How often did yall go out 1st year?

[dog0]

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Hey there,

I'll be starting medical school this Fall and was wondering how much time is available during the first year for night-life? I know academics will be my top priority, but I'm too young (turn 22 in October) to be solely focused on school. I went to school at Florida, and I'm not sure if I'm quite ready to not get obnoxiously out of control during football season (although I have a feeling ACC football will be subpar compared to the SEC 🙁). I've heard mixed things; many students have told me there is plenty of time to go out. However, I'm a little scared after reading some of these posts. Anyone?

 

[Law2Doc]

Hey there,

I'll be starting medical school this Fall and was wondering how much time is available during the first year for night-life? I know academics will be my top priority, but I'm too young (turn 22 in October) to be solely focused on school. I went to school in Florida, and I'm not sure if I'm quite ready to not get obnoxiously out of control during football season (although I have a feeling ACC football will be subpar compared to the SEC 🙁). I've heard mixed things; many students have told me there is plenty of time to go out. However, I'm a little scared after reading some of these posts. Anyone?

The folks who say there is plenty of time to go out probably didn't have a crazy undergrad nightlife. If you are the average med student, you will go out during orientation, on the weekend after every exam, and maybe a few hours each non-exam week weekend. During the week, you will probably have time to workout, have meals with friends, and watch a bit of TV. But you will miss a ton of football games, will spend a ton of sunny weekends indoors, and probably will curtail any weekday happy hour activity. By way of example, I went out a ton in undergrad, a bit less but still a decent amount in law school, but substantially less in med school. There's just so much to learn and not enough hours in the day to master it all, that it's hard to justify closing the books too frequently. A lot of it will depend on your efficiency studying, and how well you do on the first couple of exams. For the half of the class who find themselves in the bottom half of the class for the first time of their lives, and for the top quarter of the class gunning for competitive residencies, med school life is going to be spent in the books. If you are in that lucky remainder who is doing well and not particularly interested in a competitive specialty, then you may make an extra happy hour or two. But I gotta say, from the tenor of your post, you aren't going to like the schedule you are going to be forced to adopt.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

My school had a bar tour every Thursday night, and I think there were several people who went almost every week aside from test block week and the week right before that. People also regularly went out on the weekend, so yeah, it's doable. I would say it's probably best to limit the hangovers to once a week. 🙂

 

[dog0]

The folks who say there is plenty of time to go out probably didn't have a crazy undergrad nightlife. If you are the average med student, you will go out during orientation, on the weekend after every exam, and maybe a few hours each non-exam week weekend. During the week, you will probably have time to workout, have meals with friends, and watch a bit of TV. But you will miss a ton of football games, will spend a ton of sunny weekends indoors, and probably will curtail any weekday happy hour activity. By way of example, I went out a ton in undergrad, a bit less but still a decent amount in law school, but substantially less in med school. There's just so much to learn and not enough hours in the day to master it all, that it's hard to justify closing the books too frequently. A lot of it will depend on your efficiency studying, and how well you do on the first couple of exams. For the half of the class who find themselves in the bottom half of the class for the first time of their lives, and for the top quarter of the class gunning for competitive residencies, med school life is going to be spent in the books. If you are in that lucky remainder who is doing well and not particularly interested in a competitive specialty, then you may make an extra happy hour or two. But I gotta say, from the tenor of your post, you aren't going to like the schedule you are going to be forced to adopt.

Sounds scary. Maybe I am underestimating this whole medical school thing and am focusing too much on my undergraduate career. I always thought College was a test of how well you can manage your time. I cannot fathom the level of work anyone can have where they spend 'a ton of sunny weekends indoors.' During my sophmore year, my schedule was pretty rigorous for an undergraduate; I took the Biology, Physics, and O-Chem sequences together on top of other required courses, was in the lab 20 hours/week, worked out, volunteered, and yet NEVER missed 1 home Florida game. Away games were a little different. Instead I would wake up hungover on Saturday, hit up the library for a couple of hours, and make it home in time to watch the game and get drunk the rest of the day. I am not trying to sound like Superman, but I'm having a hard time envisioning this non-stop studying (and no I am not one of 'those kids;' I have to study a lot, the same amount if not more than the average individual). Even during senior year, I went to the Cocktail Party, Baton Rouge, Gasparilla, Mardi Gra, Tallahasse, and other random events and still managed fine; not to mention the 10 interviews I had. Maybe I'm up for a rude awakening, but we'll see. I am not doubting the workload, but I don't understand how it can be that much harder than a tough major at a respectable Undergraduate. In Medical school, don't the days start a lot earlier too and on average, aren't credit hours a little less than a 'rigorous' schedule in Undergraduate?

