My thoughts after the first week of med school.....

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tatabox80

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Just finished my first week of class...and here are a few of my observations.

First: There are 4 categories of people in my class
1. Those who are under the legal drinking age (60% of my class)
2. Married people
3. Engaged people
4. Severely attached people
*note a lot more people in category 4 would be in category 3 however, they are poor and cannot afford engagement rings....or they are dating people who are too poor.

This kinda sucks for people such as myself who do not fit into any of these categories! :(

Second: Gross anatomy is really cool!

Third: Biochemistry sucks some serious a$$!

Fourth: Medical school is nightmare inducing (I haven't been sleeping well the last week) Hopefully I'll grow out of this little phase

Fifth: I am not as smart as I once thought I was.

Sixth: 8 hours of lecture is cruel and unusual punishment.

Seventh: Although there are a lot of scary things about medical school, it's still pretty fun!!

I think that's all for now!

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yeah, that marital status breakdown seems to go with our school too. ahh well, i think dating within your class is a baaaad idea anyways. if anything this gives me more motivation to make non med school friends :)

i concur, biochem both sux and blows

i feel infinitely stupider than i did the days before med school started.

other than that, its a blast :D
 
60% of your class is under 21?
 
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1.) There are a lot of people who are "already spoken for" over here too. C'est la vie.

2.) I agree about anatomy. It's without a doubt one of the most interesting classes I've ever taken, but it's also a class I love to hate and hate to love. I'll see how I really feel about it after I have my first exam.

3.) I always have and always will HATE biochemistry. I'd rather take two anatomy classes than a biochem class.

4.) Agreed.

5.) For me, this is more of a case of "some days you're the dog; some days you're the hydrant." There are some days when I feel like I'll never be able to learn all that I need to know, and then there are days when I feel like I'm making great progress. The good days are few and far between, but they feel great while they last. :oops:

6.) Agreed.

7.) I couldn't agree more! I've never been more stressed out, but I've never had this much fun in school before either.
 
This is after 4 weeks:

1. I studied hard and still got below the mean.
2. Anatomy labs are a waste of time.
3. It's hard to keep track of a lot of things.
4. It's hard to get things done when you're out 9-5
5. Not doing the dishes for a few days usually results in unpleasant things growing in your sink.
6. The bugs are huge in Michigan.
7. Lots of people have long distance relationships.
8. People use binders a lot.
9. I can't cut my own hair very well.
10. It's much easier to meet people with similar interests due to the "we're in it together" type atmosphere of a small class.
11. Small group sessions are generally a waste of time.
12. School in general is a waste of time.
13. I can't remember names very well (people's name or anatomical names).
14. The bus system here sucks.
15. Old habits die hard (procrastination).
 
Originally posted by Jaded Soul
60% of your class is under 21?

Yeppers, my school accepts the majority of its students out of highschool. They finish college in either 2 or 3 years and then enter med school. Usually the number is closer to 75 or 80%, but this year a lot of people decided to do college in 3 instead of 2 years.
 
"Just finished my first week of class...and here are a few of my observations.

First: There are 4 categories of people in my class
1. Those who are under the legal drinking age (60% of my class)
2. Married people
3. Engaged people
4. Severely attached people
*note a lot more people in category 4 would be in category 3 however, they are poor and cannot afford engagement rings....or they are dating people who are too poor.

This kinda sucks for people such as myself who do not fit into any of these categories! "



As I like to say, "Don't dip your pen in the company ink."
 
Well I'm glad this sounds so ****ty. I hope my wife doesn't divorce me next year while I'm try to pass all my classes......
 
Hey Tatabox,

I'm a second year now and if your class is similar to mine, most of the people in the engaged and severly attached categories will probably not be in those categories after Christmas break. So, don't give up hope yet if you are or become interested in someone.....you may still have a chance.
But, I will have to agree with the other posters that if you date someone in your class do it at your own risk. You'll come to find out soon that a) Everyone knows everyone elses business, so all details are fair game b) If things end badly, you will still have to deal with this person for the next four years. That's just my two cents on NEVER dating classmates.

Good Luck this year & I hope you find your match!
 
