What a month it has been! 2020 has been a weird year all
around, but I am blessed to say this program has gone rather smoothly for me so
far (knock on wood). I was nervous for my first class on campus, but we all
socially distanced and wore masks which made me feel safe. I have been
extremely impressed with how involved and responsible the Tulane community has
been in the face of this pandemic, and this has made me very proud of be a
student of this program and a part of this community. It is inspiring to me to
see an organization of such prestige and excellence use their resources and outreach
to actively better the community. Before I was accepted to this program, I was
always intimidated by Tulane’s School of Medicine. I knew that when it came
time to apply, I would apply to LSU Shreveport and LSU New Orleans, but Tulane
SOM seemed like an unattainable goal. After seeing the immense support students
receive from faculty and experiencing the amiable sense of community, I have
decided that it is my first choice of medical school, and I am motivated to work
hard to become a Tulane medical student. The community I’ve experienced at
Tulane is truly unlike any other, and I hope that I will get the chance to
continue to be an active part of it as a future medical student.
Our first module exam was quite intimidating, and I began
studying very early on since I found the material very engaging. I was
extremely overwhelmed by the workload and pace at which we covered material. I formed
the habit of reviewing the lectures after class each day and making Anki
flashcards for each one. This stressed me out a lot because I was focusing on too
much detail, so it was extremely helpful when I found out that the learning
objectives would be a good guide of what to focus on when studying. Although it
was confusing to learn about some many drugs at the same time, I felt that I
adjusted well only because the faculty were so approachable and welcomed
questions that greatly eased my worries. What I found most helpful was the exam
review sessions which allowed me to ask any questions I had after thorough
review of the material because oftentimes, I am not retaining enough in class
to ask questions in person. Overall, I was extremely satisfied with my
performance on the first module exam. There had been many doubts in my head when
I initially saw the workload and depth of the material, but after the first
exam, I have gained a lot of confidence in myself that I will be able to succeed
and handle a medical school level workload.
The second module exam was more challenging for me by far. I
felt that the material was different. We focused on more conceptual material
during the first module exam, and I found that once I had a grasp on the
material, it was easy for me. However with the material for the second module,
I felt that it was more just memorization of drugs and their mechanism of
action, side effects, contraindications, and therapeutic effects. It had more
to do with investing time into learning than grasping concepts, and I found
this to be harder to manage. Oftentimes I felt that during lecture, too much
information was being presented, and it made it difficult for me to differentiate
which material was relevant to the exam and which was just for fun or clinical context
to keep us engaged. When the exam came around, I found that some of the test
questions were on sections of lecture I had overlooked since they were not in
the learning objectives. Although I found this frustrating, it was a friendly
reminder that I needed to be more thorough in my studying and not dependent completely
on learning objectives. The mnemonics from Osmosis were life-changing for me
when it came to remembering all the different drugs. Although I was not as
satisfied with my performance on the second exam, I still am proud of myself
and still feel more confident than I did before.
I have not had the opportunity to engage in any community service yet, but I plan to do so soon. There have been various COVID-safe volunteer opportunities presented to us which I am very grateful for and plan to look into soon. It has been hard to find the right balance as I’ve been adjusting to the academic demands of the program, but after two module exams now, I feel confident that I’ve found the right balance and now have time to incorporate service. I can’t wait to get to know New Orleans better and meet more of its residents through my service!
Service Hours: 0
