¶ Advice for Non-Traditional Med Students
I am writing because I am an older non-traditional student . I have a BA in psych , but my GPA is low . It's been nearly 13 years since I graduated . Do you have any suggestions on how I can become a better candidate ? Before applying to med school , I was accepted into master's in public health .
A master's degree does not necessarily get you any closer to being in medical school . I want to explain why .
I'm taking advanced level classes .
Not that people who do master's degrees as non-traditional students don't get into medical school . You are obviously one of them . Nii , you didn't even actually get a degree . Why ?
you put my business out there like that .
I like the fact that you didn't get that master's degree , because I use you as an example . I want to iterate and reiterate the fact that doing the master's or getting the master's degree does not necessarily put you in higher favor with an admissions
¶ Meet Your Hosts Dr Nii and Dr Renee
committee .
What's good everybody . Welcome to another episode of Docs Outside the Box . Yo , it's your host , it's your boy , dr Nii . I'm joined by my amazing co-host , tired co-host , dr Renee . Yo , what's up , how you doing .
This is this second day in a row . I look like a hot mess .
Y'all hot h-a-w-t mess , and that's what a seven-year-old and a five-year-old can do to you people got five-year-olds , seven years old , seven-year-olds they'll look like a hot mess , let me go find them everybody the ladies , the ladies right in , right into fan mail , let your boy know what y'all look like , what y'all wearing .
Well , I'll tell you something right now . Um , guys , I'm gone . Um , we uh pod in , or I'm . I'm I'm podding on location in my hotel , on locums . Just finished my shift today and I'm tired , but one of the things that we do a lot is we'll pod when Renee puts the kids to sleep .
After I get my workout in , there's a plan of fitness that's not too far from me and I get my workout on , I get into it and I kick it . Um , and
¶ Breaking the 20-Minute 5K Challenge
one of the things that I wanted to share with you guys . If you went to my Instagram , uh , about a week ago , by the time this episode comes out , maybe even longer than that . I was training for a Spartan race , but now I got this crazy goal where I want to try to break 20 minutes in a five K Right , so that's 3.1 miles .
Break 20 minutes in a 5k right , so that's 3.1 miles . I want to run that under 20 minutes and I want to be able to bench 250 pounds . Boy , I have never felt so far away from a goal in my life . Alfred , run the tape . So , um , I reached out to one of my college . Um , uh , friends , she's a coach now .
She coaches like half marathonersers , marathoners and all the people who do their stuff . And I was telling her what my goals are and I was like , well , this is what I want to do . I want to run this time . And this is how long I've been working out . Your boy's been working out for three years and you know I've been intermittently running .
I've been dealing with calf injuries , but I've been still kicking it . I've been intermittently running , I've been dealing with calf injuries , but I've been still kicking it . And she's like , okay , well , listen , you know , in order for me to help you , you know , we got to know , like , what your baseline is . And I was like , all right , what you getting at .
And she's like , yeah , like I need to know , like , why don't you do a time trial ? And I was like , yeah , I'll do like a 400 . She's like , uh , no , um , I need you to go and do a two mile time trial so I can know what you're , you know where you're at and I was like two miles .
I was like , oh , no , no , no , you know cause I run on the treadmill or I'll go off for a run . You know run for like three miles to five miles .
That's the most I've been doing lately , over the past year . You know how to run .
I know how to run . I know how to be efficient while I'm running . I know how to maintain no , no , no , that's not what I'm saying .
You know how to run . You know that the opposite arm and the opposite leg go at the same time . That's how you run . You know that .
Let's start there . I could write a book on that . I could write a book on that book on that . I could write a book on that . But now I'm 46 . Right leg , left arm , I haven't been working out for like 20 years . Right , I'm still getting rid of all that stuff from three years ago or 20 years ago .
So she was like , yeah , you need to do a time trial . Just go all out for two miles and tell me what you can do and then from there we can say that's your baseline and we can start making workouts , tempo runs , interval trainings , even like your nice jogs .
I can tell you what pace you should go at so that we can get you strong enough so that if your goal is , by the end of the year , to be able to break this , then we need to be able to use some metrics and some data . So I was like all right , I got this , no problem . So , like I told you , I was like I need your help , let's find a time .
And you know , alfred , hopefully , is still running that tape . But we chose this past Sunday to do this , right before I left for work , and I was . I was nervous because I haven't run an all out run . In a long time since college Haven't done it . So I'm trying to pace myself . How do I figure this out ?
And I knew that the major issue would be I don't know how to pace and if I go on a track it's going to be a problem because I just I haven't been running on a track and running on a track is way different than running on the roads . So I did the blitz in my head .
I was like like yeah , I need to be able to come through and this , this , this , this this , and boy oh boy . So I went out and you were chasing me and I think the first thing you noticed because I heard the tape , right , you and the kids were in the car . Why are you looking like that ?
because you said I was chasing you .
What were you doing ?
I was driving the car behind you . I was chasing you . Sounds like I was running behind you .
No , no , you was chasing me in the car because you're trying to keep up and you couldn't . It was too . I was going too fast .