Originally posted by FoxyDoc
Hey Tatabox,

I'm a second year now and if your class is similar to mine, most of the people in the engaged and severly attached categories will probably not be in those categories after Christmas break. So, don't give up hope yet if you are or become interested in someone.....you may still have a chance.
But, I will have to agree with the other posters that if you date someone in your class do it at your own risk. You'll come to find out soon that a) Everyone knows everyone elses business, so all details are fair game b) If things end badly, you will still have to deal with this person for the next four years. That's just my two cents on NEVER dating classmates.

Good Luck this year & I hope you find your match!

Um, thanks!! I wouldn't exactly say that there was a specific individual, however, it seems really convenient to be able to meet someone in med school considering I spend most of my waking hours there...
 
Originally posted by Street Philosopher
This is after 4 weeks:

1. I studied hard and still got below the mean.
2. Anatomy labs are a waste of time.
3. It's hard to keep track of a lot of things.
4. It's hard to get things done when you're out 9-5
5. Not doing the dishes for a few days usually results in unpleasant things growing in your sink.
6. The bugs are huge in Michigan.
7. Lots of people have long distance relationships.
8. People use binders a lot.
9. I can't cut my own hair very well.
10. It's much easier to meet people with similar interests due to the "we're in it together" type atmosphere of a small class.
11. Small group sessions are generally a waste of time.
12. School in general is a waste of time.
13. I can't remember names very well (people's name or anatomical names).
14. The bus system here sucks.
15. Old habits die hard (procrastination).

1) Don't know yet, but other people studied a lot more than I did
2) Yeah, you can learn it without going, but it makes the learning a whole lot more interesting
3) I am just recently out of the business of telling my roommate where she needs to be and when, but I would advise finding someone to do that for you
4) Agreed
5) Paper plates and plastic utensils will solve that problem nicely
6) Hah! Come visit the tropics here in New Orleans, and I'll show you some real bugs.
7) And lots of people don't

9) I can probably cut my hair better than the last guy who tried...

anyway, that's enough whining for now.
 
This thread is really funny. After 1 year and 1 month of med school you'll realize that some of that stuff changes and some of it doesn't. For example, everyone is in it together so you make good friends. Even the people you don't really like, at least you've got something in common. And people still use a lot of binders. ;)

The most important thing I'll pass along is not to let the people who study 24/7 freak you out. I study a few hours a day and when there is a test coming up, I increase it to as much as I can stand, with several breaks scattered between. I made A's and B's in everything first year with that plan. Granted, I could've killed myself and studied really really hard on days I was tired and turned some of those B's into A's, but I didn't feel like it. And some of those people that studied so much got the same letter grade I did...a 90 is the same on paper as a 99 and an 80 is the same as an 89. he he. So ignore the other people and study like you know you have to to get the grade you want.
 
and one more point........

i have realized i will probably start (at least moderately) drinking again :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
 
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you have to start drinking heavily again. ;)
 
Originally posted by KyGrlDr2B
The most important thing I'll pass along is not to let the people who study 24/7 freak you out. I study a few hours a day and when there is a test coming up, I increase it to as much as I can stand, with several breaks scattered between. I made A's and B's in everything first year with that plan. Granted, I could've killed myself and studied really really hard on days I was tired and turned some of those B's into A's, but I didn't feel like it. And some of those people that studied so much got the same letter grade I did...a 90 is the same on paper as a 99 and an 80 is the same as an 89. he he. So ignore the other people and study like you know you have to to get the grade you want.

I am applying to med school right now, so I obviously don't have much of an idea of how medical school REALLY works, but I have a question. Why wouldn't everyone want to study as much as humanly possible while in med school? As an undergrad I have mastered the art of not studying at all until just before a test, then slidding by with an A. I do this with most classes I have (with a few excpetions...in those I really want to learn the material).

It seems to me that in med school the material is actually important as it could give you the knowledge you need to help a patient later (undergrad material just doesn't matter). So even though the person with the 90% got the same grade as the 99, the 99 undoubtedly knows the material MUCH better and could possibly later put it to better use. Shouldn't everyone want the 99 (because of the lvl of mastery it implies)? When in med school, I plan on studying as much as humanly possible while retaining my sanity/humanity. I would feel obligated to do this.

