Change of plans

So things did not really go according to plans. For most of my interviewing days, I was very certain that I would end up at Temple, but it turns out that Tufts was a better match. I'm now at the verge of completing my first year of medical school at Tufts and all I can say is that I would have never thought that I could learn so much in so little time. I still realize that I have much more to learn, my level of knowledge is not even close to one needed to treat someone, but at least by now I can do a full physical exam. :) yay. Physical Diagnosis has to be one of the most fun classes I have had. Maybe it's the fact that I want to pursue Orthopaedics, and half of our physical diagnosis class has been taught by orthopaedic surgeons, or just the fact that I love to have a more hands on approach. Whatever the reason, physical diagnosis is been the closest to real medicine that I have been this year. Tufts does a great job matching subjects for every discipline we learn, so we learn it along the same time frame. So when we learn the cardiac examination, we are also learning the cardiac physiology, and dissecting the thorax in anatomy lab, even our PBL questions are focused on cardiac problems. The integration of all classes has been the best approach Tufts curriculum could take. No wonder last year's class scored an average of 235 on the step I ( I just hope our year keeps it up). So physical diagnosis got me so excited that I have decided to pursue my research interest with Dr.Matzkin, one of the orthopaedic surgeons who taught us the lower extremities aspect of the course. I start the research this Tuesday, let see how excited I still am after a couple of months.

Interviews coming in

This week as been a relief. I have been completed at most schools for just over 2 weeks and I have landed 2 interviews so far. The interview invites were at two places that I was not expecting to ever have a significant chance of being accepted. The first invite came from Case Western, a school with an average score a little above my own, a top 25 rank according to US news, and a dream come true if I would ever be accepted. The second one is UVM ( Universitas Verdis Montis) better known as University of Vermont. Even though my stats are somewhat a little better than Vermont's average the school has a increased tendency to give an advantage to in-staters. Being from NY state my chances of ever being accepted to Vermont are slim to none, at least so I thought. Due to my slim chances of ever being accepted to Vermont you would wonder why did I ever apply there in the first place. Well, my reason for applying to Vermont is simple. Burlington is just drop down gorgeous of a place to live in. It is definitely my kind of town, a town that would provide me and my future family a support system much needed to help me get through the hard times to come. I am excited about both interviews although a little worried about asking for more time off from work, especially since I am driving to both interviews instead of flying. The reason for that is a totally different story that I might address in the near future.

A catastrophic first time

Last year's application cycle did not go as well as I hoped for. After taking the august MCAT with a less then adequate preparation I set myself up for failure. I ended up with a score of 25, 7VR 8PS 10BS. Even though the rest of my application is relatively solid the MCAT has such a huge say on the entire application that I knew my chances were slim to none. Even with such a mediocre score I was able to pull an interview at Albert Einstein. Besides giving me false hope, the interview served as a great experience in preparation for this year's cycle. I now know what to expect of an interview, what to bring with me, how long it usually takes, and most importantly I will be able to adjust myself mentally to be calm and prepared. The most important change for this year's application is my new improved score of 31, 9VR 11PS 11BS. Although it is nothing to be bragging about I am very proud of my score. I remember sitting at Albert Einstein's admissions office, waiting for my interview, and contemplating the fact that everybody around me that day had a score way above mine. I instantly thought how emotionally terrible it would be to attend medical school with the constant thought that I am inferior to my colleges. I know that a simple exam score should not solely determine how smart someone is, but it would bother me to be accepted at a school with such a below average score. I am now way more confident than last year, even though my parents believe that I will score 10+ interviews this season I am not nearly as optimistic. I would be happy with 4 to 5 interviews.

How it all started

My debut as a blogger started as a consequence of increased boredom. After having surgery on my knee a week ago I have been unable to do much more then laying down in bed. I have been a fan of reading blogs for quite some time now and it was about time to start my own. I will write mostly about my experience of applying to medical school, and, if I still have time in the future, write about my own experience as a medical student. Now that it is clear why I have created this blog I will introduce myself. My name is Rafael, I was born in Brazil 22 years ago, lived in France for about 5 years and I currently reside in Buffalo, NY. I have many passions in my life with medicine and soccer being the most prominent. I have recently graduated from college with a Biochemistry degree. I currently work as a medical assistant at a primary care physician's office. I am in a serious relationship with this lovely girl named Cristina. And most importantly, I have been struggling to get a chance of fulfilling my dream of becoming a physician. I look foward to start writing the bulk of this blog in the near future. Stay tuned.