LOL! There's not. It's definitely good to have healthy competition. Personally, I'm really self-motivated, and I never really think to ask how my classmates did unless I care enough about them to be concerned that they're doing well. I think if I was a "traditional" 20-year-old pre-med I'd be more competitive with others. I'm only striving for my own GPA...so it IS every man for himself, I suppose, but I really like to see the kids I study with do well too.
I think the difference is that I see undergrad as a means to an end. I really love certain classes (like pharmacology, which is really awesome at my school), but I only want to do well in biochem because med schools will be looking at this semester's grades. If I had applied and been accepted this cycle, I'd still go for the A, but not quite as intensely...I'll be learning what I need to in med school anyway. Other pre-meds are so gung-ho that they "need" the A purely because they're continuously driven to be "the best." It's not a bad thing, but at some point you need to learn to relax when you're given the opportunity to do so!
I study with a small group of kids in my major, and I've never really thought of myself as "in competition" with them. Come exam time, I hope that we'll ALL do well. While I'd be happy in any med school, I'd definitely prefer a pure pass/fail school that facilitates students learning together, rather than competing for grades. I'm sure I would have thought differently if I was ten years younger. Your study buddy probably is rooting for you to succeed as much as she's determined to succeed. Purely speculation, but I bet it's true
