how to deal with envy and bitterness?

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I can't believe I read through this whole thread.

I support the posters who mention that you should just relax. I also understand that is probably not possible for you. If you are having trouble with the anxiety of possibly scoring "only" a 33 (which is perfectly reasonable to expect based on your practice scores), then that is a problem in and of itself. A 33 is not something to be ashamed of, nor is it, in practice, that much worse than a 36.

I just have to keep reminding myself that you have a great GPA and will likely have a MCAT in the mid 30s. Assuming you can write secondaries and interview okay, you will be a MD someday. It's that simple.

Just a word of advice: it's not just about where you end up that matters, it's also the path you take. It seems like you're only shooting for the endgame (which is what? A pile of money for you to enjoy by yourself? That's all I get from your previous posts). Maybe you should take a few years to return home, relax, work on something you'll enjoy, and study your butt off for the MCAT if it's something you're so anxious about. Sure, you'll continue to see people your age be successful before you feel like you are. That tends to happen when you have lots of friends from a great university. Just remind yourself that you will also ultimately be successful... however, you also have to realize that you HAVE been successful. Envy is a never-ending emotion since you can always compare yourself to others. You will NEVER be as successful as everyone in every regard. Hopefully you have friends and family to support you.

N.B. - Like others have said, if the MCAT makes you this anxious, you have a hard road ahead of you. I'm sorry to make crass statements, but it's hard to take you very seriously. I'm honestly not sure if you're trying to troll us or not.
 
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I have a story, but I do not know if this is useful...

______________________________________

One time, I finished an exam for a course that has a 40-60% failure rate. Almost everyone bombed the exam, and I was scared to death. After the exam, I literally spent 8 hours reworking all of the problems.

My dad, who is a CPA, told me that all I can do is sit and wait, and that redoing all of those problems would not do me any good. He took the CPA exam/board twice and that's what he always did was relax.

I ended up with a 107 on the exam.

______________________________________

The situation you are in is extremely painful. How you look on paper (which gets you the interviews) and how you do in the interviews will determine whether or not you will become a doctor.

I am strongly against you "suffering" through this. In order to be successful, you need to be happy. Success is also defined by you--not by others.

Remember that you tried your best, and while you may not feel that you reached your potential, do not get upset. Do not treat yourself worse because you have not achieved what your friends have achieved.

You have many more unknown opportunities and a great future ahead of you. Your "plans" will change as time changes. I never expected the things that have happened to me (good and bad). In some ways, I have won the lottery in life.

While you do have "plans" do not jump the gun (start too soon on the plans) and make them extremely concrete and rigid. With your goals, you have to strive to success.

There is a book that may be of interest to you. Og Mandino's University of Success. The book was motivating for me and made me realize how various conflicting issues that occur on a daily basis with most people including myself affect my success.
 
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OP why do you want to become a doctor so bad? Why is it so personal to you?
 
johnamo said:
I can't believe I read through this whole thread.

I support the posters who mention that you should just relax. I also understand that is probably not possible for you. If you are having trouble with the anxiety of possibly scoring "only" a 33 (which is perfectly reasonable to expect based on your practice scores), then that is a problem in and of itself. A 33 is not something to be ashamed of, nor is it, in practice, that much worse than a 36.

I just have to keep reminding myself that you have a great GPA and will likely have a MCAT in the mid 30s. Assuming you can write secondaries and interview okay, you will be a MD someday. It's that simple.

Just a word of advice: it's not just about where you end up that matters, it's also the path you take. It seems like you're only shooting for the endgame (which is what? A pile of money for you to enjoy by yourself? That's all I get from your previous posts). Maybe you should take a few years to return home, relax, work on something you'll enjoy, and study your butt off for the MCAT if it's something you're so anxious about. Sure, you'll continue to see people your age be successful before you feel like you are. That tends to happen when you have lots of friends from a great university. Just remind yourself that you will also ultimately be successful... however, you also have to realize that you HAVE been successful. Envy is a never-ending emotion since you can always compare yourself to others. You will NEVER be as successful as everyone in every regard. Hopefully you have friends and family to support you.

