my life as a pre-med
I’ve been accepted to Western University of Health Sciences and will be starting early August 2012. I’ve already sent in $1000 for the first half of the deposit. My seat in the Class of 2016 is officially saved! I’m so excited for this next step in my life. It’s becoming more real everyday that I am going to be Dr. Agnes Kwon. Haha it sounds so weird saying it out loud.
I am so excited to say that I’ve been accepted to a medical school in Northern California. I interviewed there this past Monday (October 3) and received notice of my acceptance on Thursday (October 6). I was lucky enough to have a place to stay (at Erik’s aunt’s… which was only 10 minutes away from the school) the night before my interview. It was awesome not having to stay at a motel… nor did I have to rent a car. I flew up to San Jose Friday night and got to stay with Erik until Monday morning. It was such a great weekend, and I’m so so happy that everything turned out the way I hoped. The interview went better than I thought, and I had a great time up there.
I had another interview on Thursday… at my top choice school. I’m not going to celebrate my acceptances just yet because I’m still hoping to get accepted at this school in Southern California. I will update when I hear back from them… hopefully within 2 weeks!
I interviewed on Monday, August 29, and I received this letter on Saturday, September 3. The letter was dated August 30. The ADCOM (admissions committee) made a decision very very quickly!
Of course I’m excited about this acceptance, but I still have 4 interviews coming up. I will continue the interview process until I am done, so I have options. Woohoo! One down, four more to go. My future as a physician is becoming more real everyday. (:
Super excited for this weekend!!! My boyfriend is coming down from Nor Cal, and we’re going to FYF with a bunch of friends. Yes, I still have somewhat of a life!
I arrived in Sarasota, Florida on Sunday, August 28th. As soon as I stepped off the plane, I was overwhelmed by muggy, humid, HOT weather. It was probably 90 degrees all day. I spent most of my day inside my motel room, so it was bearable. Unfortunately, I was too sleepy to explore the area. I wish I could have seen the beaches, but flying with a layover is exhausting!
The interview day started at 7:50 AM on Monday with 20 other applicants. We started off with individual interviews, which lasted only 20 minutes for each applicant. My interviewer was very nice, making the interview a million times less stressful. I was asked about my thoughts on PBL (problem based learning). This school really puts emphasis on independent learning. I was asked if I was capable of reading textbooks 8 hours a day. Time is hardly spent in the classroom, so the students are expected to learn on their own. I’m so used to lectures and learning through lectures, that I’m a bit wary about PBL. I was also asked about my emotional support system, whether or not I exercise, and my thoughts on OMT (osteopathic manipulative treatment). Overall, the interview was pretty relaxed, and I wasn’t as nervous as I expected to be.
The rest of the day included PBL info sessions, a 40 minute group interview (which was more like a group discussion centered around PBL), lunch with a few second years, and a tour.
A decision has already been made, but I won’t find out for a couple of weeks. I will either be accepted or put on an alternate list (which allows applicants to improve their applications in hopes of being accepted). I’m not really too worried because I think I did fairly well on the interview, but I could be wrong. We’ll see what happens!
I can’t believe how long and how much work it took me to get to this point: applying to medical school. I wavered in my decision a couple of times during my undergrad years, but I’m so happy I finally came back to my original career goal of becoming a physician. I actually have UC San Diego to thank for that. Although I didn’t get to have as much fun as I wanted to during my last couple of years there, I learned a lot about the biological sciences, and most importantly, I discovered my passion for the sciences. This led to my ultimate decision to pursue a career in medicine.
Application season started on June 1st, and it’s been a long 3 months since that first day. From the primary application to the secondary applications, from the personal statement to the individual schools’ essays, this process has not been easy. And of course, the money ($1000 +) spent on applications can’t be overlooked. Medical school applications are just one more way to weed out those who aren’t willing to put in the effort and who aren’t 100% certain of this career path. If I wasn’t 110% sure of my decision, this process probably would have swayed me to choose another career.
I’m done with secondaries and now have 5 interviews lined up. Attending interviews is the last step of the medical school application process. I’m grateful to have even been offered interviews. I haven’t been rejected yet, so I’m pretty hopeful. I’ve been preparing by researching possible interview questions (I have 70+ possible questions) and answering them. A few examples: Why should we accept you over the other applicants who have applied to our program? What do you think you will struggle with during medical school? And of course an ethical question: Imagine you have a patient with HIV who refuses to tell his/her spouse. What would you do?
I’m flying to Florida this Saturday night to attend my first interview, which is on Monday, August 29. I’m both excited and nervous. Studentdoctor.net has really helped me through everything, and now I know what to expect for the interview. Some fellow SDNers and I set up a dinner the night before our interview, so I’ll get to ease some of my nerves by meeting other applicants.
Sorry for the boring post. Wish me luck on my first interview!