Yeah , ok , that's what it was .
By the way , your boy . Yeah , I went out there , ran and I made it basically a mile and I just , whatever the mile pace I was at was way too fast and I couldn't keep up . I didn't stop like huffing and puffing or anything like that , but
¶ Confronting Unrealistic Expectations
I just I could just tell this wasn't the pace that I wanted to be at . And then it just sucked , bro . It sucked so you can see on the video . I had to stop a couple of times , but the first mile was basically 647 . And then after that I just I couldn't do it . So I was a little upset at myself and a little tight .
And it I couldn't do it , so I was a little upset at myself and a little tight and , um , it took me a while . It wasn't until I left that I was like all right . Let me put things in perspective .
Because if I look at this from like what I'm used to doing over the last 10 to 20 years , it's like literally taking like an MCAT without practicing right , without doing a practice test Right . It's like like taking a board examination and not doing like any type of questions whatsoever . It's like going into a surgery and not prepping yourself on the anatomy .
And the question is is like if I had done any of those things without the proper prep , would I have been as upset at myself now ? Cause I , you know , would have been in those respective things , right , and I'm like , damn , that don't make no damn sense . I can't be that mad at myself , I can't beat myself up for that . So yeah , thoughts .
Yeah , let's talk about unrealistic expectations .
I wouldn't say that's unrealistic to say I want to run two miles .
Let's talk about unrealistic expectations Now . I have no doubt in my mind that you could have completed two miles , but part of the issue- is like you were in the car . I'm talking now . You had the mic .
You was too close to me and that was the issue Every time you were close to me . I was scared that the car was going to hit me , so let me go faster .
You were messing my pace up .
You was messing my pace up , you're messing my pace up , very good .
So let's talk about unrealistic expectations , because before we left the house , I felt , and I expressed to you that I thought that your expectations about what you were going to do during this run , that your expectations were essentially unrealistic what do you mean ?
You didn't know what my expectations were you talked about it all morning me what was my expectations all morning you thought you were gonna run like a six minute mile or something . I'm like I didn't say that . Okay .
I said I was going to try to average like 630 pace .
Okay , okay , 630 . I mean , what's a 30 seconds difference ? And I said to you that's a big difference , that's a big difference . It's not that big of a difference when you haven't been training at all .
If you had 30 seconds more of anything , you'd be happy . Trust me . Trust me Moving on .
Um , that actually sounds bad for you , darko . Um , so does it really ?
does it really ? Does it really , fellas ? Does it really ?
It does , it does , it does , but anyway . But I said to you , I said to you that your expectations were unrealistic because , though you have been exercising for three years consistently , you have not been running consistently . For three years you haven't been running really at all , you've been taking intermittent runs , but you haven't been training .
And I'm glad you brought up the whole MCAT right , the whole MCAT thing , because that's exactly what I tell my students . You can know how to run right , left leg , right arm , right and then vice versa and just keep alternating . You can know all of that , but that don't mean that you can run a marathon . That doesn't mean anything . I know how to run .
I can't run no marathon . I can't run a 5k right now , like it wouldn't make any sense .
You knew how to run . I don't know if you know how to run .
Anyway . So your , your expectations , I think , were unrealistic , considering this was supposed to be your trial right . This , this was not supposed to be the MCAT . This was supposed to be your trial right . This was not supposed to be the MCAT .
This was supposed to be the practice test that you take before you do the MCAT course , and you were running it like it was the MCAT and I'm like , but you're not there yet , like that's the whole point of recognizing where you are and then figuring out what you need to do to train . So you're like , oh , I failed .
I'm like how do you feel you can't fail the MCAT assessment test ?
I mean , can you stop sharing the stuff between us to the audience ?
I'm like I'm just saying like that's between me and you , though . Damn , I didn't say I failed between me and you , though .
Damn . I didn't say I failed . You said that . Why you putting my business out there ?
Anyway , you told me you failed .
Anyway , guys don't listen to her , guys . The most important thing is this I got to be more patient with my training . I got to be more patient , but I also want to be audacious also . That's the thing I and goals and be like yo . Why ?
can't .
I do this . Why can't I do this ? I think I still got it , renee , I think I still got it . You see those calves on the video . Look at them , calves . I still got it .
So I don't think that you don't have it . I think you absolutely could hit your goal .
I think you absolutely could hit your goal 30 seconds more 30 seconds more or less .
It don't make that much of a difference . Yes , it does it don't make that much of a difference , especially if you ain't running that long okay , look at all this innuendo .
People didn't know we talked like innuendo . These little inside jokes keep it moving especially when you run the short race hey , hey , hey , hey , hey , what's going on ?
nothing , um , but yeah , I think I think you absolutely caught that yo , I caught that , I caught that .
It's not funny . Okay , that's not funny , all right , go on , move on oh my love .
Okay , listen , I think you absolutely could hit your goal . I don't . I don't doubt that , but I think that you have to be realistic about where you are and you have to work up to the pace that you want , right ? You're not going to ever start where you want to end up , right , like ? That's the important thing to understand .
