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10 Tips for a Stress-Free Medical School Application
1. Don鈥檛 apply over apply to Medical Schools
Don鈥檛 apply to too many schools (20-30 is probably a lot but doable) 鈥� instead, do
a little bit more research on each school that you are considering. Think to
yourself about places that you wouldn鈥檛 mind moving to. Think to yourself about
your reach and safety schools based on your MCAT and GPA.
You may think it makes you less likely to get into schools if you apply to less, but
not sure that鈥檚 what is most important. If you鈥檙e thoughtful about where you
apply and focus on writing 20 really strong apps instead of 45 mediocre ones
you鈥檒l be much better off.
2. Stay Flexible
Make your plans and schedules during the early part of the application cycle extra flexible. Remember that a bulk of your time writing secondary applications will be right after you submit your application. If you do this early, like I think you should, then make sure you have a flexible July and August that allows you to focus as much time as you have (but don鈥檛 quit your day job or fail your summer classes鈥�) on writing these applications. Just prepare!
3. Budget
Budget for EVERYTHING! Don鈥檛 be shortsighted like I was and just focus on the application costs. Money is a significant source of stress for a lot of people and being prepared will mitigate this a lot. This means being really thorough in all sources of potential spending during the application cycle. Factor in as many things as you can think of.
4. Avoid Extra Travel
Travel is NOT always a break 鈥� please do not schedule in travel as break time during interviews. It may be a break for the moment, but it is often not restful. You need mechanisms integrated into your schedule that allow for true rest!
5. Failure isn鈥檛 the End
Just because you don鈥檛 get into a med school (or the med school you really
wanted) doesn鈥檛 mean you aren鈥檛 qualified!! This one took me SO LONG to
realize. The age-old saying 鈥渁 true measure of a person鈥檚 character is how one
handles failures, not success鈥� really rings true here.
It is not productive to think that you aren鈥檛 qualified. It IS productive to look back
at things that can be improved because ANYONE (seriously, anyone) can improve
their application. It鈥檚 not always easy, but you can improve your application in so
many ways. Please don鈥檛 give up on
your dream, if it is your dream.
6. Strong Support Systems
Find your support systems! This might be the most important point of them all. I really try to emphasize proactive planning in this post, because a strong believer in trying channeling productivity. In spite of this, the reality is that having a good support system is really what will help with stress the most, and will help you be productive in ways you might not expect.
7. Stay focused on what YOU can Control
Focus on things in your application that are within your control! You can鈥檛 go back and be the president of 6 clubs, or get 300 more shadowing hours, or 3 more publications right before you hit submit. What you can do is make sure your application shows off a very refined, polished version of yourself. You can make sure your test scores are where you want them to be. You can make sure that the people writing your letters are writing you strong letters by asking 鈥淐an you write me a strong letter of recommendation?鈥� One tip that I was given is to look up the program objectives for those schools you鈥檙e applying to and discuss how you are personally prepared to tackle those objectives.
8. What are Your 鈥淜ey Messages鈥�
Think about the key points you want to convey in your application. This is MUCH easier said than done, and we recommend that you take at least a week just to focus on this. Talk to your friends and family about what 6-7 major themes you really want to convey in your application that are individual to you. The classic 鈥� just realllllllly want to be a doctor鈥� should not be one of them! Really operationalize what it would mean for you and your future to succeed in being a doctor.
9. Keep Your Support System Involved
Remember to involve your support system throughout the whole process. This doesn鈥檛 mean let them write your essay for you, but do solicit their thoughts. They know you, and they may have a more objective perception of you than you do yourself (especially if you鈥檙e really hard on yourself). Also, said in the previous section, always know that you can lean on them in difficult times.
10. Practice, Practice, Practice
Practice your interview, with someone qualified. Practicing in situations like these seem to add extra stress, but it will mitigate the real stress during the actual day and help you feel more prepared. Someone qualified can give you targeted feedback that you can improve on, and that feedback will likely be more representative of how your interviewers will be thinking. Here See Pros and cons of 色戒直播.