N.B. - Like others have said, if the MCAT makes you this anxious, you have a hard road ahead of you. I'm sorry to make crass statements, but it's hard to take you very seriously. I'm honestly not sure if you're trying to troll us or not.
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i appreciate your words.

and no, i am not trying to troll you or anybody else.

and i will do whatever it takes to get in.
 
aspiring20 said:
it's the same reason as all my peers. but i've stopped thinking about reason a long time ago.
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See this may be one of the reasons you find yourself so bitter. Graduating from med school in and out of itself is not that great of an accomplishment in a larger context. What you do with all that training is what truly counts. Focus on what it is you wanna do as physician and view medical school as a tool that will help you to get there.
 
SunsFun said:
See this may be one of the reasons you find yourself so bitter. Graduating from med school in and out of itself is not that great of an accomplishment in a larger context. What you do with all that training is what truly counts. Focus on what it is you wanna do as physician and view medical school as a tool that will help you to get there.
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one of my peers flat out told me that the only type of doctor she'll ever consider is an ophthalmologist because she "wants that 500k salary in order to buy a mansion for her parents".

another one of my peers spent 30 minutes in organic lab talking about how much money radiologists make to the folks sitting next to him.

another one of my peers openly claimed (in a crowded auditorium) that her dad "only makes 250k a year as a cardiologist" and that when she begins a doctor, there's no way that "she'll consider such a lowly specialty"

i told one of my professors that one of the primary reason i want to possibly do surgery is 1) to help address the critical shortage of general surgeons in the health care field and 2) to use my talents with my hand (i am an artist) in order to help people during their most critical time of need.

the three peers all got into med school right out of undergrad, how am i supposed to feel?
 
aspiring20 said:
it's the same reason as all my peers. but i've stopped thinking about reason a long time ago.
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Revisit those reasons in the future. There might be times where you might feel backed into a corner, want to throw your hands up and say "Done! I'm so done!". Keeping on to the motivating factors and reasons as to why you chose this profession can bring you back into a positive mindset.

Disregard the reasons of those three peers. They don't have any impact on YOUR desires and career goals. They will be content with their lives, and so will you. Remember that it's a tough road, but when it gets tough, remember back to why you're doing all of this in the first place.
 
OP, it sounds like whether this year, or next year, or the year after that, you will be in the position to start learning to heal people. Just think about that for a while. Very few people have the brains, work ethic, and luck to be in your position, so realize how lucky you are to even be where you are.

As a fourth year vet student I can tell you I certainly do not feel that luck/honor/gratefulness all the time. But it's something you will need to learn to hold onto, through awful classes and tests and rotation schedules, if you are going to keep your compassion and humanity intact for your patients.

Also, remember that time does keep going. I tell myself that during alllll my large animal rotations (no offense horses! but you're scary!). The two weeks will end, you will get your score, life will go on.

If I may suggest it, nothing takes one's mind off one's own problems like helping someone else. So maybe it will help you to do some extra days of volunteering or mow all your neighbor's lawns or something.
 
aspiring20 said:
one of my peers flat out told me that the only type of doctor she'll ever consider is an ophthalmologist because she "wants that 500k salary in order to buy a mansion for her parents".

another one of my peers spent 30 minutes in organic lab talking about how much money radiologists make to the folks sitting next to him.

another one of my peers openly claimed (in a crowded auditorium) that her dad "only makes 250k a year as a cardiologist" and that when she begins a doctor, there's no way that "she'll consider such a lowly specialty"

i told one of my professors that one of the primary reason i want to possibly do surgery is 1) to help address the critical shortage of general surgeons in the health care field and 2) to use my talents with my hand (i am an artist) in order to help people during their most critical time of need.

the three peers all got into med school right out of undergrad, how am i supposed to feel?
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Although I cannot offer you any specific advise I am willing to bet that medical school and residency will be a rude awakening for them. Just because they overcame one hurdle doesn't mean they will certainly reach all their dreams no matter how realistic those dreams are. Don't feel envious now, wait until they get there and wary about yourself.
 