I am curious about this. I am not a med student so I obviously don't really know what I am talking about. Am I totally offbase? Please fill me in.
 
Originally posted by mattorama
I am applying to med school right now, so I obviously don't have much of an idea of how medical school REALLY works, but I have a question. Why wouldn't everyone want to study as much as humanly possible while in med school? As an undergrad I have mastered the art of not studying at all until just before a test, then slidding by with an A. I do this with most classes I have (with a few excpetions...in those I really want to learn the material).

It seems to me that in med school the material is actually important as it could give you the knowledge you need to help a patient later (undergrad material just doesn't matter). So even though the person with the 90% got the same grade as the 99, the 99 undoubtedly knows the material MUCH better and could possibly later put it to better use. Shouldn't everyone want the 99 (because of the lvl of mastery it implies)? When in med school, I plan on studying as much as humanly possible while retaining my sanity/humanity. I would feel obligated to do this.

I am curious about this. I am not a med student so I obviously don't really know what I am talking about. Am I totally offbase? Please fill me in.

Here's my take on this as a newly-minted med student:

The student with the 90 and the student with the 99 really do have equivalent mastery of the material. Both of these students probably won't be able to retain everything that they studied a few weeks after the exam anyway, but they'll encounter the really important and relevant stuff again and again. After enough exposure, both students should have about an equal knowledge in what they absolutely need to know. And then if they ever need the small details that they've forgotten, they'll know where and how to quickly obtain this information that they need. It's the same process that's used to amass any large body of information: you learn the info, and then you learn it again and build more info on top of it so it eventually sticks.
 
Originally posted by mattorama
I am applying to med school right now, so I obviously don't have much of an idea of how medical school REALLY works, but I have a question. Why wouldn't everyone want to study as much as humanly possible while in med school? As an undergrad I have mastered the art of not studying at all until just before a test, then slidding by with an A. I do this with most classes I have (with a few excpetions...in those I really want to learn the material).

It seems to me that in med school the material is actually important as it could give you the knowledge you need to help a patient later (undergrad material just doesn't matter). So even though the person with the 90% got the same grade as the 99, the 99 undoubtedly knows the material MUCH better and could possibly later put it to better use. Shouldn't everyone want the 99 (because of the lvl of mastery it implies)? When in med school, I plan on studying as much as humanly possible while retaining my sanity/humanity. I would feel obligated to do this.

I am curious about this. I am not a med student so I obviously don't really know what I am talking about. Am I totally offbase? Please fill me in.

When you get to med school, you'll realize just how much material you are required to learn that will not help you treat a patient. The day a patient requires me to recite all steps of Glycolysis or to recite all steps of the complement pathway in order to treat them, then maybe I'll regret not making a 100% on my exams. Much of the info from 1st year (I'm just starting 2nd year so I can't say about this year yet) is scientific detail that helps you to know the subject really well, but not to treat your patients. Obviously everyone is going to learn the important stuff-diseases, etc. That stuff IS important in the future. Just wait until you get there and you see what happens.
 
Originally posted by KyGrlDr2B
When you get to med school, you'll realize just how much material you are required to learn that will not help you treat a patient. The day a patient requires me to recite all steps of Glycolysis or to recite all steps of the complement pathway in order to treat them, then maybe I'll regret not making a 100% on my exams. Much of the info from 1st year (I'm just starting 2nd year so I can't say about this year yet) is scientific detail that helps you to know the subject really well, but not to treat your patients. Obviously everyone is going to learn the important stuff-diseases, etc. That stuff IS important in the future. Just wait until you get there and you see what happens.

actually, it is important to know the details in 1st and 2nd year. perhaps in a year's time you will realize how much of it really does apply to patient care, especially understanding what the hell is going on, reading journal articles, engaging in discussions with residents and attendings, taking step-1, etc. you really do need to know this stuff.

blowing off ms1/ms2 is a mistake that you may very well regret. it's what distinguishes the good doctors from the average, and a mere technician from a proficient physician.
 
