Pre-med summer experience!
Vested
🗣️Hi y'all! I wanted to come on here and let y'all see/know what I am doing to make the most out of my summer as a premed.
First of all REST! I can't emphasize it enough, it is so important and so crucial to allow yourself to rest so you can perform your best on everything you plan to do. I personally decided to take the first two weeks of summer as my rest to recover from finals and actually enjoy being with friends and family.
Through the semester I applied to various internships, research opportunities and jobs which was super helpful to get a head-start in the summer and not have to wait until summer started to start applying. I had time over spring break to really read over what I wanted to do.
I had a couple of things not go the way I planned, I wanted to get into research but couldn't (yet) however, I did get a (cool) job! I am working as a neurofeedback tech! (Ask me what it is! super cool) which is something I wouldn't have ever thought of had I not started looking for things early on and most important of all with an OPEN MIND. I am learning so much and I am able to see things I have learned in my classes in real life, mind blowing!!
Next, as many of us, I need money. So I have also decided to take on babysitting/nannying jobs/gigs since they have a flexible schedule and you also get to learn a lot about different cultures, different paths people have taken in life and if you are lucky you can use it to network since the parents often have a wide network of people such as their children's doctors, friends and even family!
Volunteering/shadowing; I have been volunteering throughout my spring and fall semesters at college consistently so over the summer I planned to do the same, just in a different setting. I am volunteering at a food pantry in a church on Saturday mornings and showing up to community events sporadically just to get involved and I have enjoyed it so far! As for shadowing, I have shadowed a couple of doctors, I got lucky, one of my friend's dad is an anesthesiologist so I get to shadow him pretty often and since he jumps from one case to another all day, I have gotten to see many different procedures from various specialties. I have also just emailed different providers in my area for opportunities and I got a couple of responses back which is a great way to start new connections.
Lastly, I am taking an online summer class (Calculus 1) so I can get a bit of a head-start on my math classes in school and with that lower the STEM class load over the semester. It is a bit intense since it is so condensed and it is such a short period of time but if you are diligent and disciplined about it, it can be super beneficial.
Overall… I don't want to come on here and say that what I am doing is perfect nor is it the 100% correct way, however, everyone has a unique path and there is no "one fits all" for pre-meds. Do what you are passionate about, do what you feel you will benefit from.
Give everything a chance, the worst that could happen is you don't like it and you move on to the next interesting thing! Don't be afraid to reach out, the worst that could happen is they say no and you have to ask someone else!
You got this! Do NOT compare yourself to others, ask for help and if someone is doing something you're interested in, ask!
Comments
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This is great! The way that you organized all your information and gave words of encouragement is great and something that all pre-meds need to hear sometimes. You've learned so much I'm so glad that you've complied everything to teach all of us!
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