Which is harder?

[realruby2000]

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What is/was harder for everyone: Getting into Med school, or staying in...?

 

[melancholy]

Personally (and from what I've heard.. mind you I'm only a first year), I think it is harder to get into med school. Once you're a med student, you are somewhat of an investment of the med school... they put time, effort, and money into you (while taking your money at the same time heh). I suppose this could change in extreme cases, but I tend to like thinking that overall, the schools want to keep students at the school as long as possible. Besides, sporting a huge turnover rate isn't the best stat to have although there are definitely plenty of valid reasons why some students must leave med school.

 

[pags]

Getting in for me.

 

[John DO]

I always heard that getting in was the hardest part, and I misinterpreted this to mean that they wouldn't let me flunk. However, I have found that I have to work harder than I ever have before just to make the grade, so don't think it will be easy!

 

[realruby2000]

how much longer do most of you guys study now than u did as an undergrad?

 

[AthensfromCols]

I agree with the earlier posts in that it was definitely a harder process getting in to medical school, but I also agree that it isn't a piece of cake. The material seems easy enough to understand, but there's SO MUCH material coming at you at all times that you must constantly digest it or become quickly overwhelmed. In undergrad, I would study a few hours before an exam and ace it beautifully, but here it's a different story. I spend 8 to 12 hours every day in classes or studying and so far am doing quite well keeping up and making good grades. But it is a constant struggle at times to keep myself organized, scheduled, and diligent in dealing with school work.

I would say in undergrad and even grad school I studied about 5 hours for an exam and would get an A with no sweat whereas in medical school it's more like 25 hours just to make sure I get a 70% or better to pass. It's definitely an ego blower at times to spend so much time studying for one exam and then leave the room feeling unsure of whether or not you even passed, but it's not impossible to do. Good luck!

 

[melancholy]

Med school definitely is not a piece of cake.. hopefully any previous comments weren't interpreted as such. That being said, I have had more difficult courses with more information to memorization/understand in undergrad, but trying to do all that in a much shorter period of time while keeping up with all the other subjects is something that is definitely a lot trickier to handle. I might be an extreme case, but sometimes I am at school from 8am (when I wake up) to midnight.. then I wind down and sleep around 2-3am. Of course, I can catch up on sleep in one or two classes and there is a little free time here and there, but my life is most definitely med school-centric. 😀

 

[Stickboy]

Ruby-

Like melancholy, I'm "just" an M1 and I agree that getting in was very difficult. Granted, I had some skeletons in my closet in terms of undergrad grades, so I had some hurdles to surmount, but many people will similarly attest that gaining an acceptance is a major milestone.

Personally, however, I don't think that Med School is comparatively "hard" per se. I go to school all day, study a lot but I still have time spend time with my wife, to work out, or to hang with my friends...I still have a "normal" life. In fact, compared to the "real" world of working and living, returning to full-time academia has been a pleasant change for me. (I used to be in the Navy, so I'm not sure that that experience is a fair comparison to the "real" world, but whatever.)

A couple of other things to keep in mind, though: Unlike undergrad, a lot of what you learn has a direct application. You simply *must* be familliar with anatomy and physiology in order to treat your patients. So far, a day hasn't gone by when I learned something that is relevant to being a doctor. I think this provides you with a better motivation to study than anything you had before.

In regards to tests and grades and getting those "A's", It honestly doesn't matter. When a patient comes in to see you, they aren't going to care what you got in biohemistry as an M1. They are going to care about getting better. Furthermore, you must also learn that sometimes, you don't have enough time to study to learn *everything.* You can't turn away a patient saying "sorry, I can't treat you, because I wasn't tested on that in school." You must realize that sometimes, no matter how hard you study, you aren't going to know everything. (It seems to me that this last point is the one that the "gunners" have a hard time coming to grips with.)

Success at Med school takes motivation, commitment and dedication.

Y'know what, so does success at anything.

Cheers,
-sb