I Wish I Knew...

[streetlight]

Is there any information or advice you wish you were given when you started freshman year at your undergrad school? Please let the rest of us in on what you wish you knew back in the day.

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[C.P. Jones]

if you get co-op/AP credits for classes that will be on the MCAT, retake them in college.

I thought it would be cool to skip a year, and skip chem, half of physics, and more (the more isn't mcat stuff). Then I realized how it was going to suck to study for and take the MCAT w/o actually remembering any of the chem for the most part....makes for a nice, unbalanced score.

And now I've graduated a year early, I get to miss the last year of the best years of one's life, and I get to re-apply!

 

[LevatorAni]

Learn and retain your basic biology. It makes the rest of your career much easier. Cramming for tests and then forgetting what you learned won't help you later on.

 

[michaeltodd]

Do things in a way that can benefit you as an applicant as easily as possible. For instance, maybe you like to play basketball a couple days a week. Instead of shooting hoops outside of your apartment in pickup games, join a league. In this way, you don't really change your lifestyle, but you (somewhat) improve your application.

A better example: One spring a few years back, a bunch of buddies of mine went down to Cozumel for Spring Break (big mistake, but not important to the story). My good friend, entering med school this fall, made some arrangements before (his dad, a physician with family ties to that country, helped him out on this) to volunteer at some clinic near our vacation spot for a few days. He joined up with us for the last four days of our trip and partied his brains out like all the rest. In essence, he sacrificed very little and gained a whole lot in terms of padding his resume (and he gained a little of the mushy, sentimental stuff as well).

Notice that I concentrated on maximizing extracurriculars. You're going to MIT, so GPA and MCAT aren't really an issue. You're either very smart and work hard or your just fair but work real hard... in either case, you'll do fine with the numbers. Furthermore, I take as a given that you’ll to end up doing some research in a Howard Hughes lab and volunteer at soup kitchens and a hospital… That would be smart. Just don't retake classes you already have credit for. I think that's dumb.

 

[ascrimmins]

Is there any information or advice you wish you were given when you started freshman year at your undergrad school? Please let the rest of us in on what you wish you knew back in the day.

Dedicate yourself to a few things and don't get distracted by other stuff. I was a Division I varsity athlete, helped run a free medical clinic, spent a month in Africa. When the clinic I ran was forced to close I joined the steering committee that started another clinic. My activities could all be tied together (well, except for the sport) by a common theme - serving the underserved. This obviously doesn't mean much at a research-oriented school, but at the primary care-focused schools I applied to it helped make up for my less-than-stellar GPA (due largely in part to the competitive nature of my school and especially my major).

I took two years off after school. I worked in HIV research and helped write drug prevention programs for kids. I enjoyed having that time for myself - to mature and to focus on what I really wanted out of life. It gave me a little perspective and helped remind me that I REALLY did want to be a doctor. Time off isn't for everyone, but it can be a great thing.

 

[DrHopeless]

Get a good study buddy, and don't bite off more than you can chew. For example don't be a nut job and take 20 credits when you just started out. Also increase your course load slowly so you can adjust. Most importantly make time for yourself, because you can't study 24/7.

 

[wends]

be organized and take time out to have fun!

 

[anystream]

be organized and take time out to have fun!

take your time at first, the pre-med classes can be a little intimidating.

calculus isn't required at a lot of med schools! wish i had known that

 

[SanDiegoSOD]

I wish I would have volunteered at a hospital and shadowed a doctor early in my college years. I didn't do this until my junior year when I was already swamped with other things. I would recommend to each potential med applicant to volunteer in a hospital once a week for at least the first year of college (if possible; I know that not everyone has 3 hospitals in walking distance like me ). One can then decide if they've had their fill of volunteering, or they can continue and keep going for years. At least you'll have clinical experience out of the way early in the process and can concentrate on things like research and leadership experiences later on.
I'd also stress that, besides hospital work, you only do extra curriculars that you are interested in. I didn't fall in the trap of doing B.S. to pad my resume, but many of my friends did, and they ended up wasting times with research and tutoring that they had little or no interest in. Be your own man! (or woman )