Originally posted by doc05
actually, it is important to know the details in 1st and 2nd year. perhaps in a year's time you will realize how much of it really does apply to patient care, especially understanding what the hell is going on, reading journal articles, engaging in discussions with residents and attendings, taking step-1, etc. you really do need to know this stuff.

blowing off ms1/ms2 is a mistake that you may very well regret. it's what distinguishes the good doctors from the average, and a mere technician from a proficient physician.

:rolleyes:
yeah, she was saying her As and Bs were really "blowing off m1/m2." suuuuure, she's just sliding by. please. go cram some more chemical structures or the paths of the electrons as the molecules cycle thru glycolysis. come back in 5 years and tell me how relevant those electrons were to treating people, being a good diagnostician and a successful clinician. if you're in it for the research, we may have a different story.


and i like binders. :)
 
hey guys, i'm working on my rough draft for my personal statement...tell me how you like the start of it..........

I've always wanted to help people in need and to use my analytical skills to save lives. On day while walking to the supermarket a woman and her 3 gravely sick children staggered out of their home and crawled towards me on the sidewalk. Like nomads crossing the sahara yearning for a refreshing oasis, they beckoned me to relay them the crucial information that would save their lives......"Please, tell us what is the only achiral amino acid? what is the pka of the side group of tyrosine? Using the Henderson Hasselbach equation, calculate the final pH of adding 1.3 ml of 1 M HCL to a 1 liter solution of imidazole buffe at ph 7.7!!! Give us the exact mechanism for the Schiff base formation between Isoniazid and pyridoxal phosphate!!!! Please, help us!!! Please!!!!!!"

I stood there, and a unexplainable feeling of helplessness overwhelmed me. The begged and pleaded, but without this crucial information, they collapsed and died right at my feet, and I wept. at this moment, I knew med school was for me........

yes yes i know this is on the boards and yadda yadda yadda, i'm just teasing ;)
 
Originally posted by DW
hey guys, i'm working on my rough draft for my personal statement...tell me how you like the start of it..........

I've always wanted to help people in need and to use my analytical skills to save lives. On day while walking to the supermarket a woman and her 3 gravely sick children staggered out of their home and crawled towards me on the sidewalk. Like nomads crossing the sahara yearning for a refreshing oasis, they beckoned me to relay them the crucial information that would save their lives......"Please, tell us what is the only achiral amino acid? what is the pka of the side group of tyrosine? Using the Henderson Hasselbach equation, calculate the final pH of adding 1.3 ml of 1 M HCL to a 1 liter solution of imidazole buffe at ph 7.7!!! Give us the exact mechanism for the Schiff base formation between Isoniazid and pyridoxal phosphate!!!! Please, help us!!! Please!!!!!!"

I stood there, and a unexplainable feeling of helplessness overwhelmed me. The begged and pleaded, but without this crucial information, they collapsed and died right at my feet, and I wept. at this moment, I knew med school was for me........

yes yes i know this is on the boards and yadda yadda yadda, i'm just teasing ;)

:laugh: omg HAHAHAA! :clap:
 
WHOA, I did not mean to imply you should blow off your 1st two years!! And yeah, I do learn those details. And I also realize that you have to know this stuff for the boards. I was simply saying that I am not going to kill myself just to make sure I get an A in every single class I take (my school is not pass/fail and there is no curve, ever). I'd rather enjoy a friday or saturday night at the movies or watching a little tv than studying in the library all of the time. There are plenty of other people both at my school and on this board that agree with me and we will all make fine doctors.
 
This is kinda scary, but the chief resident actually asked us about the steps of the krebs cycle on rounds. (in surgery)

The idea was that when you give lactated ringers, which is full of lactic acid, what does your body do with the extra carbon dioxide?

I actually felt vindicated that I learned all that stuff! So, for everyone wondering why, oh why must you memorize the biochem, it really is applicable.
 
Originally posted by tatabox80
Just finished my first week of class...and here are a few of my observations.

First: There are 4 categories of people in my class
1. Those who are under the legal drinking age (60% of my class)
2. Married people
3. Engaged people
4. Severely attached people
*note a lot more people in category 4 would be in category 3 however, they are poor and cannot afford engagement rings....or they are dating people who are too poor.