Having a long road ahead is not a bad thing. I doubt he or she is in for a rude awakening.

At this point of time, personal development--with the MCAT, academic goals, volunteering, and practicing interviewing skills, etc. is what the OP needs to focus on.

Perhaps directing the OP to other threads of difficult situations that others have overcome would be helpful (I am looking for some now...).
 
aspiring20 said:
i just took the MCAT this past weekend (7/13), and i have to say it went pretty well. i averaged 30-35 on the AAMC exams (35 on 10, 33 on 11), and i think i got at least a 33 on the real thing.

so while finishing the MCAT is an accomplishment (and a big one at that), everytime i see my peers getting into medical school, booking their european vacation trips, and celebrating the completion of MS1...i cannot help but feel bitter and angry. i am currently taking some summer biology classes to boost my sGPA while my peers are preparing the start of medical school courses.

what should i do to better adjust my mindset? even if i get a 33 (which i probably did), it is still a far cry from my original goal of 36+.

one option i am looking at is to prepare to attend a DO school. i know that i will become a physician through the DO route, and a lot of specialties are still open to me.

another option i am trying to do to distract myself is to study for a september retake. but i've spent so much energy studying the MCAT already...i dont think i can do it anymore. to be honest, i've fought hard for 5 years already, and i dont think i can hang on for much longer.
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:laugh:
 
The answer to this should have been found in your PS! I mean come on, why do you want to be a physician? So you can beat everyone on standardized tests, posts pictures/status updates about your acceptances, or drop the line at parties...or do you want to:

Get the chance to deliver babies, solve interesting puzzles, touch some lives forever, and lose yourself in the service in others....


If you become a physician, you'll be able to do the latter no matter what. If you're jealous, it might mean that you're unsatisfied about what you're currently doing. I firmly believe all of us should try to pick up something unique that we enjoy outside of looking better for the next application step. Make it a hobby and get very good at it. This definitely helps and makes you feel more complete in life. There's no reason to feel jealous unless you're going into medicine for all the wrong reasons. Do some thinking...Think about how you are motivated. Do you wake up every day with the end goal in mind or do you wake up each day feeling as if you are inadequate because someone else is a better med school/residency/fellowship applicant or makes more than you? Is the latter really what you want as your driving force in life? That so and so is doing better than you and that you need to catch up and beat them. Let's say you do one day.What have you accomplished with those years of your life? I was the typical high school pre-med. Came to undergrad and succeeded...but there was always something missing. After a great deal of introspection, I realized that I was in fact the person who I describe as the one driven by trying to equal other's accomplishments. I think the hardest part was convincing myself to really look deep down because somewhere inside of me, I already felt ashamed of the current answer. My realization disturbed me for days as and led to a brief existential crisis. Looking back, I am so glad I had that short moment in my life. It made me reassess my goals and ultimately I realized that I did want to become a physician...[I would rant about why but I'd give away the contents of my PS]. The point is that I was able to narrow my broad sentiment to pursue into concrete goals I could envision and plan out. From there on out, I picked up some activities I would have never thought to pursue. I ended up loving them. I continued these interests and sharpened my skills hoping that one day, I can integrate my interests to make a prominent and lasting contribution to those of our country. Overall, don't underestimate the power of introspection. It sounds funny but sitting down and thinking for some time can change your life outlook. You don't need a $3000 dollar vacation to do it.
 
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aspiring20 said:
i just took the MCAT this past weekend (7/13), and i have to say it went pretty well. i averaged 30-35 on the AAMC exams (35 on 10, 33 on 11), and i think i got at least a 33 on the real thing.

so while finishing the MCAT is an accomplishment (and a big one at that), everytime i see my peers getting into medical school, booking their european vacation trips, and celebrating the completion of MS1...i cannot help but feel bitter and angry. i am currently taking some summer biology classes to boost my sGPA while my peers are preparing the start of medical school courses.

what should i do to better adjust my mindset? even if i get a 33 (which i probably did), it is still a far cry from my original goal of 36+.

one option i am looking at is to prepare to attend a DO school. i know that i will become a physician through the DO route, and a lot of specialties are still open to me.

another option i am trying to do to distract myself is to study for a september retake. but i've spent so much energy studying the MCAT already...i dont think i can do it anymore. to be honest, i've fought hard for 5 years already, and i dont think i can hang on for much longer.
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The solution is to find happiness.
 