 

[Belfagor]

For the love of God, just take the prereqs in order. Don't skip around. If you have AP credits, take the class anyway and get an A. If you have holes in your english or math (going to MIT, I doubt you do), then retake a class and fix them. Get all of your prereqs out of the way by the end of your sophomore year, and take the MCAT the August before your Junior year. KNOW your prereqs well, and it will make EVERYTHING so much easier for you. Take a near minimum amount of credits if necessary. There is no honor in overloading with 20 credits and getting a 3.0. Take 12 and get a 4.0, it's what they want to see, and it will make you a happier person down the road.

 

[ZAZA67401]

Dont be premed in undergrad. Let me clarify.
Ideally, I think it would be much easier to get accepted if you majored in English or History or something non-science and then do a post-bacc program where you get your premed requirements. Although an expensive route (having to go to Johns Hopkins or Goucher or byrn mawr etc for the post bacc) but I think you would hands down be accepted straight out, guarenteed.

However, this would require a lot of patience and it would be expensive, so maybe I would have majored in a non-science and done a biology minor to get the premed requirements.

Those B's in upper division bio classes can really, really hurt you even though you got straight A's in all the premed classes. just my 2cents.

Also Examkrackers is awesome, seriously study on your own ( I dont' know about there class I dont live near a city with one), EK is all you need and AAMC practice items and tests.

 

[gujuDoc]

If I could go back in time..........

I would take my prereqs in a more organized fashion.

I would take Calculus and then take Physics and genchem one and their labs.

Then I would take Genchem 2 and physics 2 and labs. Then I would take bio 1 and organic chem 1 and labs. Then the semester after I'd take orgo 2 and bio 2 and labs.

I'd then study for the MCAT after sophomore year and if I wasn't ready, I would take some advanced classes like micro, genetics, cell bio, biochem, and physiology prior to the MCAT.

I'd volunteer a little bit or get a Patient Care tech license from my freshmen summer and start getting clinical experience but still maintain some time to have fun and hang out.

 

[TheMightyAngus]

-Tilt your cup at a 45 degree angle as you pour.
-If you lick your finger and swirl it around the top of your beer, all the head disappears.
-You don't have to join a frat to go to all of their parties.
-Smart students don't go to class but do their own homework.
-No matter how poorly you do on a midterm, you can always make it up on the final.
-Wearing protection trumps trying to find a morning-after-pill for your girlfriend on a Sunday.
-If you respect a girl, dont have sex with other people in the room.
-Find a role model to emulate, return the favor with meal points.
-College is 90% living and 10% studying.
-Don't be one of those students who takes lecture notes in five different colors.
-The nerdiest looking students usually aren't the smartest.
-Get to know at least one of your professors on a first-name basis.

 

[MoosePilot]

If you really want it, try to get as close to a 4.0. It will make your life much happier as you apply.

 

[DrBuro]

The thing I wish I could tell my freshman self. Get good grades from the start. Everyone always screws up freshman year and tries to make up for it after that. If you get good grades from the start, it'll be easier to keep up the GPA than to bring it up from a 2.5 or something low your third and fourth years.

 

[gujuDoc]

-Tilt your cup at a 45 degree angle as you pour.
-If you lick your finger and swirl it around the top of your beer, all the head disappears.
-You don't have to join a frat to go to all of their parties.
-Smart students don't go to class but do their own homework.
-No matter how poorly you do on a midterm, you can always make it up on the final.
-Wearing protection trumps trying to find a morning-after-pill for your girlfriend on a Sunday.
-If you respect a girl, dont have sex with other people in the room.
-Find a role model to emulate, return the favor with meal points.
-College is 90% living and 10% studying.
-Don't be one of those students who takes lecture notes in five different colors.
-The nerdiest looking students usually aren't the smartest.
-Get to know at least one of your professors on a first-name basis.

Best advice yet.

 

[streetlight]

haha nice keep the advice coming! this is great!