This kinda sucks for people such as myself who do not fit into any of these categories! :(
I'm SOOOO feeling you especially since where I came from everyone would have thought getting married was crazy at this age. They are waiting til their 30s.

And it isn't that we want to date people in our class, its that we want to be able to have people to hang out with, not people who are out of town all the time or spending every free second with their SOs. We need friends too! :)
 
Originally posted by FoxyDoc
Hey Tatabox,

I'm a second year now and if your class is similar to mine, most of the people in the engaged and severly attached categories will probably not be in those categories after Christmas break. So, don't give up hope yet if you are or become interested in someone.....you may still have a chance.
But, I will have to agree with the other posters that if you date someone in your class do it at your own risk. You'll come to find out soon that a) Everyone knows everyone elses business, so all details are fair game b) If things end badly, you will still have to deal with this person for the next four years. That's just my two cents on NEVER dating classmates.

Good Luck this year & I hope you find your match!

So if I really wanted to get lucky, I should start dating chicks from other local med schools ... ?
 
Originally posted by uclacrewdude
So if I really wanted to get lucky, I should start dating chicks from other local med schools ... ?

And is the converse also true?
 
mattorama, it's about sanity, that's all. I could drive myself nuts trying to learn everything. And unlike many of my first-year peers, I KNOW that it really DOES matter whether you learn and retain the Krebs cycle or not, and all of the hundred other details that seem unimportant and unrelated to patient care right now.

However, it will NOT matter whether I have learned any of it if I burn myself out/slide into a depression over my grades these first two years. So I study as much as I can stand, and then I stop. Hopefully I've studied intelligently enough to learn what I need to know, and in a manner that will allow me to retain it.
 
Originally posted by seaworthc
I'm SOOOO feeling you especially since where I came from everyone would have thought getting married was crazy at this age. They are waiting til their 30s.

And it isn't that we want to date people in our class, its that we want to be able to have people to hang out with, not people who are out of town all the time or spending every free second with their SOs. We need friends too! :)

Amen sister!
 
additional thoughts:
i am becoming a crazed multi-tasker.
two prime examples that i really never used to do (i worked for ~ 4yrs before going to med school) --

1) cook dinner + shower (oven time = shower time)
2) eat dinner + study
 
Originally posted by mattorama
Why wouldn't everyone want to study as much as humanly possible while in med school?


Answer: Burning out and fast!!!




As an undergrad I have mastered the art of not studying at all until just before a test, then slidding by with an A. I do this with most classes I have (with a few excpetions...in those I really want to learn the material).[/QUOTE]

Yeah, that was college, which is an entirely different ball game. I used to study the night before an exam and still manage almost a perfect score on exams. Try this in medical school, and you'll be lucky if you even pass.
 
Originally posted by GoodMonkey
additional thoughts:
i am becoming a crazed multi-tasker.

1) cook dinner + shower (oven time = shower time)

heh, thanks for clarifying! At first I had images of that Seinfeld episode where Kramer installs a disposal unit in his shower and then prepares/washes the salad (for dinner with Elaine, her bf and her germphobic co-worker), in there as he showers....
 
Originally posted by GoodMonkey
1) cook dinner + shower (oven time = shower time)
2) eat dinner + study
i can feel the olin hall fire safety guys having a coronary at this one...... :laugh:

my fellow cornellians will get that one ;)
 
Hmm...first three weeks of medical school.

1) Being finished with classes by 12:30 four days out of the week rules.
2) I'm studying more than I ever did, but I still have more free time than I expected.
3) And our first exam was easier than I expected.
4) Being out of school for a couple years makes medical school so much less stressful.
5) There are a lot of relationships, a lot of long-distance, a fair number of marriages - and a fair number of hook-ups in the parties on the weekends. My vote: classcest is bad.
6) The male MS2 orientation coordinators and Anatomy TAs seem like part of their motivation is to meet the first-year girls.
7) Anatomy lab is generally fun, and I find it useful to verbalize the different structures I'd just read about and heard about in lecture.
8) I haven't been happier in years.
 