As far as going out non stop, is time the arch nemesis, or is it losing focus? I guess the bad thing about alcohol is that it makes people non-functional the next day. It's also very easy to get caught up in the night-life; once you go out a couple of times during the week, it's difficult to get back on track.

 

[Law2Doc]

Sounds scary. Maybe I am underestimating this whole medical school thing and am focusing too much on my undergraduate career. I always thought College was a test of how well you can manage your time. I cannot fathom the level of work anyone can have where they spend 'a ton of sunny weekends indoors.' During my sophmore year, my schedule was pretty rigorous for an undergraduate; I took the Biology, Physics, and O-Chem sequences together on top of other required courses, was in the lab 20 hours/week, worked out, volunteered, and yet NEVER missed 1 home Florida game. Away games were a little different. Instead I would wake up hungover on Saturday, hit up the library for a couple of hours, and make it home in time to watch the game and get drunk the rest of the day. I am not trying to sound like Superman, but I'm having a hard time envisioning this non-stop studying (and no I am not one of 'those kids;' I have to study a lot, the same amount if not more than the average individual). Even during senior year, I went to the Cocktail Party, Baton Rouge, Gasparilla, Mardi Gra, Tallahasse, and other random events and still managed fine; not to mention the 10 interviews I had. Maybe I'm up for a rude awakening, but we'll see. I am not doubting the workload, but I don't understand how it can be that much harder than a tough major at a respectable Undergraduate. In Medical school, don't the days start a lot earlier too and on average, aren't credit hours a little less than a 'rigorous' schedule in Undergraduate?

As far as going out non stop, is time the arch nemesis, or is it losing focus? I guess the bad thing about alcohol is that it makes people non-functional the next day. It's also very easy to get caught up in the night-life; once you go out a couple of times during the week, it's difficult to get back on track.

Comparing the workload to undergrad is setting yourself up for a bad surprise. Studying through the weekend is pretty common in med school because that is the only pair of days where you aren't getting any new material thrown at you, and so it is a great time to get organized, review the week, catch up. You will be able to do some of the stuff you got to do in undergrad that you describe above, but absolutely no way you are going to be able to do most of what you are describing. You will miss a lot of football games. You won't be going to Mardis Gras, Gasparilla or other events like that unless they fall on the very rare post-exam weekend that you can afford to enjoy. (so you will be saving lots of money on beer and plastic beads, I'm afraid). I partied like you did in college. Had to shut this all down for med school. You've gotta have your priorities on straight.

During the first two years of med school, the classes probably start in the 8-9 am range, so not that early. But to do well with the level of material they throw at you, the key for most people is going to be multiple passes through the material. Meaning you want to preview the material before class, attend class (or watch the lecture remotely), review immediately after class, then review again on the weekend, and still again before the exam. The sheer volume of material and the need to lock this into longterm memory as best you can simply demands the kind of effort nobody ever does in undergrad, so folks tend to be pretty impressed with the workload, or else shocked into reality by their first test scores. Everybody survives it, but it would be a lie to suggest you can treat it as a continuation of college. It makes college look like a walk in the park.

Come 3rd year, all bets are off; you may be on a rotation which requires you to get to the hospital before 5, you may be on a rotation where you spend every third night working overnight in the hospital, you may get off one weekend out of every couple, and may need to spend it sleeping or studying for a shelf.

 

[LadyWolverine]

During first year, I went out almost every weekend night that wasn't a pre-test weekend (we have most exams on Mondays). There was the occasional happy hour or night out during a weekday, too. I have a lot of friends in the DC area, and spent many weekends down in DC. My classmates/Baltimore friends and I usually went all-out the evening after an exam, and many of us would go out during subsequent evenings during that week. However, the weekend just before the exam is usually completely reserved for studying (aside from the occasional dinner/coffee study break with friends).