I'm surprised this thread is still ongoing. Many people have given the OP advice, great advice. Yet, the OP's response is always some version of: don't judge me, I'm not a troll, thanks for the advice but I have MY reasons to be bitter and will defend them tooth and nail. Seems like everyone is just treading water on this one.
 
quick update - MCAT score received!

i got: 11PS/15VR/9BS for a total of 35, two points above my 33 prediction!

though i am disappointed by my 9 in BS, i am shocked by my 15 in VR. i will most likely NOT retake.

envy or bitterness, i will go to war with a 3.6/3.3 and 35. DO should be well within reach, and with it, an opportunity to specialize.
 
MD should be well within reach too 😀
 
KnuxNole said:
MD should be well within reach too 😀
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speaking of MD, i just saw a picture of my peers celebrating med school at a restaurant, so happy, the lot of them.

my undergrad doesnt have an associated med school, but all of them got into top tier MD institutes.

i couldn't even sleep after seeing that picture.
 
aspiring20 said:
quick update - MCAT score received!

i got: 11PS/15VR/9BS for a total of 35, two points above my 33 prediction!

though i am disappointed by my 9 in BS, i am shocked by my 15 in VR. i will most likely NOT retake.

envy or bitterness, i will go to war with a 3.6/3.3 and 35. DO should be well within reach, and with it, an opportunity to specialize.
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15 in verbal, wtf.
 
aspiring20 said:
speaking of MD, i just saw a picture of my peers celebrating med school at a restaurant, so happy, the lot of them.

my undergrad doesnt have an associated med school, but all of them got into top tier MD institutes.

i couldn't even sleep after seeing that picture.
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Dude you need to relax and stop comparing yourself to others. You got a ****ing 35 and you're still complaining? It seems like you have some deeper problems with letting yourself be happy that getting into med school is unlikely to fix.
 
aspiring20 said:
speaking of MD, i just saw a picture of my peers celebrating med school at a restaurant, so happy, the lot of them.

my undergrad doesnt have an associated med school, but all of them got into top tier MD institutes.

i couldn't even sleep after seeing that picture.
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I'm sure a lot of people have said this in the thread already, and I doubt one more person is going to make a difference, but you either need to stop thinking like that, or go seek help so that you can stop thinking like that. If you feel this inferiority complex NOW, medical school will be unbearable. You need to stop comparing yourself to others. You got a great MCAT score, now focus on getting into medical school. You're already well above the majority of people with pipe dreams of being a doctor but who don't have the means to do it. Forget your peers, focus on you, and if you need to see a therapist or something to help you figure that out, do it. Better to do it now than to be miserable in med school.
 
victoriah said:
aspiring20, you need to realize that your thinking is not normal and is the source of your misery.

Your discontent does not stem from the fact that some people online are celebrating in a top-tier medical school.
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i completely get you. and they can celebrate all they want, day in or day out. going to a top tier med schools does not guarantee becoming a better/more prosperous physician in the long run. but when you spend 4 years with these folks and they all moved up...that feeling gets to you

and a 35 is hardly exceptional, especially with a 11 PS and 9 BS. an average of 10 on the sciences is nothing to be proud of.
 
aspiring20 said:
i completely get you. and they can celebrate all they want, day in or day out. going to a top tier med schools does not guarantee becoming a better/more prosperous physician in the long run. but when you spend 4 years with these folks and they all moved up...that feeling gets to you

and a 35 is hardly exceptional, especially with a 11 PS and 9 BS. an average of 10 on the sciences is nothing to be proud of.
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verbal is actually the best predictor of step 1 performance. and you got a 15, which is INSANELY hard to do. you did well, move on, focus on the next step.
 