 

[gujuDoc]

haha nice keep the advice coming! this is great!

MIT huh?????? That's god damn impressive!!!!!!! Good job on that. Study hard, play hard. In other words, work hard but go enjoy yourself as you do it. Don't let opportunities pass you by and live in the moment.

 

[TicAL]

Don't over burden yourself. The lowest amount of units per quarter I've taken throughout my college career is 17 (first quarter, freshman year). Looking back, I realized that taking 12 units a quarter/semester and getting straight As is much better than taking 20 units and getting some As and some Bs, as I've learned the hard way

 

[The Smart Guy]

MIT is an amazing place. You will have plenty of opportunities to volunteer and engage in research. If you can, try and volunteer in a research lab freshman year. First semester at MIT is pass fail so study hard but use this time to grow as a student and person. These next four years should be some of your best. So play hard and work hard. As others have said, get involved. This shouldn't be a problem and keep the grades as high as you can. Have fun, you got into MIT so you should have no trouble adjusting to the rigors of college. Good luck.

 

[Centinel]

You are going to MIT, so many people will tell you, "Well you're obviously smart, so you'll get a great GPA!" From the people I know who went to MIT, I would say this instead: "You are obviously smart; MIT is full of the scientifically gifted, so be quite conscious of your numbers."

For example, a 3.3 sci GPA coming from MIT is certainly respectable, but you still want to get your numbers into the range of the averages of the med schools you want to go to.

 

[Shredder]

if you get co-op/AP credits for classes that will be on the MCAT, retake them in college.

disagree; i APd out of every single basic science class and got 13 physical 14 bio, no problem. i also APd out of english and rhetoric and got 10 verbal and O then again im an engineer. oh i should clarify that you should take higher level classes however, like orgo, biochem and upper bios. otherwise then yeah you might screw up mcat or have to study excessively hard. plus med schools dont like when you ap out of sciences and dont take anything more advanced, looks like you dont have passion or interest for it or something.

i say capitalize on the AP credits and use the spare time to graduate early or take other classes.

advice for a freshman: major in business, perhaps finance. it will put you in a better position to rake it in than other majors will. consider doubling in econ. this is heavily biased advice, take it or leave it, depends on if you want $1e9 or just a comfy, simple life. wait a minute MIT? they have pretty great econ and biz depts i believe. stay away from engr, i hear its hell there. take the mcat in august if you can to avoid having to study alongside classes.

 

[streetlight]

Thanks guys. I'm really excited about the fall but also a tad scared as to how I'll cope with premed at a GPA-deflating school. I'm not sure how I should major. I'm looking to do MD/PhD - maybe I'll double major in bio/management or bio/brain&cogsci, or single major in bioengineering...I really have no idea.
Shredder - why major in business? other than financially, does it give you a leg up in med school admissions?

 

[Shrami]

calculus isn't required at a lot of med schools! wish i had known that

I second that!

 

[gujuDoc]

I second that!

Yah but Calculus sure makes understanding Physics a whole hell of a lot easier.

 

[CerealBox]

Shredder - why major in business? other than financially, does it give you a leg up in med school admissions?

Shredder is just a little over the top about making money
But I studied economics, and I just think the subject is great. It teaches your how to think about things in a very logical way. i don't know about business... at my undergrad institution it was a big joke. All of the scholarship athletes majored in business.

 

[Shredder]

Shredder is just a little over the top about making money
But I studied economics, and I just think the subject is great. It teaches your how to think about things in a very logical way. i don't know about business... at my undergrad institution it was a big joke. All of the scholarship athletes majored in business.

haha yes i am over the top. OP it will probably give you a leg down in admissions, im sure they will grill you to no end about it. "what, you cant make money in biz so youre coming to med" etc etc, silly adcoms. but i feel strongly that biz and econ education give more valuable, broad knowledge in life as opposed to most other majors which are trade schools, particularly engineering. you may not want to major in them as thats a big choice, but i do suggest taking classes in econ and maybe picking up a minor or a few courses in biz. with all the hoopla about medicare, medicaid, and socialized medicine, you will get a much better perspective with some background knowledge. i highly recommend it for some free electives you might have, rather than taking something like anatomy or super advanced bio/chem whatever bc you will learn that in med school anyway, you might as well take college as an opportunity to become wordly wise while you have the chance. theres my .02

 

[inflamesdjk02]

it doesn't matter what you major in. as long as you put in the effort, you'll get results. while many grads entering med school might fit the stereotype, you can find people with just about any story you could ever think of.

