Grade 11 student needing some good advice

[Guest iwannaplaylock]

Grade 11 student needing some good advice

Hi. I currently live in Vancouver British Columbia Canada and I am currently in grade 10 going into grade 11 this September. I am now dead set on becoming a doctor(I am constantly thinking about it). And no I am not becoming a doctor for the money. I am pretty interested in internal medicine(for what I heard landing a residency spot won’t be to difficult and hopefully this is not an understatement) and hopefully I will earn a good fellowship like cardiology(but I won’t hold my breath) if not I will be an internalist then. Will it be difficult in obtaining an internal medicine residency spot and a fellowship?

 

This year my final report card was 3 a’s and the rest were b’s. I know it doesn’t sound good but I got these marks because I basically put very little effort into school this year and didn’t do a lot of my homework and when I did I just completely rushed it. I know I am capable of straight a’s or near straight a’s and I am going to start trying in school now. My writing skills/reading skills are pretty weak and was wondering what I can do to improve them. So basically I want to make one of my weaknesses into one of my strengths. Also can someone give me a list of decently hard books to read?

 

I have good leadership skill(heck I am currently in the Windermere Leadership Program lol), pretty athletic, and have pretty good social skills(sorry if I sound arrogant but people describe me as a very modest person).

 

I plan to go to UBC for my undergraduate degree and really want to stay here for medical school and residency. I predict that my GPA may be a little bit lower but for sure my extracurricular and leadership skills will be very strong. I am asking these questions now because I want to stay a step ahead of the competition and almost guarantee my admission after my Bsc.

 

Another question I have is about time management for undergrad. Will it be possible to go to the gym 5 days a weeks, play some intramural sports/competitive rugby, go out on Fridays/not lose my friends, volunteer, while keeping a competitive gpa? I also want 7 hours of sleep on weekdays and 10 hours of sleep on weekends if that’s possible. Also I won’t have to work during my years at university because my parents are probably going to pay for most of my education.

 

And finally is there anything else I should be doing to almost guarantee admission to UBC after 4 years?

 

Note: I know a lot of people are going to say to enjoy my youth while I still have it and my answer to that is that I am living my youth to the fullest but I just wanna stay a step ahead of the competition because I know that a lot of people who are going to apply are smarter than me.

[The Law]

Dude.... relax, you're in grade 10 and you're making predictions for your life for university? It's good to see you're concerned about where you are heading, but honestly - why are you worrying about this right now? You have loads of time, trust me - enjoy your time in HS because once it's over those days are not going to get back. Try not to get caught up in the "competitive" spirit that many pre-meds have and just be yourself and enjoy your life.

[AMmd]

look who's talking... you still have 2 years of uni to do law

[Jochi1543]

Grade 11 student needing some good advice

Hi. I currently live in Vancouver British Columbia Canada and I am currently in grade 10 going into grade 11 this September. I am now dead set on becoming a doctor(I am constantly thinking about it). And no I am not becoming a doctor for the money. I am pretty interested in internal medicine(for what I heard landing a residency spot won’t be to difficult and hopefully this is not an understatement) and hopefully I will earn a good fellowship like cardiology(but I won’t hold my breath) if not I will be an internalist then. Will it be difficult in obtaining an internal medicine residency spot and a fellowship?

 

It will require you to 1) enter university 2) graduate university with a competitive record 3) score well on your MCAT 4) get into medical school 5) score well on your exams and gather good recommendation letters

 

 

This year my final report card was 3 a’s and the rest were b’s. I know it doesn’t sound good but I got these marks because I basically put very little effort into school this year and didn’t do a lot of my homework and when I did I just completely rushed it. I know I am capable of straight a’s or near straight a’s and I am going to start trying in school now. My writing skills/reading skills are pretty weak and was wondering what I can do to improve them. So basically I want to make one of my weaknesses into one of my strengths. Also can someone give me a list of decently hard books to read?

 

Take some English classes....read for pleasure daily while you're on vacation. The only way you can turn a weakness into a strength is if you keep working on it consistently. For example, I used to be HORRIBLE at writing essays, and now I've got people telling me to write a book.

 

I have good leadership skill(heck I am currently in the Windermere Leadership Program lol), pretty athletic, and have pretty good social skills(sorry if I sound arrogant but people describe me as a very modest person).

 

Good. Keep working on it, and keep it up once you're in university.

 

I plan to go to UBC for my undergraduate degree and really want to stay here for medical school and residency. I predict that my GPA may be a little bit lower but for sure my extracurricular and leadership skills will be very strong. I am asking these questions now because I want to stay a step ahead of the competition and almost guarantee my admission after my Bsc.