Ismet said:
verbal is actually the best predictor of step 1 performance. and you got a 15, which is INSANELY hard to do. you did well, move on, focus on the next step.
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the thing is...there's no more next step. my stats are set, ECs are brimmed (2 years research, 1 year thesis, 2 years tutoring, 3+ years hospital volunteering, 2+ years community service, international service/publication, 100 hrs of shadowing, plus a few miscellaneous stuff aka hobbies, part time work, minor awards, etc.). this is the end of the line....
 
aspiring20 said:
the thing is...there's no more next step. my stats are set, ECs are brimmed (2 years research, 1 year thesis, 2 years tutoring, 3+ years hospital volunteering, 2+ years community service, international service/publication, 100 hrs of shadowing, plus a few miscellaneous stuff aka hobbies, part time work, minor awards, etc.). this is the end of the line....
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the next step is obviously AMCAS. then secondaries. then interviews. ECs are never "brimmed," just keep doing stuff you're interested in until the application opens next year.

i don't know if you're being this self-deprecating on purpose or you just can't help it, but maybe also take this year to change your outlook and seek help.
 
I can't think of a more stereotypical SDN poster
 
Ismet said:
the next step is obviously AMCAS. then secondaries. then interviews. ECs are never "brimmed," just keep doing stuff you're interested in until the application opens next year.

i don't know if you're being this self-deprecating on purpose or you just can't help it, but maybe also take this year to change your outlook and seek help.
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i am in the process of changing my outlook, but i still have a lot of nonsense to sort out. since i still have a year, i've toyed with the idea of moving to another state and perhaps establish residency. CA is poison, especially the bay area.
 
aspiring20 said:
i am in the process of changing my outlook, but i still have a lot of nonsense to sort out. since i still have a year, i've toyed with the idea of moving to another state and perhaps establish residency. CA is poison, especially the bay area.
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I seriously think you need to reevaluate your priorities and goals. If you are willing to move to another state solely for med school admissions purposes, then your values are messed up IMO.
 
aspiring20 said:
i am in the process of changing my outlook, but i still have a lot of nonsense to sort out. since i still have a year, i've toyed with the idea of moving to another state and perhaps establish residency. CA is poison, especially the bay area.
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I say go to Puerto Rico. That's where it's at.
 
osprey099 said:
I seriously think you need to reevaluate your priorities and goals. If you are willing to move to another state solely for med school admissions purposes, then your values are messed up IMO.
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i disagree. if i can find another job in another state, why wouldn't i move? do you have any idea how much more difficult CA residents have it? do you know that for a majority of med schools, in state applicants have a 25-50 percent chance of acceptance? take UNC and north dakota.

changing one's residence for admissions purposes is actually quite common
 
aspiring20 said:
i disagree. if i can find another job in another state, why wouldn't i move? do you have any idea how much more difficult CA residents have it? do you know that for a majority of med schools, in state applicants have a 25-50 percent chance of acceptance? take UNC and north dakota.

changing one's residence for admissions purposes is actually quite common
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I realize Californians have it the worst when it comes to their IS schools but moving is not something you should be so ready to jump at. I've had to move multiple times during my childhood to my aunt's house in another state and its a lot more complicated than just grabbing your things and getting a new address. I'm assuming you would want to move to Texas, Florida, or Michigan since they are the best states to live in for admissions purposes. Well, will you be happy with the southern way of life (and potential racism) in Texas? Can you bear the constant 90+ degree heat and its obsession for football? Likewise, will you be happy living in Michigan where its always cold and snows a lot (since you're from the Bay Area, you've probably never seen snow before)? More importantly, you will be hundreds of miles away from friends and family and will know nobody in the area. Will you be OK with that?