 

[tgerwuds]

make you sure you eat (not Mexican!) before you take a beer bong!

 

[gujuDoc]

haha yes i am over the top. OP it will probably give you a leg down in admissions, im sure they will grill you to no end about it. "what, you cant make money in biz so youre coming to med" etc etc, silly adcoms. but i feel strongly that biz and econ education give more valuable, broad knowledge in life as opposed to most other majors which are trade schools, particularly engineering. you may not want to major in them as thats a big choice, but i do suggest taking classes in econ and maybe picking up a minor or a few courses in biz. with all the hoopla about medicare, medicaid, and socialized medicine, you will get a much better perspective with some background knowledge. i highly recommend it for some free electives you might have, rather than taking something like anatomy or super advanced bio/chem whatever bc you will learn that in med school anyway, you might as well take college as an opportunity to become wordly wise while you have the chance. theres my .02

I don't know what effect business degrees will have on admission, but I think it will help a great deal in learning the business aspects of medicine. Beyond the fun part of clinical work, there is a lot of paper work and stuff to deal with in medicine in terms of dealing with PPOs, HMOs, how we are going to manage our money, insurance issues, etc. I've often heard that many doctors are not very good at managing such issues due to lack of understanding of the business aspects of medicine, as many med schools don't really go into the business aspects of medicine.

In this aspect, a business degree can become very helpful. However, at the end of the day, I don't think a person should pick one major over another because someone said it would give edge up on admissions. They should do what interests them.

 

[TheMightyAngus]

If you've got the look, try to get in with the MIT Blackjack team to pay your way through school.

 

[QofQuimica]

Here's my advice:

1. Don't take any of your pre-reqs pass/fail; this is going to be a hardship for you later.
2. Don't major in "pre-med": if you change your mind about medical school, you won't be trained to do anything else. Pick a real major so that you have other options.
3. Assuming that you took calculus in high school, take gen chem and physics as a freshman, organic and bio as a sophomore, and then take the MCAT the summer after your second year. While everyone else is sweating about the MCAT and trying to take organic and physics during junior year, you can be taking upper level science classes and sail smoothly all year (or re-take the MCAT if needed without making your app late)
4. Find a good advisor, either officially through your school, or unofficially from students who are further along in the process. Here on SDN, ask Gujudoc.
5. Develop good study habits and writing skills. You'd be amazed how many college students struggle because they got through high school without ever having to study.
6. Finally, don't get too cocky. No matter how smart you are, there is always someone out there who is a little bit smarter.

 

[gujuDoc]

Here's my advice:

1. Don't take any of your pre-reqs pass/fail; this is going to be a hardship for you later.
2. Don't major in "pre-med": if you change your mind about medical school, you won't be trained to do anything else. Pick a real major so that you have other options.
3. Assuming that you took calculus in high school, take gen chem and physics as a freshman, organic and bio as a sophomore, and then take the MCAT the summer after your second year. While everyone else is sweating about the MCAT and trying to take organic and physics during junior year, you can be taking upper level science classes and sail smoothly all year (or re-take the MCAT if needed without making your app late)
4. Find a good advisor, either officially through your school, or unofficially from students who are further along in the process. Here on SDN, ask Gujudoc.
5. Develop good study habits and writing skills. You'd be amazed how many college students struggle because they got through high school without ever having to study.
6. Finally, don't get too cocky. No matter how smart you are, there is always someone out there who is a little bit smarter.

at the comments about me.

But in all seriousness, the rest of your advice is very very good. I agree with all that you said.