What You Need to Know Before Starting Medical School

What You Need to Know Before Starting Medical School

First things first: Congrats on your acceptance to medical school! All that hard work has finally paid off!

To my first-generation friends, you are making HISTORY. Being the first in your family to graduate from college and enter medical school is such a huge accomplishment that should never be taken lightly!

I’m going to divide this post up into two sections: 1) for all first-years and 2) for those who are first-generation students. In a way, first-gens are sort of a “minority” in medical school, making their experience different than others. To be clear, I do not consider myself a “minority” or “underrepresented” and only speak from my experience as a first-generation student 🙂


Incoming First-Years

  1. Take advantage of orientation week! Socialize and participate in the class group chat.
    • Even though we are adults now, it can still be terrifying to make new friends, especially in a new state/country!
    • You do not want to be a lone wolf in medical school. Succeeding requires the pack. Unfortunately, most cliques are formed during orientation week and it can be harder to develop friendships. Also, busy schedules can make it more challenging later on.
    • Most schools will have events during orientation that involve team/group activities, which is a great opportunity to meet people.
    • My class also created a Group Me (Facebook or other platforms work too!) to communicate with each other about socials, school information, etc. If your class doesn’t have one, you should consider making one!
    • You don’t have to be active in the chat, but pay attention to it, especially during your first week so that you know about socials and such!
  2. Medical school is fast-paced, so do not procrastinate/fall behind!
    • This might be obvious. I know procrastination is a weakness for MANY people, but I’ve seen many of classmates procrastinate until two days before an exam, only to find themselves too stressed to study efficiently for it.
    • The analogy of “drinking from a firehose” for the amount of material you have to learn is TRUE.
    • Procrastination may have worked in college, but medical school is a different ball game.
  3. You have the MOST FREE TIME during your first year of medical school.
    • If you want to travel, you probably can! At the right time, of course. I literally went to Coachella in the middle of my endocrine block during the second semester!
    • If your family/friends want to visit you, you definitely have time to spend with them if you manage it well!
    • You also have time for research and student organizations!
  4. Be open to new & different learning methods!
    • You have to re-learn how you learn.
    • Again, what worked in college may not work in medical school because of the amount of information you have to jam in your head with so little time.
    • Your days of color-coding, highlighting, and creating beautiful aesthetically pleasing notes may be over 🙁 Strive for efficiency!
    • If you try a method and you don’t like it, that’s OKAY! Try a different one.
    • Don’t wait until the second semester or your second-year to figure out how you learn best.
    • If you want to use Anki, start learning it NOW! I recommend these add-ons to optimize studying and watching this video on how to use Anki for medical school.
  5. Imposter Syndrome is real! (see my post on that here) and normal. Everyone is smart in medical school and that’s okay because you are too!

Incoming First-Generation Students

  1. Imposter Syndrome, if you experience it, is going to hit you HARD!
    • You may feel like you don’t belong, that your class mates are smarter than you, whatever it is you are feeling, it is completely normal.
    • The key is to NOT let it control you! It helps to connect with people who understand where you come from or people who share a similar background as you.
    • Everyone in medical school is smart, including you, but not everyone has the same work ethic! That can be what distinguishes you.
  2. Try NOT to feel less of yourself if you have to study more than your peers to do well.
    • Honestly, I still struggle with this. But I’ve realized how detrimental it was to my self-esteem and my overall mental health.
    • You don’t have to be the smartest person in the room, but you can damn well be the hardest working!
    • Don’t be afraid to seek therapy to build your self-esteem and to stay mentally sharp. I hesitated at first, but I’m glad I did because it helped immensely!
    • Of course it goes without saying, but surround yourself with people who lift you up.
  3. You cannot work during medical school, unfortunately.
    • The school will tell you the same.
    • I know that many first-generation students come from low-income families, which is why I mention this.
    • Although you may feel it is your responsibility to either help your family or provide for yourself, it would pose too great of a challenge during medical school.
    • While most medical students have parents that can help with tuition, the reality is that all our “income” comes from loans. And that’s okay because one day we will pay off all these loans. One day, finances will not be a problem and we can take on all the responsibility we want for our family. Just remind yourself that this is just temporary!
  4. Find the right mentors for YOU! Try to connect with upperclassmen during you first year!
    • Luckily, we had a mixer between the M1s/M3s during orientation and I met an M3 who has been a great source of advice.
    • Some schools also have a buddy program where they pair M1s with M2s – participate in these programs!
    • Something I wish I had done was seek a mentor with a first-generation background. Medical institutions were not built for first-generation students and navigating the system mentally and emotionally can be challenging.
  5. Scholarships & Financial Aid – apply apply apply!
    • FILL OUT THE COLLEGE BOARD APP for need-based aid (& FAFSA for loans)
    • Get to know your financial aid office! Certain scholarships are available for residents in certain states, underrepresented students, minorities, etc.
    • The Army and National Health Service Corps offers great scholarships! I am an NHSC Scholarship recipient so if you’d like more information on that, LET ME KNOW! I will have a post about this soon!

I started this blog in hopes that it could become a free resource for first-generation students, in addition to all medical students. I’d be happy to be your mentor should you need one <3

With lobe,

Kelly

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Kelly
Kelly

Internal medicine resident physician at UCLA, primary care track. VCU School of Medicine c/o 2022. SoCal born and raised.

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