My Long and Winding Road to Pursuing my Medical Degree

On my journey to medical school, I felt overwhelmed by the amount of literature on how to get the “perfect” MCAT score or the fail-proof way to get a 4.0 during one’s undergraduate studies. I felt this literature was just laughing in my face, telling me I wasn’t good enough for medical school. This doesn’t even bring up the countless videos I would see on my YouTube feed of people who got into medical school by being top 5% in every aspect of their applications. How did I surmount these foreboding challenges? Who was like me, a very good but imperfect all-around student who found her life’s passion in medicine, not a “robo-student” with perfect grades and test scores? I wanted someone who would tell me real stories about how they struggled, how their GPA wasn’t perfect, and their MCAT score wasn't exceptional. I soon realized that few write about the typical, ordinary good students who populate much of the medical school classes, so I decided to share my story: that of someone who wants to study medicine and be a doctor, but who few would call “extraordinary.” I was simply going to have to write them myself. I couldn’t be the only undergraduate in a sea of Pre-med students who wanted to hear that someone else out there was going through similar struggles. I have chosen to tell my story, to show future med students that every day and everyone isn't perfect and that taking this path can be challenging.