What should I do with my summers?

I remember in high school, summer vacations were abundant and I was often bored. I’d go see family year after year, doing the same old, same old. When I began undergrad, I thought the same pattern would continue. But as my premed years progressed, I realized the summer months were few and valuable. The precious 4 months are the only time in the year where you are free from school, and there’s so many things you could be doing. Medical schools start paying attention to what you’re doing starting from the last few years of high school. So be wise with how you spend your summers, after all, there’s only 4 of them left before medical school (hopefully)!

1. Summer School

I used my summer after first year to take organic chemistry online, because I suck at chemistry and wanted to focus my attention on it instead of sharing it with other courses during the regular school year. If there’s a prerequisite that you want to concentrate on, it may be a good idea to do it in the summer. Taking summer courses would also be a good idea for those of you who are scrambling to meet your prerequisites as well. But keep in mind that many schools (eg University of Toronto) requires or strongly prefers students who have a full course load for all 4 years of undergrad. So despite the fact that you took some summer courses, think twice before taking fewer than full course load during the school year.

2. Research

Research in any field (neuroscience, psychology, cancer, kinesiology, etc.) develops skills that med schools look for in their students. It will also hone your patience, detail orientation, and scientific knowledge. It doesn’t necessarily have to be paid, volunteer research positions will do as well (if your finances allows it). If you think a research position in the summer is right for you, start looking EARLY. I’m talking December or January. Profs usually get bombarded with requests like these, so try for a prof that you know well, or look for your school’s job postings (like work study). If you have the sponsorship and grades for it, apply for a research scholarship like NSERC.

Keep in mind that though med schools look favourably upon research, you shouldn’t spend your summers doing it unless you enjoy it. You will feel like you’ve wasted your summer, AND if you’re not passionate about your research, schools will be able to tell!

3. Work

Everyone needs some financial help, after all, undergrad is expensive! Don’t feel as if medical schools only want to see research jobs, the fact that you worked in the summer to support yourself shows initiative and responsibility. If you’re able to combine summer work with something that you love (ie working with kids at a camp, research job, or part timing at a vet clinic), then that’s perfect!

4. Volunteer

Another option is to do some volunteering. You could volunteer abroad for clinical experience, building schools, leading summer camps, the list is endless. I did that in the summer after my third year with the West Africa AIDS Foundation. I got to go to Ghana and experience a different culture and a different health care system. It was one of the best decisions I ever made. I saw real life medicine. I’ve shadowed doctors in Canada, Taiwan, and Ghana, and never before that summer have I truly seen suffering. It was a humbling experience and has inspired my goal of working for doctors without borders when I get my licence. However, I know some eager premeds will consider going abroad to volunteer because they think it’ll pad their resume. Like I said about research, if your intentions are to pad your resume instead of actually being interested in the thing that you’re doing, it will show during your application/interview AND you will not enjoy it.

Volunteer trips also tend to be rather expensive. For example, Students Offering Support‘s South/Central American trips to build schools is upwards $2000 for 2 weeks (not including airfare). Be weary of companies that advertise to send you to Australia or Africa for a couple of weeks – if they need to hire people to shout advertisements at your school, doesn’t it make you doubt their legitimacy?

My trip with WAAF was amazing and cheap. It was roughly $3000 for everything, including airfare, for about 6 weeks. It’s much cheaper because it’s a private NGO that doesn’t charge a “administration fee”. If you’re interested in receiving more information about it, feel free to message me or tweet me. 🙂

5. Solo travel

I love travelling. I think it is one of the best ways to discover the world and discover yourself. I never realized how big the world was until I went backpacking through Europe in my second year. It was amazing. If you have the money, travel. It will be the best thing you ever do. You’ll see things you’ve never seen and meet people you never dreamt of meeting. You could also combine volunteering (number 4) with travel! Find a volunteer trip that gives you some freedom to move around on the weekends, or plan out your trip following the outreach.

After medical school, chances are you’ll be too busy to travel and see the world – so I would suggest doing it now! Medical schools also look favourably upon students who have some cultural experiences as well, so it’s not a “waste” of your summer, as premeds tend to say.

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If you take one thing away from this post, it is that you should always treasure your summers – don’t just sit at home sipping on spiked lemonade – do something worthwhile and interesting. Most of all, don’t push yourself to get involved in an activity for the sake of padding your resume; THAT is wasting your time.