Second year, my social life took a much harder hit - but I think this was true for a lot of people (more extracurricular committments and more material in courses). Towards the middle of the year, attendance at post-exam events started to decline, and there were fewer official and impromptu class-wide social events throughout the year. Most people by then had their own "cliques" with whom they planned their own social outings, although there was a fair amount of comingling and overlap when enough people went out (it's not that people were/are intentionally cliquish, it's just inevitable with a group as large and diverse as a medical school class). Towards the end of second year, however, I started spending most "free" weekends in the DC area (Let's just say, I'm not a big fan of the City of Baltimore), so people may have continued to go out a lot on weekends - I just wasn't around and didn't partake.

I definitely agree that you should live it up while you still can - 22 was an amazing year (luckily, I wasn't in medical school at the time and was able to enjoy it to the fullest 🙂 ), and you should be enjoying your youth and social life. I second the advice to limit hangovers to no more than 1x/week...and remember, as you get older, you need more and more time to recover! A hangover used to last me a couple of hours...now I need a day and a half to get back to normal! 🙁

 

[dog0]

Cool, cool. I just don't want to be that 30 year old trying to relive his 20s, wishing he had gone balls-to-the-walls in the early days.

 

[Tired]

I went out 2-3 times a week.

Of course, at my school lecture wasn't mandatory and I didn't go all that often.

 

[McMD]

To OP: what school are you going to?...since you say your went to UF and are now in an ACC school. AND DONT UNDERESTIMATE THE ACC!!!! 😀 Although football was top priority in undergrad, I'm at UM for med school and only a handful of ppl talk about our college football, let alone go to the games. Most ppl, if interested in college football, only pay close attn to (and even go to) their undergraduate games since that's where their allegiance is to.

However, (probably especially at UM since Miami nightlife is available 365 days a year), you can really go out as MUCH as you want to. I opted not to go out much because I'm over staying out till 7am, however, many of my friends would go out at least 3-4 times a week consistently 1st and 2nd year. You can ALWAYS find someone willing to go out with also.

 

[njbmd]

Anything that is important for you, you will make time for doing. You are not going to be "shut up" in a monastery. Most people do what they have to do to get their studies under control and plot life after that. If you can't manage your time, figuring out how to get to a football game will be the least of your worries.

 

[dog0]

To OP: what school are you going to?...since you say your went to UF and are now in an ACC school. AND DONT UNDERESTIMATE THE ACC!!!! 😀 Although football was top priority in undergrad, I'm at UM for med school and only a handful of ppl talk about our college football, let alone go to the games. Most ppl, if interested in college football, only pay close attn to (and even go to) their undergraduate games since that's where their allegiance is to.

However, (probably especially at UM since Miami nightlife is available 365 days a year), you can really go out as MUCH as you want to. I opted not to go out much because I'm over staying out till 7am, however, many of my friends would go out at least 3-4 times a week consistently 1st and 2nd year. You can ALWAYS find someone willing to go out with also.

Went to undergrad at UF and will be attending UVA for med school. I'm originally from the Ft. Laudy area. Nightlife in Miami is a little different than most people anticipate, especially South Beach. Unless you know promoters or you're rolling with mad h0es, you're not getting in anywhere, especially for free. Furthermore, the likelihood of you knowing promoters exponentially decrease the more educated you are 😛

PS. I waited in line for 30 mins at Dolce last weekend when I knew people and rolled with a party that had mad girls. I guess I should have worn an Ed Hardy shirt with tacky white shoes :\

 

[psipsina]

There is time for socialization during 1st & 2nd year. I'd suggest going pretty hardcore for your first block and see how you do. If you do well and feel you had some time to spare loosen up for the rest of the semester, if you're struggling you have your answer. Everyone is different.

But if something is important to you it can be done (within reason) with a little time management. For instance I'm in my best friends wedding at the end of September. I'll be rocking it out in the library the week before and after to make up for a few days off to see her get married. For me my main priority is time with my husband and on non test weeks we have a date night every week in addition to eating dinner together every night minimum. I also manage to work out and read for fun every night before bed. Of course I'm not a class goer so take those extra few hours per day into consideration lol.