Originally posted by xaelia
4) Being out of school for a couple years makes medical school so much less stressful.
....
8) I haven't been happier in years.

inDEED! :clap:



and yes, i cooked my morningstar farms mini fakecorndogs in the oven today whilst showering (and using the word "whilst" properly and also note the oven was, indeed, not in my shower, a la kramer) and then ate said mini fakecorndogs -mmmm tasty with mustard - while learning about protein transport mechanisms into the mitochondria. whew!
 
4) Being out of school for a couple years makes medical school so much less stressful.
....
8) I haven't been happier in years.

I hope this is the case for me as well:p
 
after the first week of med school, i started homeschooling...

our schedule at texas tech is 9-5 pretty much, so if u go to class, u really dont have time for anything else.

i just stopped going to histo, and biochem, i just go to the anatomy lab and lecture, cuz anatomy seems interesting/hard.

i just chill at home/starbucks and try to learn the material on my own. So far, its working great.

this gives me time to workout and do my own thing and i am learning at a fast rate so not behind/ actaully ahead.

med school doesnt seem so hard, but its a lot of work, so i am pretty much putting in alot of hours each day. for me lectures just seem too inefficient. anybody else homeschooling??

later

Omar
 
Originally posted by omarsaleh66
for me lectures just seem too inefficient. anybody else homeschooling??

later

Omar
yes, i agree. the only classes i go to are anatomy and histology. there is really no point in going to lectures because all the resources are available at home, and you can fit it to your schedule and your timing. somehow, when you're working from home, it doesn't seem like you're working as hard, but you get the same if not more accomplished.
 
Originally posted by Street Philosopher
yes, i agree. the only classes i go to are anatomy and histology. there is really no point in going to lectures because all the resources are available at home, and you can fit it to your schedule and your timing. somehow, when you're working from home, it doesn't seem like you're working as hard, but you get the same if not more accomplished.

I'm skipping lecture right now. I pretty much just show up for the tests.
 
Originally posted by sacrament
I'm skipping lecture right now. I pretty much just show up for the tests.

agreed.
 
Originally posted by Street Philosopher
there is really no point in going to lectures because all the resources are available at home, and you can fit it to your schedule and your timing. somehow, when you're working from home, it doesn't seem like you're working as hard, but you get the same if not more accomplished.
the people in my class that are the most stressed out are those who go to class every day. I pick and choose but don't go to too many. Yeah I may miss a small point here or there that might materialize as a test question at some point, but that is why I have friends who go to class. :D

Studying on your own allows you to focus on what you need to get done without feeling stressed about how much everyone else is doing. Hearing people rattle off lists of stuff just makes me feel behind when I know I am not. I can take my day at an easy pace instead of having to go from one thing to the next from 7am to 11pm at night. That just leaves me harried and having to multi-task such things as toilet and internet time. :p
 
Originally posted by xaelia
4) Being out of school for a couple years makes medical school so much less stressful.
This is a very wise comment. :)
 
i go to class.
i have no pretenses about working from home... i can't do it. that's great for all you folks who can, though. for me, well .... i can say "oh yeah i'll watch the streaming lectures at home online and then i'll read the book chapters." then i just don't do it. i fart around, play online, clean crap, organize, play with pets, general procrastination.... i would get about half the amt accomplished/learned/even looked at than what i would had i gone to class. i have to get up and go to lectures or i will get *nothing* accomplished. i sometimes wish i were that person who could never go to lectures and do just as well motivating themselves to get up and do the stuff at home.

yeah, like SP said, all our resources are pretty much available outside of class - streaming lecture videos, all presentations online, online learning/practice modules, etc - and i use them as study resources, but i still go to class. it's what works for me. :)

then again, we don't typically have one of those wretched 8-5 of lecture/class time a day ... i'd shoot myself in the head if we did. and then i for SURE would be trying to figure out SOMEHOW to swing it so i could skip. i was fortunate enough that i could select a school that didn't have their entire day spent in class ... some of our days are long, but some are real short. tomorrow we have class from 9-noon and that's it.

maybe as the year goes on i'll change my tune, but right now i'm stuck w/class.
 
I go to class everyday! I love lecture! :D

Geez, I sound like such a dork.