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In case you’re interested, here’s what I’ve done with my summers:

Year 1: Visited family + took Orgo online

Year 2: Worked at my university + backpacked through Europe for the last 3 weeks of summer

Year 3: Volunteered abroad in Ghana with WAAF for 6 weeks + volunteered at a clinical research lab for 2 months

Year 4 (upcoming): Planning to backpack through Asia

So close yet so far

Sorry I haven’t written in a while, finals took over my life for the last 3 weeks.

Today I received notice that I wasn’t granted interview for one of the Canadian med schools I applied for. What really kills me is that I was so close. They give you a score of how you did and also provide us with the “cut off” for interview invite. I was less than one point away.

A word for advice for all the hard-working premeds out there just starting university. Please be very wary of your marks. That’s where I fell short, my first year was a bit of a disaster because I got cocky from being “smart” in high school.

I was really disappointed when I read the email. Sometimes it feels like medical school asks too much of its applicants, but of course I just sound like a bitter old woman when I say that – since I got rejected pre-interview. But even if I were to get in to a school, I would still always feel that the system is flawed. There’s so much more value in a student who has done more with his/her life than study; we shouldn’t expect our future doctors to be super human, no one (or 99% of the population) can be involved in what they’re passionate about, AND get 4.0’s. If I had to choose one thing that I want in someone who’s saving my life. I’d rather passion and problem solving skills than the ability to get 100% on tests.

But don’t worry, I’ll never give up! There’s still other med schools that haven’t gotten back to me yet, maybe I’ll still get an interview. Or even if not, I’ll continue to apply next year, just gotta find a back up plan first! 🙂

I’ll post more non-ranty posts soon. I have a little bit more time since it’s the holidays! Cheers!

Defibrillators are hard to find!

We all know that using a defibrillator can increase the chance of survival in the case of a cardiac arrest – but how can we help someone out in an emergency if AED’s are so hard to come by in public places?

Why isn’t the abortion pill available in Canada?

Policy is an important aspect of healthcare that all medical students should be aware of. The Abortion Pill would bring a new level of efficiency, safety, and accessibility to Canadian women. Its absence in Canada is purely bureaucratic though – and André Picard explores this issue more in his globe and mail article.

Ever since I was five: Advice for the high school student

In the fall of 2010, when I was just a fresh-faced frosh walking onto the Queen’s University campus for the first time, I met many bright, like-minded individuals who had big dreams. In my BIOL 102 class full of 400+ “general science” students, 95% of the people I met that year told me that their goal was medical school. It seemed like a common theme, and why shouldn’t it be? It’s a highly respected career, with life-long learning and potential to help others in need. Of course a room full of young scientists would dream of a job in medicine.

So now that you’re here reading this, I assume you are just like those peers that I met back in 2010, albeit a few months or years younger. You want to be a doctor, or maybe you need to be a doctor. Perhaps this is something you’ve known/dreamt for/thought about since you were five years old. Well, here are a few things you should know:

1. Get into a university, but it doesn’t have to be Harvard.

• The thing is, undergraduate GPA really matters to med schools. Do you really want to go to a phenomenal school for your undergrad years and struggle to get a 3.5 GPA? No. Med schools don’t look much at where you went, but focus more on how you did. So the smart thing to do would be to attend a school that’s on the easier end in terms of getting high marks.
• McMaster’s Health Sciences program is a good way to get exposure to some good pre-med material. It’s a competitive program, but it does produce some pretty competitive medical school candidates!
• Queen’s Life Sciences is a interdisciplinary program that has the reputation of being a GPA killer. That’s somewhat true. It is a tough program, but it’s also a great one! What’s great about it is that it gives you a good blend of health, research, and academics.

2. Volunteer. Starting now.

• Start thinking about what you enjoy doing, and find a place to volunteer at that showcases your passion and talents.
• The longer you’ve been with an organization, the more responsibilities they’re likely to give you, and the more you’ll learn from them. It looks great on a medical school application, but you should be doing it because you want to hone your skills, not just to pad your resume.

3. Don’t aspire to be a doctor just because your parents want you to, or you figure you should.

• That’s probably the worst thing you can do to yourself. And look at it from your future patient’s perspective, you’re putting them in danger because a dispassionate doctor is the same as an incompetent doctor. So don’t be selfish and don’t put others in danger; instead, think about what you’re truly passionate about. And if you’re not sure yet, that’s okay. All of your friends who boast that they know exactly what they want to be? Half of them are lying. It’s okay to not have a clue yet. You’re 17, for crying out loud.

