Medical Marathon by Susanna

Medical Marathon by Susanna - August 2019 Scholarship Essay

As a busy pre-medical student, I often feel like life is always going at a breakneck speed. I juggle school, work, research and volunteering, and I feel like I conduct my act on a tightrope; one slip-up and the balls go splat on the floor beneath. After I get my undergraduate degree, I am seriously considering taking a gap year, and there are two main reasons. I want to travel, and I want to work. They may seem contradictory, but they are actually both instrumental in readying myself for the challenges of medical school and the career beyond.
I have always wanted to see more of the world. It is very difficult to find time and resources to travel during college. I spend most of my time off school working. I spent the past summer conducting full-time research through a school internship, and plan to work and study for the MCAT during my next vacation. Keeping on track with pre-med prerequisites as well as my degree requirements means that I cannot fit in an entire semester of study abroad. I value meeting new people and exploring new cultures; I feel like I owe it to myself to get that opportunity before I take on four years of medical school. I think that traveling once I am out of undergraduate school would be incredibly liberating. I would be free to drink it all in and to savor the triumph of having finished one degree. I tend toward anxiety and always feeling like I should be doing more. Getting away from the sources of stress -- academia and the pressures of my commitments at home -- would give me time to focus on self-exploration instead. My dream destination would be Itay. It has always been a dream of mine to walk through the streets of Rome, and that dream has only intensified after taking an introductory Art History class in college; I want to see Italy’s rich history of art with my own eyes. If possible, I would expand my adventure to more of Europe. I love nature more than anything. I do not want to visit Paris, but I do want to go backpacking through the French countryside, visiting little towns and farmsteads, talking to people, and maybe using what little French I know from my classes.
However, I do not want to spend an entire year abroad. That may work for some people, but I am truly a homebody and committed to being close to my family and hometown when possible. After spending a month or so overseas, I would want to come back and take up a job where I can help people and gain clinical experience at the same time. I know myself well enough to be sure that I am only happy when working directly with people. I have tried full-time research, and while I love it, I need more interaction than it offers for a long-term career. I have previously worked at a nursing home and as a tutor; I do best when constantly communicating with others. I would pursue a job as a medical scribe. This job requires interaction with physicians, nurses and sometimes patients. It would also place me in a hospital environment. Getting used to this setting is critical for a future doctor. I would be able to see firsthand what the daily life of a physician looks like. Seeing the ups and downs of the medical profession would prepare me for rotations in medical school. It would enable me to cement my decision to pursue medicine, and show me exactly what kind of path I am choosing.
A gap year is a wonderful opportunity to grow and learn beyond the confines of a college campus. I love my undergraduate years and am so grateful for every class, and every friend I have made through my university. But given the opportunity to take a gap year before moving on to medical school, I would gladly seize it. I believe that traveling would help me become more relaxed and more aware of the kind of person I want to be in our diverse and changing world. Working in a hospital would introduce me to the realities healthcare professionals face everyday in our country, and make me more sensitive to those issues as a physician. There is no rush to zip through medical school and hurtle onwards. Life is not supposed to be a juggling act, after all. It is more like a marathon, and it is important to rest, recover and drink in the view along the way.