 

[sirus_virus]

Here are a few things that can ruin your grades big time in medschool.

1) Going out to much.
2) Unhealthy relationships (this one will rip any medstudent to shreds).
3) Excessive masturbation.
4) Isolation from your peers.
5) illness

 

[lisichka]

Here are a few things that can ruin your grades big time in medschool.

1) Going out to much.
2) Unhealthy relationships (this one will rip any medstudent to shreds).
3) Excessive masturbation.
4) Isolation from your peers.
5) illness

can you please give a specific example for #4? thanks.

 

[TexasTriathlete]

1. There is no such thing as "excessive masturbation"

2. Every doctor who has ever told me that I would party my ass off in med school went to UTMB-Galveston.

Posted via Mobile Device

 

[Law2Doc]

If you can't manage your time, figuring out how to get to a football game will be the least of your worries.

If I read his post correctly, we aren't talking about "a" football game. The dude, like some of us in college, had an extremely active night life, traveled to where the party was (some of his events listed were out of state), and didn't miss a game, probably preceded by significant tailgating and partying after. I lived that life in college too. And I've gotta say med school is really really different. No amount of time management is going to allow you to continue that lifestyle and still pass your courses, let alone do well. As njbmd suggests, you can probably make "a" football game now and then if it's important to you, probably without the tailgating. You can afford to be hung over on the weekend after an exam, but not regularly. No way you are going to be able to wait a half hour to get into a nightclub on a weeknight where the action probably doesn't start until after 11 anyhow, because that impacts not just that night but also the next day. Expect to have to significantly curtail your night life.

The problem with some of these threads is that you are asking former premeds if you will still have time to go out. A lot of premeds in undergrad didn't go out to any great degree, so in med school their life doesn't change a whole lot. They may have felt like they had an active night life, but they usually weren't the barflies that composed the other 90% of the undergrad class. So yeah, if your undergrad night life was lame, med school won't be much different. If you watched an occasional football game, without partying at either end, you will still be able to do that now and then. But anyone who doesn't suggest that you will have to seriously curtail an active nightlife in med school probably is working from a different definition of active nightlife than I, and probably the OP.

At any rate, I agree with psipsina above. Start out going full steam with your studies. If you find after a few tests that you are doing really well, then start adding in more social stuff. The key is to find some balance between life and school, but never to lose your focus that the priority for the next few years has to be school. Absolutely use time management, as njbmd suggests, but most people will find that good time management means you free up some time "now and then" (eg "a" football game), not anything frequently or regularly.

 

[Long Dong]

I broke up with my GF in first year and so went out man whoring every thurs-saturday. If whatever is important to you, you'll make the time to do it.

 

[OCallag]

I think you are all taking this too seriously. As soon as dog0 sees his first UVA football game...he won't want to see another one. Problem solved. 😀

 

[bodonid]

Here are a few things that can ruin your grades big time in medschool.

1) Going out to much.
2) Unhealthy relationships (this one will rip any medstudent to shreds).
3) Excessive masturbation.
4) Isolation from your peers.
5) illness

wtf?

 

[Tired]

1. There is no such thing as "excessive masturbation"

You must own a far better lubricant than I, my friend.

 

[mjc48]

Sounds scary. Maybe I am underestimating this whole medical school thing and am focusing too much on my undergraduate career. I always thought College was a test of how well you can manage your time. I cannot fathom the level of work anyone can have where they spend 'a ton of sunny weekends indoors.' During my sophmore year, my schedule was pretty rigorous for an undergraduate; I took the Biology, Physics, and O-Chem sequences together on top of other required courses, was in the lab 20 hours/week, worked out, volunteered, and yet NEVER missed 1 home Florida game. Away games were a little different. Instead I would wake up hungover on Saturday, hit up the library for a couple of hours, and make it home in time to watch the game and get drunk the rest of the day. I am not trying to sound like Superman, but I'm having a hard time envisioning this non-stop studying (and no I am not one of 'those kids;' I have to study a lot, the same amount if not more than the average individual). Even during senior year, I went to the Cocktail Party, Baton Rouge, Gasparilla, Mardi Gra, Tallahasse, and other random events and still managed fine; not to mention the 10 interviews I had. Maybe I'm up for a rude awakening, but we'll see. I am not doubting the workload, but I don't understand how it can be that much harder than a tough major at a respectable Undergraduate. In Medical school, don't the days start a lot earlier too and on average, aren't credit hours a little less than a 'rigorous' schedule in Undergraduate?