4. If you can, talk to a doctor that you know. Or better yet, shadow one.

• You might as well try to find out what being a doctor is all about by going straight to the source! Don’t like sleepless nights and stressful work hours? Maybe being a physician isn’t really for you, then. 
• Your local hospital may have mentorship programs for high school students. Ask around; ask your teachers, your career advisors, your parents. Try your best to get a feel of the actual job before setting this as your goal.

5. Find friends with similar interests.

• Striving for a difficult goal is a lot funner when you have someone to help you out! Whether it be looking at universities together, talking about your plans, or studying for the MCATs together a little ways down the road, it’s definitely nice to have a buddy!

6. Be open minded.

• Like I said, 95% of my frosh class wanted to go to medical school. By second year, that number went down to about 3/4, and by third year, only about 1/3 remained. Now, as I’m nearing the middle of my fourth and final year, only a handful of the original group applied for medical school. Many changed their mind because they found that they liked research, nursing, or pharmacy better, others realized the field is not really for them, and a few completely changed directions and went into law or arts.

If you’ve done all of the above and more, and are still sure that medicine is what makes you tick, then I applaud you! There are many options for undergraduate school; don’t be bogged down by all the different choices, just go to a school in a location that you think you would like!

For your reference, Queen’s recently started the Queen’s University Accelerated Route to Medical School program, where 10 high school applicants each year with high academic and community calibre will be selected to finish undergrad in 2 short years in preparation for direct entry into the Queen’s School of Medicine. I’m not so sure how I feel about this program – like I said, many of my peers eventually changed their minds about medicine, and I’m of the opinion that, as a high school student, it’s hard to say what you really want. However, the program is so new that I’ll reserve my judgment until some results can be seen! 

Anyways, thanks for reading, fellow high school students. Go forth into the world now, having been a bit more prepared for the world of academics pursuit and hard work!

– Kelly

Post-apocalypse? No, it’s post-antiobiotics, and it’s just as terrifying

“A Post-Antibiotic Era means the end of modern medicine as we know it. Things as common as strep throat or a child’s scratched knee could once again kill.”

Fixing the Canadian Medical School System

Find candidates not with a perfect transcript, but with a genuine passion for providing care to society

Have you ever went to the doctor for an operation or a standard checkup, and been treated callously by the very person who was supposed to provide you with care? The current Canadian medical school admissions system fails to provide our society with good doctors because the criteria used to select them is outdated and ineffective.

Admissions committees across the country are sitting down and making decisions on which candidates will eventually be tasked with treating our children, elders, and selves. Unfortunately for us, those individuals will be delivering babies, performing X-rays, and saving heart attack patients with an abject apathy unbecoming of a profession of such prestige and respect. Why?

Admissions committees measure aptitude for providing medical care through GPAs, percentages, and scores.

Medical care is essentially a hospitality or customer service practice, just with much less margin of error. Physicians absolutely do need to possess an unparalleled analytical ability and uncompromising attention to detail, but to what degree does a perfect GPA measure this ability compared to someone who is simply great? And at what cost was that perfect GPA achieved?

The standard student selected to treat our loved ones typically has an outstanding record of class marks and an astronomical percentile score on their MCATs, but a sparse history of building genuine social initiatives, growth of interpersonal skills, and development of innovative solutions to ambiguous problems. These are students with few leadership experiences, who spend their afternoons in libraries, and volunteer a few hours a week cleaning bedpans at the local hospital. Unfortunately, this is simply not good enough.

This imbalance in students is not of their fault; instead, the systemdemands an unrelenting tunnel vision towards grades to the expense of meaningful accomplishments. This causes pre-meds to value straight A’s more than the university experience. They study endlessly, and volunteer a couple of hours a week at the hospital to show the admission committee their compassion and experience in a healthcare setting. The problem is that these students (who will invariably get into medical school, because of their high grades) are not taking the time to contribute to an activity that they are passionate about, and as a result, they haven’t had the chance to develop genuine passion, leadership abilities, and teamwork.

“It is painful to watch unsocial, un-empathetic, and often aloof classmates of mine barely interacting with patients and moving on in medicine because they were just good at taking standardized tests.” — SH

In the past, the understanding that “a smart but socially-inept doctor is better than a nice but incompetent one” served true in the context of malpractice lawsuits, insurance companies, and government regulators. Today, however, an increasing number of students with above average marks and a genuine interest in healthcare are rejected in favor of those with soaring grades but little else to show.