Right Again , talking about MCAT , talking about boards , talking about any , you know , anything that you're going to do that requires a lot of training . You're never going to start where you want to end up , and that's the point .
The point is that you need to assess where you are so that you can see what it is that you need to do to get to the , the end result that you're looking for .
That's what I did .
¶ Med School Study Strategies That Work
That's what I did , all right . So for all you pre-meds out there that think you're going to take the MCAT without practicing , you need to practice y'all . You need to take like mad practice tests . It's okay . I wish I had done that more . Like no , I wish someone had talked to me about that . I didn't know that people did that .
Like you're supposed to take like all these practice tests . Damn sure I didn't know that my first year of residency that that's what you're supposed to do . It wasn't until my second year yeah , my second year of residency when I started taking my app site , when I started doing all these practice tests before I took my actual app site .
Oh yeah , that's when I started to realize like , oh snap , like you're supposed to go over all these questions over and , over , and , over and over .
You know , but you're very stubborn , right , because you're so stubborn , and so let's call it confident about yourself in terms of your academics that you never wanted to listen to anybody . You didn't realize that what we had done for the first , what two years of medical school , was exactly that when we came to yeah , there you go , roll your eyes .
No , no , no , no , no , no , no , no . My God , let's , let's , let's hold on , let's just get into this . Ladies , I want you to listen to what happened . This is what was happening in med school .
Let's see what was happening .
Let's see what was happening In med school , I would study by myself , renee would study by herself , and then right before a test , which would happen . How often did tests happen ? Every two weeks About .
Or every six weeks .
Yeah , every two weeks we'd have a test .
No , we had like , yeah , we had stuff in between , and then you had the block test .
So every two weeks we would have a test . The night before we would literally in essence kind of quiz each other and stuff like that , and then we go and take the test right . Renee is over here trying to say that like the only reason that I was successful in med school is because the only reason we did q a .
We did q a on that . On that day it's like come on , yo stop playing the other two weeks before that , where . I was studying on my own so you need to tell me we're going to push all that stuff . That's what you're trying to say . That's what I said .
That's not what I said that is not what I said .
That is not what I said . So , first of all , what I was saying was when you said I didn't realize that you had to do practice exams before your test , what I said was that's what I was doing when with you , when I was in medical school with you , that when I studied on my own right Cause .
So for the pre-meds and the medical students , especially the new medical students out there , I don't recommend that you rely on a study group to get information in your head . You have to study on your own .
You have to study on your own .
You got to so when I would study on my own what I would do so you're saying when you're learning new stuff , don't what do you call it ?
don't go . And when you're first learning , when you're first sitting down to study .
Don't sit down and study with anybody . That is the worst thing that you could do , because somebody else is going to be a distraction as to how you get this information into your head . Just if you want to sit in silence with this person and just do your own thing , that's fine , but don't come together trying to .
Okay , let's see if we can understand the mechanism of action of you know , whatever it is Like . No , no , no , no , sit down , read it , try to understand it for yourself , figure out your own way of figuring things out .
Then , after you figured everything out , after a few days of studying , then you can come together with your group , and that's what me and I would do . Right , we would come together and , as a matter of fact , at one point we also added one other person to the , you know , to our study sessions . Right , what's up ?
So , yeah , so when I was studying on my own , what I would do is I would read my notes , my book , whatever . I had a bound notebook . I had a bound notebook , and then I would fold each page in half , on one half right on the left side , I would write out a question that I thought might be a good question that they would come up with on the exam .
On the right side I would write out the answer so that that way I had literally a walking exam with me . So when I went to meet with me to study , together .
What I would do is I would ask these questions . This is how she's going to say she got me through med school Hold on , Keep going now .
Really , nii Really . You must feel like I did , because I didn't say anything like that .
No , I don't . So you know if you feel guilty and you want to say that that's fine .
I mean I'll take the credit it , that's fine .
I mean I'll take the credit , it's okay Listen .
I'm really good at reverse psychology .
I paid your tuition too . I'm really good at reverse psychology .
I paid your tuition too .
Hey , we could show the receipts on the student loan payments . We can do that right now .
Okay , we got electronic payments . So anyway , all right , keep it short . We got to get to our question . Hurry up , hurry up . Okay , but you keep interrupting me , like if you just let me tell the story , I'd be done by now . So anyway , that's what we did .
And so the reason that I did that was because I wanted to simulate taking the test before we actually sat down and took it . And then , but you have to admit , a lot of the questions that were in my notes they ended up on the test .
You see that , guys , you see how she is . A lot of the questions that you saw on the test were because I Anyway listen , moving on . Hey , let's go to our first shout out to everybody . What's good everyone . This is Dr Nii
¶ Episode Wrap Up and Next Segment
Yo . This is the end of this segment . I appreciate you for listening , but this ain't the end . If you want more , go ahead and click the next button on your favorite podcast app . Listen . That's next for more banter between me and Dr Rene . That's next for more topics . That's next for more segments . Listen , did you hit next yet ? Go ahead and click next .
Hit it Next Peace .