Seriously though, I learn a LOT better when I see the information presented in a lecture. I think I learn a lot just by listening and taking notes, and I find lectures more engaging. If I sat down with a dry text and tried to learn things that way, it would seriously take me forever. Hooray for efficiency! :clap:
 
Originally posted by GoodMonkey
i go to class.
i have no pretenses about working from home... i can't do it. that's great for all you folks who can, though. for me, well .... i can say "oh yeah i'll watch the streaming lectures at home online and then i'll read the book chapters." then i just don't do it. i fart around, play online, clean crap, organize, play with pets, general procrastination.... i would get about half the amt accomplished/learned/even looked at than what i would had i gone to class. i have to get up and go to lectures or i will get *nothing* accomplished. i sometimes wish i were that person who could never go to lectures and do just as well motivating themselves to get up and do the stuff at home.

yeah, like SP said, all our resources are pretty much available outside of class - streaming lecture videos, all presentations online, online learning/practice modules, etc - and i use them as study resources, but i still go to class. it's what works for me. :)

then again, we don't typically have one of those wretched 8-5 of lecture/class time a day ... i'd shoot myself in the head if we did. and then i for SURE would be trying to figure out SOMEHOW to swing it so i could skip. i was fortunate enough that i could select a school that didn't have their entire day spent in class ... some of our days are long, but some are real short. tomorrow we have class from 9-noon and that's it.

maybe as the year goes on i'll change my tune, but right now i'm stuck w/class.

omg, if we had streaming lecture videos and all that stuff, I would NEVER EVER EVER EVER EVER go to lecture, ever, never, not even once, not even on the first day. As it is, the only times I ever bother going is if I look ahead at the notes and they seem a bit sparse... then I figure there must be "more to it" than what is in the notes. I'm jealous. I'm so jealous.
 
i have one of those 9-5 schedules, and it is probably the most ridiculous pedagogical formulation anyone could have ever come up with. we have 6 classes right now. very few in my class can keep up with their work these first 4 weeks. everyone is tired by the time they get home at night and has to spend the entire weekend going over material. i know tons of people have gone through this before, so it is totally doable, however that does not take away from the fact that it sucks.
 
Originally posted by sacrament
then I figure there must be "more to it" than what is in the notes. I'm jealous. I'm so jealous.

well 1) i refuse to pay $225/semester for the transcribed notes; i'd rather go to class and take them myself. and 2) i'm jealous of the people who can motivate themselves to study at home and actually watch the videos. for me, there are too many other distractions. i've tried. doesn't work for me. i don't mind going to class, anyway. :)
 
Originally posted by DW
hey guys, i'm working on my rough draft for my personal statement...tell me how you like the start of it..........

I've always wanted to help people in need and to use my analytical skills to save lives. On day while walking to the supermarket a woman and her 3 gravely sick children staggered out of their home and crawled towards me on the sidewalk. Like nomads crossing the sahara yearning for a refreshing oasis, they beckoned me to relay them the crucial information that would save their lives......"Please, tell us what is the only achiral amino acid? what is the pka of the side group of tyrosine? Using the Henderson Hasselbach equation, calculate the final pH of adding 1.3 ml of 1 M HCL to a 1 liter solution of imidazole buffe at ph 7.7!!! Give us the exact mechanism for the Schiff base formation between Isoniazid and pyridoxal phosphate!!!! Please, help us!!! Please!!!!!!"

I stood there, and a unexplainable feeling of helplessness overwhelmed me. The begged and pleaded, but without this crucial information, they collapsed and died right at my feet, and I wept. at this moment, I knew med school was for me........

yes yes i know this is on the boards and yadda yadda yadda, i'm just teasing ;)


I just read this and starting busting out in laughter at work!

Funny ish!!!!!!!!!!!:laugh: :laugh:
 
does anyone else really dislike anatomy? At my school we take gross anatomy (along with a little embryo that is taught like a board prep course), and a little fluff stuff about doctoring (which is generally a very good motivator). If anatomy is anything like surgery, then I can knock one whole area of medicine off my short list to consider. I find anatomy to be a mile wide but only an inch deep. I seriously can't wait until I'm done with anatomy and move on to biochem. Ug!!!!
 
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