Wednesday morning 8 AM. Half of the week is almost done and I am looking forward to today as it is not as long as either Tuesday or Thursday. We have a presentation for which we have to wear professional attire. I realized that although SEP is not for course credit (well not for me, or anyone else attending UNC), there are many motives to excel in this program. I discovered a new one yesterday when Ms. Borden informed me that, due to my exam scores, I am exempt from attending one supplemental instruction session. These sessions are held on Tuesday and Thursday evenings and are a review of our classes.
Earlier in the week I attended an MCAT seminar which was informative. I already knew the basic format of the exam — 3 sections, 45 maximum points and a writing section. I still learned that there are many opportunities at UNC to prepare for this exam. So far, this week hasn’t gotten hectic, but we have a test on Thursday and a quiz on Friday to which I’m not really looking forward.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Monday, June 16, 2008
Exams and Presentations and Rivals, Oh My!
This week was just as filled with activities as the last few. Like the eye of a storm, the beginning of the week started calmly, but as we progressed deeper into the week, we got to the hurricane - exams in Human Physiology and Organic Chemistry.
Although we have many exams, the classes aren’t all that difficult for me. I’ve never had any of these classes before compared to other classmates and fortunately, I’m not finding them that intimidating. The homework that we get is not much but it integrates all of the major concepts covered in class.
In addition to classes, we had presentations by allied health professionals. The one thing I have discovered in this program is that it opens everyone’s eyes to the sea of health professions available (as I was to see later in the week). The allied health presentation was a conglomeration of mini-presentations given by well-known UNC health professionals in many fields such as physical therapy, radiology, and counseling. It was an interesting lot of presentations that aided many students trying to discover which health profession to pursue.
Before I begin this next section, I must say that I am a true blue UNC fan and I will attempt to be as unbiased as possible. When I heard that we were going to NC State’s School of Veterinary Medicine, I was not very thrilled. Many of the current vet students have had life-long desires to be beneficiaries to the animal kingdom rather than humans. We learned that the NC State’s vet school is ranked fourth in the nation with construction underway to expand; it is also the only one in North Carolina. We were told that being a vet is much like being a doctor except with much less pay and working with animals instead of humans. The vet school is great for anyone thinking about being a veterinarian and in less than a few years it should be at the forefront of new veterinary medical techniques.
It is officially half-way through the program and we only have 3 more weeks of classes before some final exams and the graduation ceremony. Another great week is over and I’m looking forward to this week’s events (except the exams).
Although we have many exams, the classes aren’t all that difficult for me. I’ve never had any of these classes before compared to other classmates and fortunately, I’m not finding them that intimidating. The homework that we get is not much but it integrates all of the major concepts covered in class.
In addition to classes, we had presentations by allied health professionals. The one thing I have discovered in this program is that it opens everyone’s eyes to the sea of health professions available (as I was to see later in the week). The allied health presentation was a conglomeration of mini-presentations given by well-known UNC health professionals in many fields such as physical therapy, radiology, and counseling. It was an interesting lot of presentations that aided many students trying to discover which health profession to pursue.
Before I begin this next section, I must say that I am a true blue UNC fan and I will attempt to be as unbiased as possible. When I heard that we were going to NC State’s School of Veterinary Medicine, I was not very thrilled. Many of the current vet students have had life-long desires to be beneficiaries to the animal kingdom rather than humans. We learned that the NC State’s vet school is ranked fourth in the nation with construction underway to expand; it is also the only one in North Carolina. We were told that being a vet is much like being a doctor except with much less pay and working with animals instead of humans. The vet school is great for anyone thinking about being a veterinarian and in less than a few years it should be at the forefront of new veterinary medical techniques.
It is officially half-way through the program and we only have 3 more weeks of classes before some final exams and the graduation ceremony. Another great week is over and I’m looking forward to this week’s events (except the exams).
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
A New Twist on a Hectic Week
Another week has passed and again, so much has happened. At first, I was just thinking that this week was going to be like the last – the usual test or quiz followed by our daily classes. But with SEP, I’m learning you can never predict anything. I learned I would be shadowing this week, but I don’t think I was prepared for what exactly this “shadowing” was to entail.
I shadowed a cardio-thoracic surgeon and had the opportunity to watch a surgery. I can’t disclose more about the surgery due to HIPPA regulations, but I can truly say that this was a great experience. I would recommend anyone who may be even the slightest bit interested in surgery to actually go and watch a live surgery to get a taste of it.
We had two more exams this week in addition to all of the other regular classes we had to attend. The exams aren’t as bad as they were initially because now I think I have learned good time management skills. Of course, these management skills are constantly changing to meet the program’s new demands on our time.
On Friday we went to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in RTP. This trip was definitely beneficial as students were allowed to essentially “shadow” researchers (I use quotes because we only followed them around for about 30 minutes). The doctor I shadowed was conducting research in androgen biology and my group was given a tour of the laboratory, given explanations of some of the equipment, and given the chance to look through a computer-based microscope at some different types of bacteria.
As this week ends and as I type this sitting here at home (I came home for the weekend), I realize that half of this program is already over and time has gone faster than the wind.
