One last semester

It's scary how fast these last three and a half years have gone by. I remember with terrifying clarity what it was like my freshman year. As eager as I am to enter the medical world, I shudder to think how fast it could go by.

I have to say that I am very satisfied with my academic career at my undergraduate university, and I am content to live it out with one slow semester. No more 22+ credit hours with 3 labs for me. Instead I've diverted my time towards working and a pending honors thesis, and will be dancing (literally) my way through this last semester. I don't think I will be working any less than I ever had, really. 40 hours of work a week and 12 credit hours, even when 9 of them are dance credits, is still pretty rough. I guess I've been blessed with the fact that I enjoy the busyness (this should be a word if it isn't) of it all. It was miserable at times, but it always felt good after pulling an all nighter to write a 20 page lab report. After working so hard for so many semesters, I really don't want to forget how, anyways. I think this is one of the biggest reasons that you need to love your major, and make sure you love medicine. Life is so much easier when you enjoy putting yourself through the grinder that is higher learning!

I'm so grateful to my undergraduate university for all of the opportunities I've had. Research, funding for projects, community service, heck I even got a letter from the President of my University. I hope that I can pay them back for it all. I intend to get the Dean of my Honors college, as well as my other letter writers, something nice to show how much I appreciate it. If I can offer two things of wisdom to you, oh ye undergraduates, it be these:

1) A large university does not preclude you from making good connections. There are a proportional number of slackers, and then some, in any large university when compared to a smaller one. Most of my office hour visitations were solo.

2) A letter from a familiar person is the way to go. And make sure that you give them big packets of information from you. Your whole life story. I was told by one of the members of the adcom (she had come to our school for a tour, and I was selected as one of the students to represent us) that a letter that shows that they know something about you is tops. She said that "We get so many letters from famous academics, who simply say this student came to class, got an A, and asked questions." I would recommend one or two big wigs in every packet, but makes sure that they read your information packet before you put them in the one you are going to send to schools! I got complimented multiple times about my letters, and I am so grateful to my writers for taking the time and interest in me to do me such a boon as they did.