As far as going out non stop, is time the arch nemesis, or is it losing focus? I guess the bad thing about alcohol is that it makes people non-functional the next day. It's also very easy to get caught up in the night-life; once you go out a couple of times during the week, it's difficult to get back on track.

i managed to have plenty of free time during the first two years of med school. time management is important, but i think more than that, you have to figure out what you need to do to succeed in classes. spending time efficiently is key- avoid elaborate texts that talk about unnecessary information and speculation about mechanisms. i'm not saying limit yourself to review books (at least not right away), but don't lose sight of the forest for the trees.

that being said, there will be plenty of times when missing out on things is unavoidable. especially at the end of second year when you are getting ready for step 1.

also, you may want to curb the arrogance.

 

[Orthodoc40]

It really seems that everyone finds what works for them. Some classmates seem to go out almost every night, and weekends - but have coasted through year 1. Most are in between. Get together for something fun once every week, or every few weeks. Some classmates have clearly been to every restaurant in this town at least once, which impressed me, since I've been to maybe four in a year.

 

[Law2Doc]

Some classmates have clearly been to every restaurant in this town at least once, which impressed me, since I've been to maybe four in a year.

Restaurants don't really count as going out -- everybody has to eat, it doesn't really cost you time. The OP is talking about late night nightclubbing, tailgate parties, and out of town drunk-fests.

 

[MSHell]

Some of us worked 25+ hours/week in undergrad. Others partied. I don't think there are many med students working 25+ hours/week either.

I work hard in school now, but the free time I have, I prefer to spend in coma rather than in some crap job that would drain me even more.

Seems to me the party+hangover combo is the same deal.

 

[sirus_virus]

can you please give a specific example for #4? thanks.

There is a lot of free information and tips you get from other medstudents, if you isolate yourself you will be at a huge disadvantage.

 

[186321]

I think you are all taking this too seriously. As soon as dog0 sees his first UVA football game...he won't want to see another one. Problem solved. 😀

I was thinking the same thing. The ACC is not great, but UVA is dog poo. Dog0, I would recommend going to the Clemson game to see them get torn apart. You can also see RB C.J. Spiller who turned his back on your beloved gators.

 

[dog0]

I was thinking the same thing. The ACC is not great, but UVA is dog poo. Dog0, I would recommend going to the Clemson game to see them get torn apart. You can also see RB C.J. Spiller who turned his back on your beloved gators.

True, I'll also make sure I book a flight to wherever the BCS Championship game is too...

 

[Orthodoc40]

Restaurants don't really count as going out -- everybody has to eat, it doesn't really cost you time. The OP is talking about late night nightclubbing, tailgate parties, and out of town drunk-fests.

Yah, I got that, but was trying to say basically, I didn't even go out that much. 🙁

 

[lisichka]

Yah, I got that, but was trying to say basically, I didn't even go out that much. 🙁

😳 me too

 

[DCDAWG]

Hey there,

I'll be starting medical school this Fall and was wondering how much time is available during the first year for night-life? I know academics will be my top priority, but I'm too young (turn 22 in October) to be solely focused on school. I went to school at Florida, and I'm not sure if I'm quite ready to not get obnoxiously out of control during football season (although I have a feeling ACC football will be subpar compared to the SEC 🙁). I've heard mixed things; many students have told me there is plenty of time to go out. However, I'm a little scared after reading some of these posts. Anyone?

I didnt miss much college football during 1st year. Even when I had to study I had gamecast going on my computer so I could track all scores. I made it to Athens a few times for home games, and went to my 8th straight Georgia-Florida game (which was unbelievable this year).
As a fellow SEC fan, I understand your concern about keeping up with football. I go to school in Georgia so it made it easier that 50% of my class were Dawgs also. If you are going to school in the ACC, it may be more difficult to find people who share your deep interest.
Ill see you in J-ville this year. It may be a #1 vs. #2 game!