Anyways, All I'm trying to say is moving to another state is a very big commitment that requires you to consider a lot of things. Doing it solely for an edge in med school admissions is ridiculous in my opinion.
 
osprey099 said:
I realize Californians have it the worst when it comes to their IS schools but moving is not something you should be so ready to jump at. I've had to move multiple times during my childhood to my aunt's house in another state and its a lot more complicated than just grabbing your things and getting a new address. I'm assuming you would want to move to Texas, Florida, or Michigan since they are the best states to live in for admissions purposes. Well, will you be happy with the southern way of life (and potential racism) in Texas? Can you bear the constant 90+ degree heat and its obsession for football? Likewise, will you be happy living in Michigan where its always cold and snows a lot (since you're from the Bay Area, you've probably never seen snow before)? More importantly, you will be hundreds of miles away from friends and family and will know nobody in the area. Will you be OK with that?

Anyways, All I'm trying to say is moving to another state is a very big commitment that requires you to consider a lot of things. Doing it solely for an edge in med school admissions is ridiculous in my opinion.
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fair enough.

and to answer your question, none of those things you mentioned matter the slightest to me. i've seen plenty of snow from my home country, i played football in high school, and i have had to deal with racism from the first day since i moved to this country. but i fully understand what it means to move your residency, and most likely, i won't end up doing it.

but since you brought up texas, i've always wanted to live in that state, if only for its affordable housing. think about it; in the bay area, $700,000 barely buys a small condo/apartment, while in texas, that amount can easily get you a luxury, 4000 sq ft+ mansion. and to my knowledge, a lot of the metropolitan areas in texas are quite liberal and progressive.
 
SunsFun said:
Um, not according to this:

http://internationalgme.org/Resources/Pubs/Donnon et al (2007) Acad Med.pdf

Based on table 3, if I am reading it right, verbal is least correlated with STEP 1.
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Haha I shouldn't have said best but I was too lazy to re-read what I wrote on my phone before posting. I'm just going by what an adcom told me while I was applying, that they consider the overall MCAT score but also especially look at the verbal sub score because it's a good predictor of future performance. Maybe their statement wasn't backed up by some meta-analysis (usually not a fan of meta-analyses, and this one seems to have some shortcomings) but maybe that's what they've seen at their school when tracking student performance throughout the years. N=1, ymmv, yada yada

Regardless, a 15 on VR is extremely impressive and is not a fluke, and it shows that OP has great comprehension skills, something that will help him moving forward. A large part of PS and BS is knowing the content. VR is reading comprehension skill, either natural or practiced, plus some luck.
 
Read through all the posts, and I have to say, OP needs to calm down. Sure you're bitter and envious, and no one could ever possible understand what you're going through, but you need to check those feelings of inadequacy before you interview because it's going to show to your interviewers and will kill your chances at med school.

Find some friends, do something fun; stewing about stats and how everyone else is passing you by will turn you into Gollum before long.
 
Ismet said:
Haha I shouldn't have said best but I was too lazy to re-read what I wrote on my phone before posting. I'm just going by what an adcom told me while I was applying, that they consider the overall MCAT score but also especially look at the verbal sub score because it's a good predictor of future performance. Maybe their statement wasn't backed up by some meta-analysis (usually not a fan of meta-analyses, and this one seems to have some shortcomings) but maybe that's what they've seen at their school when tracking student performance throughout the years. N=1, ymmv, yada yada

Regardless, a 15 on VR is extremely impressive and is not a fluke, and it shows that OP has great comprehension skills, something that will help him moving forward. A large part of PS and BS is knowing the content. VR is reading comprehension skill, either natural or practiced, plus some luck.
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Every research paper has shortcomings and I prefer meta analysis as a compilation of studies over a single paper. Anyways, I was just brining it up because it is the only thing I found it appears to contradict what SDN people claim.
 
aspiring20 said:
the thing is...there's no more next step. my stats are set, ECs are brimmed (2 years research, 1 year thesis, 2 years tutoring, 3+ years hospital volunteering, 2+ years community service, international service/publication, 100 hrs of shadowing, plus a few miscellaneous stuff aka hobbies, part time work, minor awards, etc.). this is the end of the line....
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End of the line?

PLEASE tell me one negative thing about your app. Because I fail to find any. the low science GPA might be argued, but you have a freakin 35 on the MCAT! The way you're going on about, you're acting as if the average MCAT grade is a 35! And a 3.6 is GOOD, a damn good grade!
 
