Entry 3: August 24, 2009

Hey guys.  So with two blurry contacts I'm going to attempt to type today's blog entry!  First of all, I hope everyone had a great first day back.  As I'm sure we can all agree, the first day back is always uneventful!  I had three classes today and all of them seem to be pretty interesting.  It's always a good thing when you have interesting classes, otherwise you're more prone to fall asleep!  My first class was Analytical Chemistry and for all you people out there who like General Chemistry, this class is definitely for you!  While tedious on the outside, it appears to be a pretty functional class and I can already see where it would be useful material to know for the MCAT.  Even non-chemistry or non-biochemistry students would find it useful because it taps into the roots of problem solving with chemistry.  It appears that a lot of real-life problems and lab scenarios will be used in the class to help us learn, so it's definitely useful for the MCAT in my opinion!  The next class, Inorganic Chem, seems to be the most challenging yet probably the most fun.  You know you're in for a fun time when the first two weeks is a review (a REVIEW mind you) of quantum mechanics.  I think of it as General Chemistry on steroids.  But while I'm sure it will be a lot of work, I'm positive I'll learn a substantial amount of information in that class, and like my other chemistry class, I'm sure most will be pertinent to MCAT knowledge.  Just the small discussions on redox reactions and periodic table trends make it a useful class for the MCAT.  My last class was Managerial Economics.  As someone whose knowledge of economics and midget tossing are about equal (which is none), this is a class that I think is important for understanding the real world around me.  So I'm sure it will be a very practical class.  I spent a lot of time today reconnecting with some of the professors that I have had in the past, which brings me to the tip of the day/night/next morning:  definitely make connections with your professors and keep them.  Every single pre-medical student will hear it a thousand times, whether in a pre-medical organization on campus (which I highly suggest you join!!!) or through counseling, having a good relationship with your professors is very important for your success not only during the course, but after the course is over.   To be quite honest, it's not about getting a letter of recommendation; it's about getting the most out of the class and getting the most out of your education.  If you make an honest effort to do the work required in the class to get that A that all us pre-med students go nuts over, you will end up bonding (no chemistry pun intended) with the instructor and he/she will be more likely to give you advice, guidance, and perhaps a letter in the future.  And on that note, with my Inorganic Chem book whispering to me from across the room, I think I will call it a night!  I hope you all are enjoying my posts so far and I look forward to more comments and feedback from you in the future!  And to those who have already become followers and have made comments, I greatly appreciate it!!!  

-John

Entry 2: Night Before Senior Year

Hey Everyone!  So it's the last night of summer vacation before I begin my senior year at Arizona State University.  As I stated in my introductory post, I am a Chemistry major, so this year will be my last year of required chemistry courses.  On deck for this semester are Inorganic Chemistry and Analytical Chemistry.  I still have to take the lab for Analytical Chem but to make a very long and tiresome story short, I had a problem with scheduling in the chemistry department so I have to take the lab at another time.  That means instead of graduating in May of 2010 like I was supposed to, I will be graduating in December of 2010. So, I suppose this brings me to my first little lesson that I learned:  scheduling problems really stink!!!  I have definitely had my fair share of bouts with scheduling after three years of college, but this one really is annoying.  Since there was nothing I could do about it to fix the problem, I guess the only thing I can suggest is to always keep in touch with your counselor.  It is very important that they know who you are because it will definitely make things like scheduling much easier.  If anything, you will always be on track and never behind in your courses if you make regular appointments with your counselor.  Anyway, I am also taking two classes that will bring me closer to finishing my minor in Business:  Managerial Economics and Real Estate Fundamentals.  I always know I'm the only person in the room who studies science in those classes because I'm always the guy who's in the worst physical shape!  Oh well.  I also have to make an appointment with my pre-med guidance counselor so I can let him know how I'm doing with my MCAT adventures.  For those of the younger college crowd reading this blog, two very important people that will help you throughout your college career and preparations for med school are your two counselors:  one for your major and the other for pre-medical school advising.  My pre-medical advisor is an awesome guy and has been absolutely helpful from the beginning of my freshman year.  So with that, suggestion number two:  know your pre-medical advisor and know him/her well!  Once they know you, they will go above and beyond to help you achieve success.  As for me, I recently took the MCAT with only two and a half months of study (cross your fingers everyone), so I need to tell him that I took it as well as my current situation for the upcoming year.  After seeing what I've written just now I think that's about all for tonight, but I will let you know how the first day of being a senior goes tomorrow! Wish me luck and I hope everyone has a great first day back!

-John 

Entry 1: My Introduction

Hello future practitioners of medicine!  If you are presently stuck in the grind of seemingly endless lab reports, difficult anatomy concepts and physical science principles, then this is the right blog for you! This blog will document me, John Griffin, and my last year at Arizona State University as a Chemistry major while trying to become accepted into medical school.  It will offer a first-hand look at my classes, extracurricular activities, and various meetings that I attend while hopefully providing some valuable information for all you readers out there! Like almost every other pre-medical student, I have many questions about the classes I should be taking, experiences I may need for the future, and things of that nature. I have found it very difficult sometimes in my short college years to get some straight-forward answers to any and many more of these types of serious questions that we pre-med students need the answers to.  Therefore, I hope this blog either answers the questions that you may be asking to yourself, or, sparks you to find that important question that may be very valuable to your future in applying to medical school.  If anything, as most medical students know, our classes are very difficult and time-consuming, so may this be an outlet for your angers and frustrations, as well as victories and triumphs!  So please feel free to follow me on this blog and I hope you enjoy the content!

-John