 

[onagraceae]

I didnt miss much college football during 1st year. Even when I had to study I had gamecast going on my computer so I could track all scores. I made it to Athens a few times for home games, and went to my 8th straight Georgia-Florida game (which was unbelievable this year).
As a fellow SEC fan, I understand your concern about keeping up with football. I go to school in Georgia so it made it easier that 50% of my class were Dawgs also. If you are going to school in the ACC, it may be more difficult to find people who share your deep interest.
Ill see you in J-ville this year. It may be a #1 vs. #2 game!

i'm very excited about aj green & caleb king. Green isn't going to redshirt, is he?

 

[Haemulon]

Hey, just to comment on the original topic: Here is just one example of workload at my school for the upcoming second year. One of the courses we start off with is Immunology, and we basically cover the textbook (about 900 pages) in just 4 weeks. Now many people don't read textbooks cover to cover (there just isn't time to do this for every class). But even going by the syllabus, summarizing 900 pages of material is still huge for just 4 weeks. And add on to this pathology, pathophys, Pharmacology, Micro (following immuno), clinic time, and more ... and there is not much time for anything else. Just saying ...

It's a world apart from undergrad. Brace yourself.

Typical schedule (at my school at least): 8-5 in class/clinic (varies by day, don't always attend lectures). Late afternoon and evening to review material of the day and try to prep for the next day. Plus need to work on various assignments, cram for whatever test is coming up next, look up extra stuff for preceptors in the clinic or hospital, and try to participate in student clubs or interest groups. Then squeeze in community volunteering if possible. Plus, most people like to try and fit in working out, jogging, and other things to stay physically active, which eats up still more precious time, but is still important.

If you can manage an active swilling and swinging lifestyle as well, more power to you. Somehow I am skeptical though.

 

[45408]

As far as going out non stop, is time the arch nemesis, or is it losing focus? I guess the bad thing about alcohol is that it makes people non-functional the next day. It's also very easy to get caught up in the night-life; once you go out a couple of times during the week, it's difficult to get back on track.

The latter. You honestly will have several hours to burn each day, but not if you're going to be smashed for the next day.

 

[dog0]

Also, I could care less if Virginia sucks. I'm sure DCDAWG can relate; it's more about the tradition. For all four years at Florida, Saturday football was a ritual. It's about the spirit, tailgating, and fun environment. Yeah it sucks to lose, but half the fun comes from tailgating and getting ridiculously crunk 😀

 

[Random Anesthesiologist]

Wow, to be 22 again! I'm old enough to be....... your beautiful older sister 😀.

I was a first-year grad student at 22 and went out quite a bit. Well, "it" came to me as my roommate and I lived in the country and we were the place our friends came to cook out and do bonfires.

almost 10 years later, my idea of "going out" is to run errands (post office, library, grocery store, workout) or a cheap date with my husband . But I still think I'll hang out with the kids a little bit this year. No reason to be antisocial 😳

 

[pdp2001]

i think it depends on the student. i did well my first 3 years, but i didn't spend every second studying. i also didn't go out as much as i did in college. people underestimate how draining it is to just sit around and hardcore study for even a few hours a day (especially if you've already sat through mind-numbing lectures).

IMO, if you're good at managing your time you should be able to do a lot of the things you want to outside of school your first year, much less so your second year, a bit more your third year depending on your rotation. i'm only 2 weeks into my last year, but so far it's been good. i'm also tired of not having a life (so are my classmates) so we go out more now.

 

[deleted109597]

Also, I could care less if Virginia sucks. I'm sure DCDAWG can relate; it's more about the tradition. For all four years at Florida, Saturday football was a ritual. It's about the spirit, tailgating, and fun environment. Yeah it sucks to lose, but half the fun comes from tailgating and getting ridiculously crunk 😀

The only rituals at UVa are wearing dress shirts and ties to the games. Seriously, they suck at the tailgate.
I recommend driving somewhere else for ritual. JMU actually does a good job (sometimes).