KnuxNole said:
End of the line?

PLEASE tell me one negative thing about your app. Because I fail to find any. the low science GPA might be argued, but you have a freakin 35 on the MCAT! The way you're going on about, you're acting as if the average MCAT grade is a 35! And a 3.6 is GOOD, a damn good grade!
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science GPA is low, and i also have a very minor (non-alcohol/drug, non-academic) IA that must be reported. i also dont have established international scholarship sponsors and scientific publications.
 
Bea5T said:
I can't think of a more stereotypical SDN poster
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In This Thread: somebody gets a 35 on the MCAT, and is envious of others and bitter about their future.
 
OP, your stats and ECs are good. Apply broadly and a few years from now you will be the one posting those celebratory pictures on Facebook. Going off of this table: https://www.aamc.org/download/321508/data/ someone with a 35 MCAT and 3.6 GPA has a 78% chance of being accepted to a US MD school. Almost 80%. Just focus on that number. You will be fine. The only thing that could possibly hurt you is the "poor me" attitude you have. Shut down the pity party before you interview. You're entitled to your feelings, but try to keep the bitterness under wraps. Good luck.
 
aspiring20 said:
science GPA is low, and i also have a very minor (non-alcohol/drug, non-academic) IA that must be reported. i also dont have established international scholarship sponsors and scientific publications.
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sveFN5Q.gif


Give up and apply Caribbean.
 
aspiring20 said:
and a 35 is hardly exceptional, especially with a 11 PS and 9 BS. an average of 10 on the sciences is nothing to be proud of.
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Jesus, what? You're either a troll or need help.

The fact of the matter is that life isn't fair. Guess what? For every person who's gotten a better break than you, there's a dozen who've gotten way worse breaks than you.
 
aspiring20 said:
i just took the MCAT this past weekend (7/13), and i have to say it went pretty well. i averaged 30-35 on the AAMC exams (35 on 10, 33 on 11), and i think i got at least a 33 on the real thing.

so while finishing the MCAT is an accomplishment (and a big one at that), everytime i see my peers getting into medical school, booking their european vacation trips, and celebrating the completion of MS1...i cannot help but feel bitter and angry. i am currently taking some summer biology classes to boost my sGPA while my peers are preparing the start of medical school courses.

what should i do to better adjust my mindset? even if i get a 33 (which i probably did), it is still a far cry from my original goal of 36+.

one option i am looking at is to prepare to attend a DO school. i know that i will become a physician through the DO route, and a lot of specialties are still open to me.

another option i am trying to do to distract myself is to study for a september retake. but i've spent so much energy studying the MCAT already...i dont think i can do it anymore. to be honest, i've fought hard for 5 years already, and i dont think i can hang on for much longer.
Click to expand...

Jesus Christ. My MCAT goal was a 38, and I got a 30. I have a 3.3 undergraduate GPA with a significantly downward trend, I am a white male, and I have two interviews at US MD schools, both out of my home state. It has taken me 8 years to get this far, so I'd stop crying about the 5 years you "fought" so hard and apply to MD. To be honest though, it's late for this year. Best to push it to next year if you haven't already submitted a primary. Rule of the - you don't retake a 33.
 
35 is nothing exceptional? PLEASE tell that to most pre-meds, and they will beg and cry for your score.

A VERY small amount of people who take the MCAT get that score or higher. Please repeat that statement 10 times every day.

No offense dude, but you are just grasping for excuses to make you feel bad. Who the heck ever told you a 35 was bad? A friend? A competitive pre med? That person's opinion is a pile of dog poo poo rubbed in Miley Cyrus's booty.

The other "grasping" faults...a minor IA, really? International sponsors....I don't know anyone in my class who has those 😕

Unless the only schools you ever want to go to are the top 10, why are you freaking out? If you only care about the super elite, top 10 schools, maybe someone needs to slap you and bring you back to normal people land. There are plenty of options to apply to for a MD school. Oh, and don't let other people's happiness affect yours. Srsly.
 
I don't understand why anyone would tell you to retake it: when did 33 become a bad score?
 
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