The status quo is also to blame for acceptance of students who are poor candidates in later years. A recent study from University of Minnesota shows that medical schools emphasize academic ability in the earlier years of school, then the importance of interpersonal traits in the later years. Unfortunately, admissions committees seem to place high importance on the academic abilities of their candidates, perhaps with the assumption that the interpersonal skills will simply come naturally to the students later on.

How can medical schools change?

Many medical schools in Canada have already started a shift towards valuing the interpersonal skills of candidates. But the evaluation of the applicants are still heavily in favour of academic ability, which simplydoes not indicate the success of a future physician. Many medical schools have high GPA cut-offs upwards of 3.8 on a 4.0 scale.

Schools can begin a shift in the culture of healthcare by starting with its people. Lower the threshold requirement for grades and MCAT scores to what indicate a high analytical ability without filtering out those who are intelligent but chose to spend their times on things other than studying. Evaluate candidates that pass the lowered threshold on their leadership, interpersonal skills, and genuine passion for healthcare and other worthwhile organizations. Refuse to accept the status quo for what it is, and seek those who have the compassion, interest,and skills that you would want in the physician treating your loved ones.

Have the courage to change history, admissions committees. Otherwise, you simply perpetuate the crises of low-quality physicians that you are mandated to resolve.

Co-written with Ziming Yang.

Is medicine worth it?

Ah, the big question that all of us come to ask ourselves at some point in our miserable, albeit rewarding undergraduate lives. Sometimes the burden of responsibility and stress really crashes down. But isn’t that part of the journey?

Is medicine worth it? Well, the answer this question is different for everyone. Here’s a Venn diagram I made of the types of pre-meds you’ll likely meet:

Sometimes it feels like medical schools are looking for a high-calibre applicant who has a 3.9 GPA and also helped start an orphanage somewhere in Africa. There’s no use fretting about how impossible it is to become the pre-med unicorn; just do your best.

To be a successful pre-med, you will have to:

• Be smart; not a genius, but smart
• Decline your friends’ invitations to go out quite often, because you must get an A+ on the test tomorrow
• Be curious and genuinely interested in science and medicine
• Not be content with a summer spent at home; but find a job or a research post
• Not be afraid of talking to profs about the course material that you don’t understand entirely
• Be okay with staying up late often; and pulling a one-nighter every once in a while
• Be able to spend a summer studying for the MCATs
• Be socially apt at speaking to others, relating to others’ difficulties, and conveying messages concisely
• Find a few things you really love and are passionate about, and go above and beyond to contribute to its cause. This can be a charity, a sports team, a artistic expression, a student organization, or a volunteer job. Many pre-meds corner themselves into volunteering for a hospital cleaning bedpans for 3 years because they figure that’s what medical schools want. But that’s not the case. They want a person who is committed to whatever they are passionate about. They want a person who is a leader in their own field, not someone who knows the exact layout of Kingston General Hospital because they spent 3 years there

It is A LOT of hard work. And the worst part is the wait and the insecurities. Recently I watched Monsters University, and something that Mike Wazowski said really hit home with me:

I did everything right. I wanted it more than anyone. And I thought if I wanted it enough, I could show everybody that Mike Wazowski was something special… And I’m just, not.

I think that quote is really applicable to everyone who’s still out there searching for their calling. Not just in medicine, but every student goes through periods of uncertainty and discoveries. But my advice to you is, the difficult journey will only make the results even more satisfying. If you know medicine is what you want to do – go for it. Keep shooting for the moon, no one can stop you but yourself.

Welcome! And bear with me…

After reading some pre-med blogs that’s really helped me procrastinate while gaining some useful information, I’ve decided to start one myself! All the forum posts on premed101 is helpful and all, but sometimes they can be full of prowling trolls or just make you feel shitty for not having 3.98/13/14/13/S stats.

So this blog is dedicated to all of you slightly above average students out there who are thinking about/striving/looking into/yearning for a career in medicine. Notice I don’t say for medical school, because I think a lot of people fail to recognize that medical school is not the end-goal here – it’s becoming a physician. Whenever people say they’re striving to get into medical school, I feel as if they’re misunderstanding or mis-emphasizing the point of the entire process!

This blog will have some tips for undergrads, high school students, and most of all, will likely be full of rants on the current Canadian medical school system and healthcare system. I will also link to other content outside of this page often that I think are worth a read!

Happy striving!

-Kelly