take the MCAT next week. #drgen"

Her insta is [redacted] if anyone wants to look. I sit there and laugh about how ridiculous it is sometimes!

Tell her to make her instagram not private lol

Requested to follow just for the lolz
Some people are so dense haha

She denied my follow request, she prob got a few dozen from strangers in the past hour

@benzyne you gotta post some of her ridiculous Instagram pics. Do it for us, do it for this thread, do it for the student doctor network

 

[SOMBound13]

.

 

[genericpremedstudent]

I think you guys are taking this too far.

Terms like Stalking/cyber bullying/creep are coming to mind.

How about we get back to funny and entertaining quotes.

yeah, it's not really cool to out someone's personal social media. anonymous stories are great and have very minimal risks for real life repercussions.

 

[BadgerBadger]

Granted, if you look up #premed on twitter or instagram you see some pretty cringy posts.

 

[benzyne]

Okay, sorry about outing the girl on the first post.

I do have another story though! Another girl in my school, bio major who has had to re-take many classes due to failing (and always blames it on the professors of course) talks all the time how she is going to be a pediatric neurosurgeon. Like alllll the time. We think she says it to impress boys, but in reality, she won't get into any med school in the states. I question her morals a lot as well. And when we gently suggest not to rule anything out she always says "I've spent so much time shadowing that I know exactly what I want to do. I've ruled out virtually every other specialty (including neurosurgery).

 

[NoTownPreMed]

Here's a most recent one from the girl who sits across from me in Chem:

Girl: It shouldn't be too hard, I got an "A" on intro to Chem. My family are full of doc's, so this is just like a refresher class for me.

3 months later....

Girl: Ugghhhhh, the professors here suck.

4 months later....

Girl: I'm dropping this class, I've decided to do nursing instead.

 

[aristrutz523]

Possibily the most common ignorance of the path to medicine comes from those who say they want to be a psychiatrist (if they are even aware it takes medical school in the first place)...."I'm a great listener."

P.s. I wanted to be a psychiatrist throughout adolescence and was clueless on many things.

I can't even pretend like I didn't say this freshman year. I used to tell people I wanted to do psychiatry b/c I "didn't want to touch or cut people, I just wanted to make money and prescribe drugs". Also I "didn't understand why I was taking bio or chem when I didn't wanna be a surgeon, I just wanted to talk to people and prescribe drugs"
No-one ever corrected me?
Didn't realize I was wrong about everything until mid-sophomore year lol.

 

[Rousey]

Just overheard from a freshman pre-med girl

Her: All the med students I've met have all been so dumb. I'm not even sure they did an undergrad

 

[Gurby]

I can't even pretend like I didn't say this freshman year. I used to tell people I wanted to do psychiatry b/c I "didn't want to touch or cut people, I just wanted to make money and prescribe drugs". Also I "didn't understand why I was taking bio or chem when I didn't wanna be a surgeon, I just wanted to talk to people and prescribe drugs"
No-one ever corrected me?
Didn't realize I was wrong about everything until mid-sophomore year lol.

That awkward, cringy, face-palm moment when you realize you've been wrong about something, and everyone was too polite to correct you while they silently judged you as a person because of it. Pretty common occurrence in my life...

 

[JustintheDoctor]

Here's a most recent one from the girl who sits across from me in Chem:

Girl: It shouldn't be too hard, I got an "A" on intro to Chem. My family are full of doc's, so this is just like a refresher class for me.

3 months later....

Girl: Ugghhhhh, the professors here suck.

4 months later....

Girl: I'm dropping this class, I've decided to do nursing instead.

*finds out you need chem for nursing too*
*becomes construction worker*

 

[Goro]

You're not alone. When I finished high school, I was an idiot.

When I finished college, I was an educated idiot.

I didn't become educated until I went to grad school!

I can't even pretend like I didn't say this freshman year. I used to tell people I wanted to do psychiatry b/c I "didn't want to touch or cut people, I just wanted to make money and prescribe drugs". Also I "didn't understand why I was taking bio or chem when I didn't wanna be a surgeon, I just wanted to talk to people and prescribe drugs"
No-one ever corrected me?
Didn't realize I was wrong about everything until mid-sophomore year lol.

 

[aristrutz523]

That awkward, cringy, face-palm moment when you realize you've been wrong about something, and everyone was too polite to correct you while they silently judged you as a person because of it. Pretty common occurrence in my life...

Seriously resent every *real* adult who smiled and agreed with me. I mean, it made sense to me at the time. Plus- until you're truly preparing to go into the medical field, most people are still under the impression that doctors are billionaires. I can't tell you how many times I've talked to a guy and when they found out I'm pre-med, they say "Great! So I can be your trophy husband!"......perhaps if that trophy is from the Dollar Tree LOL.

You're not alone. When I finished high school, I was an idiot.

When I finished college, I was an educated idiot.

I didn't become educated until I went to grad school!

At least now I can look back and laugh. Judging from this thread, there are people who are ahead of me in this process still utterly confused. Those are the ones I really just feel bad for.


