Making the decision to go to medical school should not be taken lightly. There’s a lot of responsibility from the classroom to your clinical sessions so that you can be the best doctor possible in the field where you want to practice.
While the entire experience won’t be difficult, there could be times when you wished that you would have known a few things before getting involved in something that will take up at least a few years of your life before you begin working.
Understanding the Subjects
Instead of just trying to get through your classes and memorizing the details in each book to pass tests, you want to really understand the information that’s taught. While during your clinical rotations, you’re probably not going to have access to a book all the time or even a few index cards so that you can look up information.
You’re going to need to know how to make a diagnosis and what to look for when treating a patient without always searching online or in a book. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, watch videos, and explore ways to get hands-on experience so that you can understand your subjects.
Clothing
When you begin your clinical sessions, you’re going to need to know what to wear. It’s not a time when you can wear jeans or even your best clothes that you might wear on Sunday.
You’re going to want to invest in the best scrubs for women so that you’re comfortable while also providing a professional appearance for your patients and the other workers in the hospital or office.
Find out what color you need to wear as well as some departments have their own colors in order to set them apart from others.
Effort
There will likely be a few low test scores along the way. Don’t let this get you down and make you change your mind about medical school. Use it as a way to study harder and do better on the next test.
It’s more important that you can show that you’re willing to learn and put forth the work than it is to get perfect grades each semester.
The Final Outcome
Since there are so many specialties and places to work, you need to carefully think about the end goal after medical school. Choose something that you’re going to enjoy instead of thinking about making the most money. If you go to work every day knowing that you’re making a difference, then you’re going to be much more successful than if you were to enter the field with dollar signs in your mind.
