--As a DePauw alumnus, how has your education from DePauw helped you in medical school? Did it adequately prepare you for the challenges of med school courses? What about DePauw in general?
The biggest help I had from DePauw was in my major selection, Biochemistry. Having this as my primary focus of study really gave me an advantage during the first year of medical school, especially in the Cell & Molecular Biology course and, big surprise, the Biochemistry course. By having this advantage, the increase in course load during the first year of medical school was buffered a good deal and gave me some breathing room to figure out how to schedule my time. The second biggest way DePauw helped me was through its small class sizes: by having small classes, sometimes in the single digits, there is no escape from participating in class discussions. By discussing things in class routinely for four years I wasn’t afraid to talk to lecturers during my medical school courses about any questions or problems I was having and helped prevent me from getting behind or spending way too much time trying to figure out a single topic. Also, by participating in group discussions in some of my medical school classes, as I was accustomed to doing at DePauw, I learned faster and helped my group(s) out more than I would have if I had just stayed quiet.
The course load I took at DePauw and the courses themselves definitely helped me prepare for medical school. As anyone who takes classes at DePauw knows, I couldn’t slack off and hope for a curve to carry me to a good GPA – good grades came through focused studying, not as the benefit of others’ failures.
To answer the last question, now that I have graduated and look back nostalgically at my time spent at DePauw I can more fully understand what a great school it is. My professors were, on average, wonderful. Sure, I had a professor or two that I didn’t like, but I still learned a bunch from their courses. I don’t intend to harp on this item, but the class size, structure, and environment were excellent for teaching and engaging me in the topics being taught. Another huge plus DePauw has going for it, perhaps the biggest advantage it has, isn’t the equipment, faculty, campus or resources, but the student body itself. The students at DePauw are not the same as students at some other institutions around the country. DePauw students didn’t get accepted by just filling out their name on a form and showing up. They worked hard in high school and were ranked higher in their graduating class than the student bodies at other schools – and it shows. That equates to better class discussions, tougher competition, and more great minds to encounter in your daily life at DePauw – all contribute to make the individual DePauw student better than they would have been if they had gone somewhere else.
--If you could go back to DePauw, what would you say to pre-med students?
If I could go back in time and talk to my past self I would strongly encourage getting together with other pre-med students and going over the details of the application itself and the application process as early as possible. I tended to put things off and, while I did make it in the end, that strategy didn’t help. Also, I would suggest getting at least a couple people “in the know” to look over your application and essays before sending them in. This could be a trusted professor who IS ACCUSTOMED TO LOOKING OVER MEDICAL SCHOOL APPLICATION ESSAYS or utilizing a medical school prep service, like Kaplan, to give everything you are sending in a once-over. With regards to MCAT preparation, I would recommend spending more time doing practice questions, exam sections, and whole exams over reading an MCAT prep book. I know everyone studies differently, but I got way more benefit out of doing practice questions than reviewing the prep books. I tended to use the prep book more as a reference for when I got things wrong than anything else. It may not work for you, but at least give this strategy a shot. With regards to interviews, do some practice interviews – this helped me identify mistakes I was making and calm my nerves for the real interview.
--Looking back at your pre-med experiences at DePauw, what improvements/changes do you think are needed in DePauw’s pre-med “program” and how can faculty and students do to help make these changes? Are there necessary changes?
My main advice in this area is two-fold: 1. Utilize DePauw’s program as much as possible, but 2. do not rely on this program to be your sole source of guidance. One thing people, students or faculty, could do to improve this area is just get in touch with DePauw alumni who are in medical school or have gone to medical school to help guide current DePauw students. It shouldn’t be that hard to find these people as DePauw has a large amount of graduates in medical programs despite its small size. Another option is to, again, utilize a med prep service or have someone in a group use such a service and then spread the information around.
-- Even though you had stellar academic credentials (GPA: >3.7, 34O MCAT [VR-09, PS-14, BS-11.]), you did not get into med school straight from college, what did you do that year to improve your application? Looking back do you still regret not getting in right after college or do you think it was a blessing in disguise? Why?
After getting my rejection letter from IU the first thing I did was to contact the Dean of Admissions and set up a meeting to discuss the faults of my application. During our meeting I found out my weak area was extracurricular activities, something I admittedly neglected somewhat during undergrad. During my year off I volunteered with the Red Cross and for the Indianapolis Medical History Museum
Looking back, I’m still upset I didn’t get in the first time around, but that year off wasn’t a year wasted. I got to meet some great people, with whom I still keep in touch, and, when I did get accepted the next fall, I was way more excited and ready to begin the next stage of my education than I would have been if I just got in straight from college. Also, I have to admit, having that year off was a nice breather before starting in on an education program as tough as medical school.
--What common misconception about medical school (the whole process, what it’s really like) in general do you think pre-med students have?
I can’t answer for every medical student, but the biggest misconception I had was about how “bad” the interview process was going to be. I had this mentality that I was going to get hit left and right with tough questions when, in reality, the interviewers just want to get to know you better. However, this does not mean that you do not need to prepare. You definitely want to look up common interview questions and prepare your answers (again, do this with a trusted, relevant advisor). By preparing ahead of time your responses will not only be better and hopefully music to the interviewer’s ears, but also you will be way more relaxed and able to just be yourself during the interview instead of a twisted ball of nerves.
--Was all of the effort you put into getting into IUSM worth it? Was it all you imagined it to be? Any surprises?
Worth it: end of story. The only surprise I had was that I ended up liking medical school much more than I thought I could like school. I thoroughly enjoy studying the topics taught (well, most of them at least) and, even though there are long hours studying and reviewing, I never got sick of it or thought I made the wrong choice – to even entertain such a thought is absurd to me. Each semester that passes here I gain another unit of appreciation for the material taught in my courses to the point that I feel downright honored that I have the opportunity to study at such a high level in academia.
Mike is also super cool with you pre-meds emailing him at mikestump@gmail.com with any questions you have or finding him on Facebook (he's signed onto the DePauw Facebook page)
That's a good interview with Mike. I like how he handled the initial rejection by going in and finding out how his application could be stronger.
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