 

[medgrlsox21]

First congrats on UVA my bf will be headed there with you this fall and he is all about the weekend football so you'll already have a partner in crime. Second, I'm currently doing the first part of med school which is anatomy in the summer and its basically a 4month course compressed into 2 months so its like 5 hours a day of new material and dissection with an exam every two weeks. My approach is if you want free weekends, go hard core during the week. I basically attend class, study and go to the gym and relax with a game/movie at night and thats IT for weekdays. This leaves my weekends totally free to travel, drink or just basically sit on my ass. I think it will depend on how much of a "natural" you are to this medical game and whether you see fit to punish yourself during the week to kick back on weekends. Good luck 🙂 I'm sure you'll find time for fun

 

[kdburton]

Hey there,

I'll be starting medical school this Fall and was wondering how much time is available during the first year for night-life? I know academics will be my top priority, but I'm too young (turn 22 in October) to be solely focused on school. I went to school at Florida, and I'm not sure if I'm quite ready to not get obnoxiously out of control during football season (although I have a feeling ACC football will be subpar compared to the SEC 🙁). I've heard mixed things; many students have told me there is plenty of time to go out. However, I'm a little scared after reading some of these posts. Anyone?

It all depends on how "good" you are at school. If you study efficiently enough where you can do well while studying relatively little (relative to other med students, not to how much you studied in undergrad) then you will actually haven plenty of time. There are a lot of people I know who are able to go out every weekend night and still do well in 1st year. I, on the other hand, tend to study quite a bit for my standards and on average I went out 1 night per week. However, that one night per week usually included a wicked hangover the next day that pretty much eliminated the chance of me doing any studying whatsoever the next day as well. On weeks where we had exams I usually didn't go out at all, and on some weeks when we didn't have exams I'd go out Fri and Sat. There are also students who studied a lot more than I did and I never saw them at a single social function (whether it was school-related or not). If you're just talking about watching football games then I don't think you will have any problems - thats only a few hours a week at most. But if an early evening football game turns into a late night at the bar followed by a nonproductive day afterwards then L2D is correct that you may be "missing some football games."

 

[dog0]

With the exception of my senior year, I succeed in my classes by attending office hours. I never pre-read; instead, I'd go to class, do the work 4-5 before an exam, and if any questions arose (instead of trying to come up with my own method of deriving an answer), I'd attend office hours. However, things changed during my senior year. I crammed hard core and still maneged to pull straight As my fall semester (Inorganic Chemistry, Eukaryotic Cell Structure, Film Analysis, Research Credit). Once I got accepted into medical school, my GPA went from a 3.99 to a 3.89 😛

I think that's what a lot of Undergraduates did not understand; regardless, if you cram 1-2 days before an exam, you spend an equal amount of time trying to understand the material than someone who got a head start. The only difference is you're at a clear disadvantage. Studying well ahead before an exam helps isolate areas of concern, and allows one to see a professor/attend office hours to clear things up 🙂

 

[bola]

Hey there,

I'll be starting medical school this Fall and was wondering how much time is available during the first year for night-life? I know academics will be my top priority, but I'm too young (turn 22 in October) to be solely focused on school. I went to school at Florida, and I'm not sure if I'm quite ready to not get obnoxiously out of control during football season (although I have a feeling ACC football will be subpar compared to the SEC 🙁). I've heard mixed things; many students have told me there is plenty of time to go out. However, I'm a little scared after reading some of these posts. Anyone?

I completely understand your fear of growing up/becoming a GRAD student and losing all the fun years of undergrad. I remember thinking of grad students as oh so old while I was in undergrad. As for partying, football games, etc - an amazing rearrangement of priorities occurs in med school. So much so that you don't even feel bad for not having time for as many extra curriculars.

In my senior year of undergrad and the year I took off before starting med sch, I probably watched every NFL game that came on and of course the superbowl. I also attended most of my school's football and basketball home games.

Now even though I'm in a school with a relatively better sports team, when I have to study, I'm not really thinking "oh shoot today's game is going to be a really great one and here I am with this mountain of notes to study, poor me", more like "Oh they're playing team X today, interesting. Anyway, nice 5 minutes check-the-game-schedule study break there, now back to Physio". And as for the NFL, the only game I sat down to watch this year was the 2nd half of the superbowl (and it was pretty worth my time too!). Don't get me wrong, if watching football games is that important for you, you will still find time to go for one or two games.

