Matter, Energy, and Life of Michaela A. Castello.

Tag: undergrad

  • Game. Set. Match.

    Game news dominated my Facebook feed on Friday night, when, after years of  “up and coming” status, my alma mater UMBC secured a place in history by knocking out UVA in March Madness. If, like my med school colleagues, you managed to miss what will likely be the biggest sportsball upset of the year, the Retrievers…

  • Graduated Yet?

    Even though I walked across the stage at the beginning of what is now last month, I still haven’t actually graduated. I more or less fell into a trap of my own making, because at the beginning of the semester I decided I wanted to get credit for my research internship again. This involves a…

  • Let’s Try Some Science

    I have been working on updating my research poster for a presentation I’ll be giving at UMBC as part of Undergraduate Research and Creative Achivement Day. I have been a part of this project since I first started working in scientific research last year, and it’s been extremely exciting to start to see the data…

  • A Most Excellent Day

    Every so often events and my persepctive on life align in such a way that a truly wonderful experience is generated. Today was one of those times, and while there are still nearly eight hours left, I feel confident in saying that it’s been fantastic. Rachel took off from her Marriott job today in order…

  • Test Day

    I took the MCAT today in Bethesda at 8:00 AM. Perhaps I should repeat that: I had to be in Bethesda today at 8 AM to take a five-hour test. Normally—that is, without traffic, so it’s probably more accurate to say abnormally—it takes about 45 minutes to get from my house to Bethesda. So in…

  • Medium for Consternation, Anguish, and Trepidation

    Preparing for the MCAT is difficult on an emotional level as much as it is on a purely intellectual level. Just as with the rest of the med school application process, my moods oscillate between courageous optimism ( “This isn’t that bad, you’ll get into a bunch of schools” ) and abject despair ( “You’re…

  • Five Signs You Should Change Your (Biology) Major

    I got an email entitled “Five Signs You Should Change Your Major.” Sound like you? Perhaps it’s time to consider something other than Pre-Med… You’re Bored to Tears in Your Current Major Courses Suppose you’re majoring in chemistry, and every time you go to one of your chemistry classes, you fight to stay alert. Maybe…

  • Running the Race

    Pre-med students are, by nature, competitive. There is room for debate on whether it is the stressful path that makes us this way, or if it is our personalities that direct us to take the path. Either way, the result is that we spend an awful amount of time comparing ourselves to others (especially other…