Advice from a Doctor to a 2nd-year Premedical Student

Written by Mia Cain

I recently had the privilege of connecting with St. George’s University Medical School graduates who are now practicing doctors or residents within Boston. Each of them had their own story to tell and offered valuable advice that settled much of the nerves that others and I have as pre-med students. Here is a list of the words of wisdom I received and how it’s changed my thought process.

1. You have time

I often feel like I’m working against the clock and that there just aren’t enough hours in the day. It feels as though I have so much to do in so little time, and to get my tasks done, I have to sacrifice my free time. Many of my peers feel the same way; however, at the end of the day, I am only a second-year student. I can only take so many credits in a semester, and it’s impossible to get all one-hundred clinical hours overnight. These things take time, which is actually on our side. You’ll get your clinical and volunteering hours and complete all your prerequisite courses; it just won’t happen overnight. And that’s okay.

2. It’s a marathon, not a sprint

As I said, time is on your side, even when it doesn’t feel like it. Everything will work itself out; it just won’t be overnight. And it shouldn’t. This whole process of getting to med-school is a learning experience. There’s so much to learn, and if you rush through it all, you could miss out on valuable lessons. At the end of the day, you’re still a college student, and that should be something fun. Don’t rush through it.

3. You don’t have to be a straight A student

If you’re anything like me, you came into college having amazing grades and expected to stay the same in college. Then, you get a B on a test and it’s the end of the world. Spoiler alert: it’s not. A few Bs or Cs on your transcript isn’t the sole determining factor that you can’t go to med school. In fact, some of the doctors I talked to even had Ds on their transcript and are now residents at some of the best hospitals in the world. You’re going to have challenging classes where you might not do as well as you’d hoped. But at the end of the day, it’s not about the grade, it’s about what you learned and how you can apply that in the future. That’s what med-schools want to see. Sure, grades matter, but if you don’t get all As in undergrad, you’re not any less worthy of going to med school.

The doctors I spoke with are living proof that you can achieve your goals of becoming a physician. Even when it seems impossible, you have the skillset to achieve your goals and accomplish whatever you put your mind to.