On another note, and this is just me venting about a friend who claims he's "well-educated" on the process. He's currently applying/interviewing, so he thinks he knows EVERYTHING. We were talking about secondaries and I was telling him how, since I'm taking a gap year, I'm going to pre-write a good amount of them senior year. He told me I can't because all schools change them every year and I might not even get a secondary. I was like, oh no I've been tracking my schools on SDN and they change minimally or not at all. Plus, a large % of schools send everyone secondaries which sucks b/c you think you have a chance and you pay, and you don't. And he was like NO YOU KNOW NOTHING, you can't pre-write it's a waste of time and actually all schools pre-screen. So I was like, some do yes, but unfortunately a large amount don't. And he was like, listen you haven't been through it trust me I know about applying, just listen to me.
So I just ended the argument there. He just happened to be applying to schools that DO pre-screen secondaries so he wasn't wrong about HIS experience but I tried to explain that even Harvard will basically sent a secondary to someone with a 1.2 GPA and he just kept telling me I knew nothing b/c I haven't applied.
The magical invention called the internet has apparently no weight in the real world

He also said he's "waiting on interviews" from Stanford and UCLA so he knows better..... I mean, if we're going by "waiting for interviews", almost every med school applicant is pretty impressive LOL

 

[Lost in Translation]

FWIW I didn't pre-write at all and I've got a fistful of interviews.

 

[SOMBound13]

since I'm taking a gap year, I'm going to pre-write a good amount of them senior year.

Not a bad idea if you have time and will be applying to a lot of schools. I didn't pre-write, but I only applied to 6. What will you be doing right after graduation? Working full time? If so, then pre-writing some will allow you to submit secondaries pretty promptly after receiving the requests.

 

[Lawpy]

Credit to James Chang and KevinMD for nicely summarizing SDN in a nutshell

 

[DocVaquero]

Credit to James Chang and KevinMD for nicely summarizing SDN in a nutshell

I'm going to dental school next year and I still found the ending hilarious

 

[aristrutz523]

Not a bad idea if you have time and will be applying to a lot of schools. I didn't pre-write, but I only applied to 6. What will you be doing right after graduation? Working full time? If so, then pre-writing some will allow you to submit secondaries pretty promptly after receiving the requests.

I'm actually applying to AmeriCorps to do City Year so the days there are ~7am-5pm, plus I want to get involved with volunteering and research *wherever* I am placed. I'm also not a strong writer which is why pre-writing, for me at least, is so important because my University has a great writing center that will read through and edit your essays.
Technicallllly, I finish my Undergraduate degree next semester, but I'm staying the full 4 years b/c A) my sGPA is low and I want to take more sciences to boost it, b) so I can get my application together and have free time to work on it and C) who wants to graduate undergrad early?..... so I'm just not telling my mom that my degree is done and I'm holding off on 1 necessary History class so the school doesn't force me out

 

[SOMBound13]

I'm actually applying to AmeriCorps to do City Year so the days there are ~7am-5pm, plus I want to get involved with volunteering and research *wherever* I am placed. I'm also not a strong writer which is why pre-writing, for me at least, is so important because my University has a great writing center that will read through and edit your essays.
Technicallllly, I finish my Undergraduate degree next semester, but I'm staying the full 4 years b/c A) my sGPA is low and I want to take more sciences to boost it, b) so I can get my application together and have free time to work on it and C) who wants to graduate undergrad early?..... so I'm just not telling my mom that my degree is done and I'm holding off on 1 necessary History class so the school doesn't force me out

Great that you're not graduating after 3 years, particularly with a sGPA issue. So, you'll be applying during the 2017/18 cycle?

 

[jaxon]

IM LIVE TWEETING THIS RIGHT NOW FROM THE DINING HALL:

1: Yea my cousin got into Med school in ROME.
2: OMG THATS AWESOME
1: Yea since he's near the Vatican, he's gonna get like guaranteed residency at a Catholic hospital back here. It's basically vacation for him.
2: So he didn't want to do med school in the states?
1: Nah, he got in like everywhere though but got a full ride in Rome.
2: Oh wow, thats pretty unreal.
1: Yea dude unreal. He's a literal genius.

Me:

 

[breezy16]

Not a bad idea if you have time and will be applying to a lot of schools. I didn't pre-write, but I only applied to 6. What will you be doing right after graduation? Working full time? If so, then pre-writing some will allow you to submit secondaries pretty promptly after receiving the requests.

Just to add to this.. I didn't prewrite, applied to 25, and had apps in within 2-3 weeks (most within 5 days).
I work 40-45 hrs a week.. Just depends how you pace / push yourself

 

[breezy16]

IM LIVE TWEETING THIS RIGHT NOW FROM THE DINING HALL:

1: Yea my cousin got into Med school in ROME.
2: OMG THATS AWESOME
1: Yea since he's near the Vatican, he's gonna get like guaranteed residency at a Catholic hospital back here. It's basically vacation for him.
2: So he didn't want to do med school in the states?
1: Nah, he got in like everywhere though but got a full ride in Rome.
2: Oh wow, thats pretty unreal.
1: Yea dude unreal. He's a literal genius.

Me:

dafaq. Gimme some of that popcorn

 

[Cotterpin]

IM LIVE TWEETING THIS RIGHT NOW FROM THE DINING HALL:

1: Yea my cousin got into Med school in ROME.
2: OMG THATS AWESOME
1: Yea since he's near the Vatican, he's gonna get like guaranteed residency at a Catholic hospital back here. It's basically vacation for him.
2: So he didn't want to do med school in the states?
1: Nah, he got in like everywhere though but got a full ride in Rome.
2: Oh wow, thats pretty unreal.
1: Yea dude unreal. He's a literal genius.

Me:

I know a guy who went to med school in Rome. He definitely did it because it would have been futile to try to apply to US schools. You only have to take a test to go to school in Europe, I think. And then you start med school taking basic premed classes.

 

[aristrutz523]

Great that you're not graduating after 3 years, particularly with a sGPA issue. So, you'll be applying during the 2017/18 cycle?

Yup!
And I'm working to repair it. Luckily I'm not a science major so I've taken very few science credits, definitely a lot of wiggle room left for me!