Amazing Experience Job-Shadowing

This week I had a fall break at my school. I spent it job-shadowing a pediatric ENT. It was an amazing experience. I saw a ton of surgery - I saw two different kinds of ear tubes, a tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy, lymph node removal, bronchoscopies. . . .just so much stuff. It was amazing. It wasn't just seeing the surgical procedures that reinforced my desire to be a doctor, but seeing the doctor's interaction with his patients, and the confident way that he carried himself, and the way all of the different patients and their families respected him. I was so impressed with this doctor. He was very helpful and encouraging to me, and even got me in to see an adult sinus surgery and introduced me (by NAME!!) and said that I was an "excellent MC student". . . words cannot even describe.

Anyway, now I have a renewed passion for my studies. I have a renewed desire for a career in medicine. I went to Borders today to study for my Organic Chemistry test Monday; I got there at 10:30 this morning and left at 5:30 this evening. Insanity. I see my goals so much more clearly now.

Wednesday I had to participate in a Writing Proficiency Exam for school. Mississippi College requires that all of its students pass this particular test to guarantee that their graduates have some writing skills. Anyway, the test was through ACT, and it took about 2 hours. The multiple choice part was very easy, but the essay part was interesting. There were 2 essays and we had 20 minutes apiece to complete these. The first one I tried to write a thesis and brainstorm some ideas before I started writing, but the 5 minute warning came and I hadn't finished my thoughts. I scrambled to finish my last paragraph and BARELY finished in time. So for the second essay I decided to scrap the idea of brainstorming and just write. I was able to finish this one but barely. I felt that the essay section was harder than the multiple choice by far. I am just glad that is over, and I am pretty sure I passed.

Two Years In, Two Years to Go!

This has been an amazing journey for me. I am not a typical pre-med student, I am almost 30 years old, I have been a stay-at-home Mom for the last 10 years and devoted all of my adult life to being a wife and mom.

Last year, as the date my youngest child would start pre-school approached, I began thinking about what I wanted to do with myself. My husband has always said that eventually he wanted me to get a job - preferably when all the children were in school. I have worked for a small church preschool Mother's Morning Out program for the last 6 years, and have always been home when my children needed me. I have gone to every field trip, every school party, every event.

And then: my baby was almost 4 and I was thinking about what I wanted. And this dream kept surfacing, this dream of being a doctor. I wanted to do something wonderful with my life. I wanted to make a difference in the world. I wanted to do something that would make my children and husband proud. So in January 2009 I registered for online classes through a community college to work towards my prerequisites, and I have never looked back!

My first four classes were Advanced Comp 2, Public Speaking, World History 1, and Computer Concepts. I received As in everything except Public Speaking, where I got a B. I began to feel anxious about my GPA and my ability to really do this. That summer session I took Intermediate Algebra, World History 2, and American Literature 1. Again all As except for a B- in American Lit the minimum grade for an A is a 95 . . . and i just missed it. Fall of 2010 I entered a real classroom for the first time in 11 years. I was scared to death - I felt sure I would be the oldest student in every classroom, that if I told people I was pre-med they would laugh at me. I entered these classrooms and discovered that not only was I not the only "older" student, I was also not the only pre-med student at this small community college.

Fall of 2009 I took Biology 1 and lab, Chemistry 1 and lab, World Literature 2 and College Algebra. I found taking classes within a classroom setting - for the first time in a long time - to be much easier than the online courses. I received all As in those classes, and felt a surge in my confidence.

I was invited to join an honor society called Phi Theta Kappa - and was inducted during the fall semester of 2009. I applied to a local college that has a very high acceptance rate into Med school - Mississippi College. I still had doubts about getting accepted, this constant feeling of not being good enough. But finally I received my acceptance letter and also my scholarship letter! I am receiving $4,500 worth of scholarships - the maximum allowed for students who are not living on campus. I will be starting school there Fall 2010.

Spring 2010 I took another 4 classes - Chem 2 and Lab, Bio 2 and Lab, statistics, and art appreciation. All As again. :) I now have a 3.868 GPA.

This summer I am again taking online classes through my community college - Old Testament, New Testament, sociology, and Medical Terminology. I am excited about taking online classes again - because I will be home with my three girls for the summer, and not putting them in child care.

My plan - to take a full course load at Mississippi college in the fall and spring, as well as next summer (child care for my girlies - boo!) and then take the MCAT next summer. I want to finish my bachelors at MC in 2 years - that is my goal and my plan. I am so excited and want to share my journey with others who may be thinking about becoming the doctors of the future!