 

1) That's an awful lot of "predictions" - you still have 2 years of high school to get through.

 

2) There is no such thing as "almost guarantee admission." Tons of people with seemingly perfect apps do not get in, and yet others get in despite huge blemishes on their records.

 

Another question I have is about time management for undergrad. Will it be possible to go to the gym 5 days a weeks, play some intramural sports/competitive rugby, go out on Fridays/not lose my friends, volunteer, while keeping a competitive gpa? I also want 7 hours of sleep on weekdays and 10 hours of sleep on weekends if that’s possible. Also I won’t have to work during my years at university because my parents are probably going to pay for most of my education.

Yeah, it's possible. I volunteered weekly, worked 12 hours a week, and went to the gym 5-6 days a week.

 

And finally is there anything else I should be doing to almost guarantee admission to UBC after 4 years?

 

Again, no such thing....but good grades, a good MCAT, good relationships with profs (resulting in good recommendation letters), and a good list of extracurriculars do help. Social skills for interviewing are also very important.

 

And the most important thing - no one likes obsessive gunners.

[The Law]

look who's talking... you still have 2 years of uni to do law

 

Not if I get in next year

[Jazzie]

So basically I want to make one of my weaknesses into one of my strengths. Also can someone give me a list of decently hard books to read?

 

Anna Karenina. If you can keep your eyes open for that. I'll give you a round of applause.

[Jochi1543]

FYI, he's also dead set on becoming a dentist, radiologist, and orthodontist.

http://drslounge.studentdoctor.net/search.php?searchid=1984004

[Jazzie]

FYI, he's also dead set on becoming a dentist, radiologist, and orthodontist.

http://drslounge.studentdoctor.net/search.php?searchid=1984004

 

 

 

a one-man band! make sure your instuments are tuned!

[Kuantum]

^^That link goes nowhere informative.

[Jochi1543]

^^That link goes nowhere informative.

 

Just come on SDN and do a search for the screenname's post history if you're interested....but I summarized it, pretty much.

[leviathan]

Dude...that's a really unhealthy obsession with something you're vaguely familiar with. How do you know you want to do IM, rads, ortho, or other specialties? Most medical students don't even know what they want to do, and they're actually rotating through these specialties.

 

You're years away from needing to worry about this stuff. The best advice I can give to get into med school is just relax and try to get laid or something...like a normal 16 year old. I don't know what an admissions committee would think about someone who looks so one-track minded.

[Kuantum]

it's good that you are thinking about this stuff early...my only recommendation would be to explore other careers before you decide firmly on medicine. there are tons of other things to do out there and you want to be sure that medicine is one for you. Medicine is a pretty firm commitment that will require many years or training and making sacrafices you may not always want to make. So, to ensure you're happiest doing what you're doing...explore, and if after that you're still at medicine, then you'll know it's the right thing for you.

[Kyleh]

As somebody who is still in highschool I can see where you are coming from with trying to 'play your cards' right. But honestly, you should first focus on getting into UBC science. Last year their cutoff for admissions was ~89% so you should definately focus on your highschool studies before post-graduate medical education. Also, if you are still interested in learning about internal medicine, getting into meds, etc, just browse the threads in the different forums! For each school you can see what GPA, MCAT, ecs you need and you can gradually try to volunteer or something.

 

I hate to sound arrogant... but how do you know you want to get into meds? You say it's not for money.. then what other motives do you have?

 

These questions should go through your head! I am told over and over again that you must truly want to be a part of medicine in order to succeed, otherwise you will most likely want to give up.

 

Anyways, best of luck in grade 11. Try to get an 85% average and go from there:)

 

Yours truly,

 

Kyle

[leviathan]

But honestly, you should first focus on getting into UBC science.

You know there are other schools in BC besides UBC. You should explore each university and decide which is right for you. I chose UBC as my undergrad but without really looking much into SFU or UVic or other schools, and I kinda regret it. UBC is great, but is seriously lacking in some aspects of teaching for its undergrad students.

[Guest iwannaplaylock]

FYI, he's also dead set on becoming a dentist, radiologist, and orthodontist.

http://drslounge.studentdoctor.net/search.php?searchid=1984004

lol haha but i am set on being a doctor lol... just don't noe which one yet...

[Guest iwannaplaylock]

Dude...that's a really unhealthy obsession with something you're vaguely familiar with. How do you know you want to do IM, rads, ortho, or other specialties? Most medical students don't even know what they want to do, and they're actually rotating through these specialties.

 

You're years away from needing to worry about this stuff. The best advice I can give to get into med school is just relax and try to get laid or something...like a normal 16 year old. I don't know what an admissions committee would think about someone who looks so one-track minded.

yea ur right lol... don't worry i don't have an, "obsession" lol its just summer and i had nothing really else to do... i just started searching around on the process of getting into medical school and stuff that's all... and was wondering if there is anything i should be doing... thats all...

