EPTFor years, that phrase has defined me. It has defined everything I've worked for - everything I've sacrificed, and I've even let it begin to define how I see myself. Someone who works hard, parties less, and strives for excellence in everything that I do. I want to be part of the medical profession because I want to know that I'm making a difference - even if it's a small part in someone's everyday life.
A little info about myself, spoilered because it's about a paragraph and not REALLY relevant to the purpose of this blog.
+ Show Spoiler +
I'm a Senior studying Biochemistry at a large public University in the Midwest. I'd tell you all where it is, but then I'd be confirming a stereotype I'm none too fond of. ("Know how you find it out if someone went to _____? Talk to them for five minutes." I've applied to 16 medical schools, 10 from the immediate area around me, surrounding states, etc., and the rest from across the country. I've been refused an interview from 7 of these schools as of today - leaving me with 9 remaining. It's not unusual, with the national acceptance to medical school hovering somewhere around 4-7% of applicants. Being an "average" medical school applicant isn't good enough. You have to be above the norm, something special, you have to distinguish yourself from the hordes of other eager college seniors looking to be a part of the medical field, for whatever reason.
This weekend, my father and I attended a football game. On the preceding Thursday afternoon, my Mother called me and told me they planned to watch the game from the Dean of Engineering's booth on Saturday. She must have caught scent of an escape route, because before I could finish saying "That's awesome!", she was offering me her ticket. I'm a huge football fan, so I was excited to go just for the opportunity to watch some good football, and the chance to spend time with my Dad - seeing as those opportunities are becoming fewer and fewer as our lives become busier and busier.
It's worth mentioning that I've applied to medical school at this University. While it's not a reach school, any medical school can be termed a "reach" for the everyday applicant. It was probably a small factor in my decision to come along, but it certainly wasn't forefront in my mind. As we sat chatting with the Dean of Engineering and watching the game, suddenly he stood up and scurried out into the hallway. He returned moments later with another well-dressed man. He motioned for me to join them, so I walked over and introduced myself.
"Justin, this is Dr. Smith, the Dean of the Medical School."
The man smiled at me and my Dad came over to join us. I could feel my knees shaking a little. I was so unprepared, so poorly dressed, so NOT READY. (Compounded by the fact that I had just picked a scab on my lip, and was bleeding profusely. I had to keep dabbing it casually throughout the conversation).
He was incredibly proud of his school. I felt as though he was really selling me on the whole idea. Little did he know, he didn't have to sell me on anything. I was already falling all over the medical school before I'd even heard what he had to say. When he left, he gave me his card, and told me to call him if I needed help with anything. He thanked the Dean of Engineering for introducing him to such "a fantastic young man".
After he left, I sat down with my Dad to watch the rest of the game. I couldn't believe it. I had just had a one-on-one, casual conversation with the Dean of the Medical School. How many other applicants would have an experience like the one I did?
By all facts and stats, I'm just an above-average medical school applicant. My grades are average, my MCAT is slightly above average, and my extracurriculars and leadership qualities are what set me just slightly apart. I've never been one to play the game, to "pull strings" and send emails to people essentially begging for some kind of favoritism. I'm a strong believer that you can only pull strings for too long until they snap, and nobody likes a suck-up. Whatever I achieve, I want to earn it. I want to earn it myself and call it my own.
At the same time, this is by no means meant to be a brag-blog. I'm well aware that most of my achievements have to be accredited to my parents, who have supported me in whatever endeavor I wanted to undertake. If I were to be accepted into this University and nowhere else, I would know almost for certain that it was my Dad's connections that got me there. And while I wouldn't be proud of it, I don't think I'd be ashamed of it either. I'd work my ass off like I always do to prove that I deserve it.
I wanted to see what TeamLiquid thinks about Who You Know vs. What You Know. We all know that life isn't fair, and the rich and incompetent are often put into positions of power and wealth not because they deserve to be there, but because they know someone who appreciates them. While I haven't been accepted into medical school here, I have to believe that meeting with the Dean, an experience that wouldn't have been possible without my Dad's connections, can only be beneficial to my application chances.
