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Decisions
I have now received some form of response to all sixteen of my med school applications. The final stats: Twelve rejections, four interviews. Of those four, Loma Linda University, Penn State Hershey College of Medicine, and New York Medical College offered acceptances, while the University of Maryland School of Medicine (where I’ve worked for two…
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A Perceptual Error
A while back the leasing office started advertising a “breakfast on the go” event for this week. It sounded great and the time included when I normally leave for work; unlike most events, I planned to avail myself of it (this was assisted by the placement of the ad above my mailbox). The night before…
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Hurry Up and Wait
I had my final med school interview this week and (independently) collected my twelfth rejection. Now it’s just a matter of waiting for the remaining three schools I interviewed at to get back to me. The uncertainty of waiting creates considerable emotional drag, not only because a rejection could arrive at any time, but also…
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RAS Syndrome
Redundant Acronym Syndrome syndrome: people incur it all the time. They say an acronym but repeat the final word as well: DVD disc, ATM machine, ISBN number. Were the acronym to be fully expanded, they’re duplicating that final word and saying “digital versatile disc disc.” This used to aggravate me immensely, but the other day…
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Not Enough Hours
Like just about everybody else, I often feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day to accomplish everything I want to do. Short of jettisoning my internal clock with something like the 28-hour day (and I can see my lab’s circadian expert shuddering from here), the best I can do is try to manage…
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In Memoriam
Four years ago today my cat James (named after the character in Ursula K. LeGuin’s Catwings) died at ten years old. Death is an integral part of life and while there isn’t much cause for sadness years and years later, I like to look back over the experiences I had while he was a part…
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Exhalation
I had my interview day at the University of Maryland School of Medicine today, which I think went decently well. It’s difficult to develop a metric by which to grade the “wellness” of an interview, but so far my rubric states that if the interviewer and I are able to carry on some semblance of…
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Interviewed
This weekend I had my first medical school interview, a welcome contrast to the slate of rejections I’ve received. Heading to Loma Linda University and the 70-degree weather of Southern California after the subfreezing temperatures in Maryland didn’t hurt either. While there’s no way to know for sure, I think the interviews went well. I…
Matter, Energy, and Life of Michaela A. Castello.