I shadowed a cardio-thoracic surgeon and had the opportunity to watch a surgery. I can’t disclose more about the surgery due to HIPPA regulations, but I can truly say that this was a great experience. I would recommend anyone who may be even the slightest bit interested in surgery to actually go and watch a live surgery to get a taste of it.
We had two more exams this week in addition to all of the other regular classes we had to attend. The exams aren’t as bad as they were initially because now I think I have learned good time management skills. Of course, these management skills are constantly changing to meet the program’s new demands on our time.
On Friday we went to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in RTP. This trip was definitely beneficial as students were allowed to essentially “shadow” researchers (I use quotes because we only followed them around for about 30 minutes). The doctor I shadowed was conducting research in androgen biology and my group was given a tour of the laboratory, given explanations of some of the equipment, and given the chance to look through a computer-based microscope at some different types of bacteria.
As this week ends and as I type this sitting here at home (I came home for the weekend), I realize that half of this program is already over and time has gone faster than the wind.
Monday, June 2, 2008
The Heat is On
This past week was our first real taste of what SEP is all about- when they told us it was intense, they weren’t lying.
We were all happy at the beginning of the week since it was a four day week due to Memorial Day. Our excitement quickly disappeared, however, when the sad reality of two exams (Organic Chemistry and Human Physiology) on Friday hit us. After a long weekend I don’t think any of us were ready to face the full ten hours of classes on Tuesday.
After Tuesday the week started to run like clockwork- wake up early, go to reading skills, and catch a bus early to ensure front row VIP seats in Bondurant Hall. Also during the week, we were given the opportunity to take a tour of UNC School of Pharmacy for all of those interested in Pharmacy. Although I am not interested in Pharmacy, I gained a wealth of information from the tour. In addition to presenting information, the presenters gave us interactive tours of the different fields a Pharmacist can pursue. After our tour, we headed back to the dorms and continued our preparations for the two exams on Friday. I believe everyone was worried since these would be our first exams.
A routine one of my suitemates, Eric, and I have developed is just walking around the halls every night and conversing with people about their days. It has always been a great stress-reliever and with the heat of two exams approaching, some time to just sit back and talk about anything and everything was just what everyone needed. Eric and I walked through the halls and eventually made our way to all of the study rooms talking and studying with everyone we saw. On Thursday night, it seemed as if everyone was studying hard for both exams- even when I went to sleep sometime after midnight, many scholars were still busy studying.
Friday came and went faster than I thought it would. Two exams were over before I knew it- the exams themselves weren’t bad at all and there weren’t that many trick questions, which I liked. Organic Chemistry and Human Physiology exams were finally over and I headed back to rest up for Saturday, which was promising to be an adventurous day.
Saturday afternoon, all 50 scholars and the program assistants left UNC to head to East Carolina University for NC-HCAP’s Inspirational Speakers in Science lecture. After arriving in Pirate territory, we heard a motivational speech by Mr. Clyde Johnson Jr.; this speech reinforced my decision to enter into the medical field.
This coming week there are two more exams in Biostatistics and Physics- both of which will probably be pretty difficult. In addition to just exams, I have some shadowing Monday morning, which should be very exciting. As one intense week comes to a closure, another begins and the SEP program has shifted into high gear.
We were all happy at the beginning of the week since it was a four day week due to Memorial Day. Our excitement quickly disappeared, however, when the sad reality of two exams (Organic Chemistry and Human Physiology) on Friday hit us. After a long weekend I don’t think any of us were ready to face the full ten hours of classes on Tuesday.
After Tuesday the week started to run like clockwork- wake up early, go to reading skills, and catch a bus early to ensure front row VIP seats in Bondurant Hall. Also during the week, we were given the opportunity to take a tour of UNC School of Pharmacy for all of those interested in Pharmacy. Although I am not interested in Pharmacy, I gained a wealth of information from the tour. In addition to presenting information, the presenters gave us interactive tours of the different fields a Pharmacist can pursue. After our tour, we headed back to the dorms and continued our preparations for the two exams on Friday. I believe everyone was worried since these would be our first exams.
A routine one of my suitemates, Eric, and I have developed is just walking around the halls every night and conversing with people about their days. It has always been a great stress-reliever and with the heat of two exams approaching, some time to just sit back and talk about anything and everything was just what everyone needed. Eric and I walked through the halls and eventually made our way to all of the study rooms talking and studying with everyone we saw. On Thursday night, it seemed as if everyone was studying hard for both exams- even when I went to sleep sometime after midnight, many scholars were still busy studying.
Friday came and went faster than I thought it would. Two exams were over before I knew it- the exams themselves weren’t bad at all and there weren’t that many trick questions, which I liked. Organic Chemistry and Human Physiology exams were finally over and I headed back to rest up for Saturday, which was promising to be an adventurous day.
Saturday afternoon, all 50 scholars and the program assistants left UNC to head to East Carolina University for NC-HCAP’s Inspirational Speakers in Science lecture. After arriving in Pirate territory, we heard a motivational speech by Mr. Clyde Johnson Jr.; this speech reinforced my decision to enter into the medical field.
This coming week there are two more exams in Biostatistics and Physics- both of which will probably be pretty difficult. In addition to just exams, I have some shadowing Monday morning, which should be very exciting. As one intense week comes to a closure, another begins and the SEP program has shifted into high gear.
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