Hi, and congratulations on having entered Medicine! On retrospect, when I first got into Medicine I felt lost, because there were so many things about medical school I ought to know, yet didn't. And every senior seemed to be giving me some advice, which confused me even further. At that time I really hoped all this advice could be consolidated into one big book. That was my starting point for this comprehensive guide to ease your transition into medical school. By no means is this write-up exhaustive, because there are simply too many aspects of medical school to be described! Besides, many things are best experienced by one-self.
As quoted from a senior, ‘Medicine is the hardest to get in, and the hardest to get out’. Getting into medicine was never easy – you had to do well in school, have a reasonable CCA score, impress the professors during the interview and even have a bit of luck during the selection process. But once you’re in, it’s time to cut yourself a little slack. Medicine actually has the lowest drop-out rate compared to other courses here in NUS.
Of course, I’m not implying that you can sleep during lectures or do last-minute studying. Rather, you can be less uptight about the competition between you and your peers. After all, do remember that in five years, your entire class of medical students (whether they are your friends, your acquaintances, or your enemies) are going to graduate, and become doctors.
One of the first things you should do is ask yourself what you really wish to achieve in Medicine. Specify your goals. Do you want to get into the Dean’s List (the top students get their names engraved on the wall)? Do you want to reach out and contribute to the community? Do you want to play your favourite sport or even party away? Realise that none of these are ‘wrong’ choices, but rather, YOUR choices. Set your own goals, and strive towards them. It is very easy to fall into an endless viscious struggle to be the top student of the class. After all, we were all brought up in the competitive Singaporean educational system, complete with endless versions of assessment books and ten-year-series.
This often ends up pointless unless your goal was really to be in the Dean’s List. Think about the doctors in politics, the doctors who are martial arts experts (one even participated in a recent charity show), or even SEA games medalists. Those are the doctors who had their goals set and never gave up. Being top brains, it’s not difficult to excel in anything you set your mind upon. So really sit down and spend some time searching your heart for an answer to the question.
Needless to say, it would be helpful if you could get to know more medical students, be them peers, senior or even juniors, because medicine is really all about networking. Then again, don’t let people end up being mere contacts on your email address book or PDA. Go deeper than that. You could have a shy personality, but I think now’s the time to break out of the shell. After all, how can a shy doctor reach out to his patients? If you don’t start talking now it might be too late!
People are in medicine for different reasons. Some are in medicine for the money, others for the prestige, for their parents, or even because they truly love medicine or love people. None of these are wrong reasons. Medicine, not unlike religion, is a ‘calling’ as described by ancient Greek physicians. When Medicine calls, one just has to reply, no second thoughts about it. Having this diversity in people allows for different perspectives to be put forward in issues that physicians face. So, never belittle another’s reason for being in Medicine, but instead respect the values other people hold to as their own.
You would hear from many seniors that Year One is going to be your ‘honeymoon year’, that the workload is not really heavy. I concur with that statement; the workload is going to increase as you rise in the ranks of medical students. So be sure to make the most of the time and freedom you are going to get. Do something useful, don’t squander your time and regret at the end of your first year. For a few suggestions, do look in the community service section of this guide.
I’m going to take this opportunity to thank my peers who have been helping me with studying tips (one thing I profess I’m not really good at) for this guide. To Yi Yong, Chen Mei, Wen Jie, Yong Cheng, Lionel, Emily, Eileen and Cuiling, thank you for taking the time to write those fabulous articles for the guide. I’m sure many juniors will benefit from your experiences and tips.
Lastly, just a disclaimer. The contents of this guide are meant only for students and practitioners of the Art, and are not to be released in the press or any other media for unauthorized reading. The comments are those of the respective authors and do not necessary represent the views of the medical community as a whole.
I wish you all the best in your medical career and look forward to working with you in the line.
Derrick Lian