As for night life, I'm not sure how much time you'll have for it like many others have said. Usually there are parties after every exam and maybe enough time for one night on the town a week (by night I mean 11pm-2am). But I don't think you're going to miss it in the way you think. Your priorities usually change.

 

[Slide]

With the exception of my senior year, I succeed in my classes by attending office hours. I never pre-read; instead, I'd go to class, do the work 4-5 before an exam, and if any questions arose (instead of trying to come up with my own method of deriving an answer), I'd attend office hours. However, things changed during my senior year. I crammed hard core and still maneged to pull straight As my fall semester (Inorganic Chemistry, Eukaryotic Cell Structure, Film Analysis, Research Credit). Once I got accepted into medical school, my GPA went from a 3.99 to a 3.89 😛

I think that's what a lot of Undergraduates did not understand; regardless, if you cram 1-2 days before an exam, you spend an equal amount of time trying to understand the material than someone who got a head start. The only difference is you're at a clear disadvantage. Studying well ahead before an exam helps isolate areas of concern, and allows one to see a professor/attend office hours to clear things up 🙂

Just keep in mind that this strategy won't work in medical school. The way to create free time is to organize your study schedule M1 year efficiently.

 

[sprinkibrio]

2-4 times/mo to a bar/party. I'm not sure more is possible or desirable because I get tempted to go overboard on drinking and staying out too late upsets my sleep schedule. Generally hanging out, however, can be done as often as you want. If you want to go over to your girlfriend's house everyday it's possible except during a test week.

 

[majik1213]

Sounds scary. Maybe I am underestimating this whole medical school thing and am focusing too much on my undergraduate career. I always thought College was a test of how well you can manage your time. I cannot fathom the level of work anyone can have where they spend 'a ton of sunny weekends indoors.' During my sophmore year, my schedule was pretty rigorous for an undergraduate; I took the Biology, Physics, and O-Chem sequences together on top of other required courses, was in the lab 20 hours/week, worked out, volunteered, and yet NEVER missed 1 home Florida game. Away games were a little different. Instead I would wake up hungover on Saturday, hit up the library for a couple of hours, and make it home in time to watch the game and get drunk the rest of the day. I am not trying to sound like Superman, but I'm having a hard time envisioning this non-stop studying (and no I am not one of 'those kids;' I have to study a lot, the same amount if not more than the average individual). Even during senior year, I went to the Cocktail Party, Baton Rouge, Gasparilla, Mardi Gra, Tallahasse, and other random events and still managed fine; not to mention the 10 interviews I had. Maybe I'm up for a rude awakening, but we'll see. I am not doubting the workload, but I don't understand how it can be that much harder than a tough major at a respectable Undergraduate. In Medical school, don't the days start a lot earlier too and on average, aren't credit hours a little less than a 'rigorous' schedule in Undergraduate?

As far as going out non stop, is time the arch nemesis, or is it losing focus? I guess the bad thing about alcohol is that it makes people non-functional the next day. It's also very easy to get caught up in the night-life; once you go out a couple of times during the week, it's difficult to get back on track.

the only rude awakening i had was loss of structure. I was a varsity athlete in college, and was used to working out 6 out of 7 days per week. There are no varsity programs here, and the time is what you make of it. You will be forced to have a portion of time every day that is not spent studying, if not by your mind then by your body (you have to eat). You will find that you can really slack a whole lot and still pass, but to do well requires constantly being in the library or being really freakin smart (high MCAT may come in handy).

 

[sprinkibrio]

.

 

[IHeartNerds]

Our first "semester" was pretty much, besides Anatomy, review for people who were science majors in undergrad. I know quite a few of my fellow students who went out 3+ times a week, every week, the entire time. And this is not "gee, we went to a bar and had a beer and then left," this is drinking to gross intoxication. Sure, maybe the two days before an exam they didn't, but they certainly made up for it the night after the exam. P/F didnt hurt that attitude either...

Note: this does not apply to our core one-year systems-based curriculum, which we take after that initial August-Dec. Most of us go to bed at 10 pm now and study over lunch. I can't remember the last time I ate without reading an excerpt from Robbins... 🙄