[Guest iwannaplaylock]

it's good that you are thinking about this stuff early...my only recommendation would be to explore other careers before you decide firmly on medicine. there are tons of other things to do out there and you want to be sure that medicine is one for you. Medicine is a pretty firm commitment that will require many years or training and making sacrafices you may not always want to make. So, to ensure you're happiest doing what you're doing...explore, and if after that you're still at medicine, then you'll know it's the right thing for you.

thats what i am doing this weekend to decide what career i want to into...

[Guest iwannaplaylock]

As somebody who is still in highschool I can see where you are coming from with trying to 'play your cards' right. But honestly, you should first focus on getting into UBC science. Last year their cutoff for admissions was ~89% so you should definately focus on your highschool studies before post-graduate medical education. Also, if you are still interested in learning about internal medicine, getting into meds, etc, just browse the threads in the different forums! For each school you can see what GPA, MCAT, ecs you need and you can gradually try to volunteer or something.

 

I hate to sound arrogant... but how do you know you want to get into meds? You say it's not for money.. then what other motives do you have?

 

These questions should go through your head! I am told over and over again that you must truly want to be a part of medicine in order to succeed, otherwise you will most likely want to give up.

 

Anyways, best of luck in grade 11. Try to get an 85% average and go from there:)

 

Yours truly,

 

Kyle

well if i wanted money i could partner up with my dads construction bussiness and pull in at least 100k-150k/year from the start and takeover when hes retired lol... guess i want to become a doctor because ur actually doing something meaningful

[Jochi1543]

Um, construction's pretty meaningful. I mean, someone had to have built the house I live in.

[Jazzie]

thats what i am doing this weekend to decide what career i want to into...

 

It takes a lot longer than a weekend to decide what career you want to be in.

It's not as easy as that. You're at the stage where you're still learning who you are. And you have to know that before you can be absolutely sure what path you will want to take. And this does not happen overnight. It's well and good to plan ahead but keep your options open. You HAVE TO know what else is out there to really know what it is you really want to do. And yes, do have some fun.

[Jochi1543]

It takes a lot longer than a weekend to decide what career you want to be in.

It's not as easy as that. You're at the stage where you're still learning who you are. And you have to know that before you can be absolutely sure what path you will want to take. And this does not happen overnight. It's well and good to plan ahead but keep your options open. You HAVE TO know what else is out there to really know what it is you really want to do. And yes, do have some fun.

 

Darn, I can't believe I missed that line. LOL.

[Kyleh]

Um, construction's pretty meaningful. I mean, someone had to have built the house I live in.

 

lol. be nice.

[horlicks]

if i were on the admissions committee i would certainly question your motivation to become a doctor (you might truely want to become one, but I'd question it anyway). Gr.11 is simply too early for you to be even worried about getting into medicine. Figure out how to get into university and perhaps get a scholarship first!

while it's good to have a goal early in the game, keep in mind that stressing urself out too long/much will often make you lose focus faster.

 

come back to this topic in two years when you're in first year university is probably more appropriate (presuming you're still interested in medicine at that time. 80-90% of science students in first year want to do medicine...less than half persist by the end of second year...even fewer after third year...and only a few manage to get to the top of the pyramid)

 

just my 2c

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ANGELINA JOLIE NUDE

[Guest iwannaplaylock]

if i were on the admissions committee i would certainly question your motivation to become a doctor (you might truely want to become one, but I'd question it anyway). Gr.11 is simply too early for you to be even worried about getting into medicine. Figure out how to get into university and perhaps get a scholarship first!

while it's good to have a goal early in the game, keep in mind that stressing urself out too long/much will often make you lose focus faster.

 

come back to this topic in two years when you're in first year university is probably more appropriate (presuming you're still interested in medicine at that time. 80-90% of science students in first year want to do medicine...less than half persist by the end of second year...even fewer after third year...and only a few manage to get to the top of the pyramid)

 

just my 2c

alrighty then thanks for your advice everyone. I guess i will focus on getting into UBC first and getting a 90% average(shouldn't be to hard just gotta put some effort) and improving my reading/writing skills lol... and gonna head off to the beach when the rain clears too lol

[horlicks]

if there's something i'd recommend preparing early...it'd be reading. read as much as you can. as long as you can ace the verbal reasoning section of mcat later on, you'll have no problem getting into most canadian med schools, provided that you maintain a high gpa (wouldn't worry too much about extracurricular unless you're aiming for ubc)

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VAPOR GENIE VAPORIZER