Verified

“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.... We cannot change our past... The only thing we can do is play on the string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10 percent what happens to me and 90 percent how I react to it…”
-Charles R. Swindoll

My application is now “verified”…excited not really. I woke up this morning not in the best mood. I decided to make this post not to have a “pity party” but to encourage other premeds that may feel the same way. I truly believe that turning obstacles into opportunities not only keeps you in the right frame of mind it facilitates growth. (Don’t worry I will explain the first sentence soon enough)

Many nontraditional premeds say to me “my earlier grades are weak, will I ever be able to move past this? Can I demonstrate improvement?” My response is always you will never be able to hide your “skeletons” (bad grades) but you can grow. You must first move past a defeatist mind set (something I know well). Go over the basics. Like many nontraditional, underrepresented minorities who attended inferior public schools, you may not have a strong foundation in the natural sciences. Get a High School textbook go over, review, relearn and rehash. Filling in the gaps is KEY. Key to assessing the path you will take.

As I grow, I learn that living your truth is the key to happiness or at least the password. So here it is: I am a first generation American. My parents are immigrants from Jamaica, West Indies. My dad works 12 hours a day as a cab driver and my mom works two jobs (16 hrs a day) as a nurse’s aide. My parents have sacrificed so much to provide me, as well as my siblings they left behind, with opportunities that they didn’t have. (I’m sure many of you can relate to this)

I grew up in Far Rockaway, Queens and I attended the local high school, a school that had a graduation rate of approximately 30 percent. My graduation class was its last; the following year the board of education closed it down because of a long record of poor academic performance. Not surprisingly, my high school did not prepare me for college. With this being said I floundered for two years at the college of Staten Island- CSI (Did I forget to mention I worked full time as a certified nurses aide, a physically demanding job). Transferred to Brooklyn college, got my grades up (learning the basics is the only way to do this) and decided to seriously pursue medicine.

I joined clubs, took on leadership roles and utilized every tool and resource Brooklyn College provides. I submitted my application to medical school. Since My Brooklyn college transcript says a 3.0 I was confident that I at least meet the minimum requirements to have my application reviewed (at least at some schools don’t worry I am realistic). My application gets “verified “ (dun Dun DUNNN!!!) Lets just say my skeletons from CSI aren’t hidden.

I am not giving up. I will most likely have to attend a Post bac program.

This journey is not for the swift !!!

How to choose the right medical school…

I decided that post bacc programs are my most likely route. I will make another post devoted to choosing the correct post bacc for your situation. With that being said I decided to look at table 25 to decide if my chances of me being accepted in my current situation are viable. After conferring I decided to apply to post bacc programs leading to master degrees and medical schools that have missions in line with the type of physician I want to be.

The basic purpose of medical schools is to educate physicians to care for the national population and with that intention, a sufficient number of minority physicians in the workforce is necessary. That is why AAMC is committed to increasing the number of underrepresented minorities in medical education.

When choosing I first wanted to look at schools that accepted lower GPA and MCAT scores. (My thinking is these schools are more likely to look at my application) That information I found at Medical School Admissions Requirements, an invaluable resource that I highly recommend paying for.

Next I wanted to filter out Medical schools that are devoted to the social mission of medical education; training primary care physicians, increasing access to health careers for minority students, and improving health care services in regions that are undeserved. I used Medical School Admissions Requirements as well as The social Mission look at table 1 for the medical school ranking (my thought is schools that score higher on this list are devoted to producing a certain number of minority physicians). You might also want to read : https://www.wdhstore.com/hispanic/data/pdf/june6-debunking.pdf , http://web.jhu.edu/prepro/Forms/AAMC%20Premed%20Resources.pdf

After that I decided to narrow my search to schools that are in the middle of the country especially considering that more applicants will apply to schools that are coastal and/or in major cites US news tips for selecting medical schools.

Next I looked at their curriculum I wanted a school that matched my learning style.

Last but not least  apply to your dream school. You will regret it if you don't !!

I  want to stress that I do not think it matters which medical school you attend in "the end" as long as you attend schools that are in the states, when considering between a state school and an Ivy-league. Every student in the nation will take the same board exams . So no matter which school you choose to attend you will still graduate as a doctor.

Also note that the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) and the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM), have agreed to a unified system  for graduate medical education programs in the United States.

A single graduate medical education (GME) accreditation system will evaluate and provide accountability for the competency of physician residents consistently across all GME programs.  Making it that much harder for foreign graduates to get residencies. Thus providing you with another reason to stay in the states.


Useful websites : Selection factors https://www.aamc.org/download/261106/data/aibvol11_no6.pdf
Advice guide: http://premed.ua.edu/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Not-so-short-guide-to-getting-in-to-med-school.pdf Choosing:  http://www.beagooddoctor.org/pcpr/choosing-a-medical-school

.

Who am I....

My name is Toni J. I just graduated from Brooklyn College CUNY, in New York with a bachelors in chemistry this spring semester.  I am planning on applying to Medical School this cycle. But I know that it is wise to have a plan B, especially since I am not the most competitive applicant.

Just to tell you little about myself,  My Brooklyn College GPA is a 3.0 and my current practice MCAT score is 26. I have taken the MCAT and I am waiting for the score.

I have faced numerous obstacles, that have hindered me from being able to show my academic abilities. Some reasons for the poor academics are academic deficiency leaving high school, immaturity, work schedule and family structure.

Thankfully towards the end of my undergraduate years I was able to demonstrate improvement. Which I attribute to self introspection and a more priority driven work life balance. I truly believe that with my life experience (i.e. patient care experience, living in a health care deprived community and research)  and my persistence.

I will be a great physician someday!

For a more recent update of who I am check out my "Verified" post

Check out these success stories/websites that keep me positive: A not so strong MCAT, Should I still apply... ,From 3.0 to 4.0 ,What Does it Mean to be Disadvantaged? ,poor test taker

My third day shadowing the surgeon.

I arrived at 12:45 in the afternoon. I had a watch, a pen and a note pad. Short lab coat, comfortable clogs, black pants and a business appropriate top.

I have severe flat feet and so I can not stand or walk for too long. I didn't let that stop me. I followed the physician as he went from one patient to the next (total approx. 30 patients). The majority of the patients I saw had breast issues; typical "mammogram pathology report suggests suspicious  mass that needs further investigation".

The first two days of shadowing consisted of me getting my bearings. I was so nervous. The physician I am shadowing is a professor and he's use to having students that he can barrage, teach and inspire.

I tried to make my presence as "shadow" like as possible, I didn't want to get in his way. When I heard a term I didn't know I wrote it down, I tried to assist patients when I could and ask educated questions.

The operative word is "try", some of my attempts failed. For instance a patient with a cast needed assistance with putting on her bra. So I jumped at the opportunity to help. I asked the patient if she needed further assistance with putting on her shirt. She said no. The physician looked at me like I had three horns on my head.

I say all of this to say: "Take the initiative" ( in many cases you do not have to ask).

Moving forward I will. At least I will "try"... And you should to.

Useful information regarding shadowing: Doctor Shadow , How To Effectively Shadow a Physician as a Premed Student , How Do I... Shadow a Doctor? , Career Junkie