"So, Tom, Do You See Yourself as a Nice Attending?"

Ben Ferguson -- We’re fortunate at my school to have the opportunity as students -- yes, even as freak graduate-medical student hybrids who haven’t been in medical school-proper for a few years -- to interview applicants to our medical school. For those of you who are applying to medical school in the States now or in the near future, cover your eyes for a few seconds.

THEY’RE GETTING SMARTER, AND BETTER, AND MORE QUALIFIED EVERY YEAR.

It’s true. I can’t tell whether this is a phenomenon that’s specific to my school, but it’s definitely an actual phenomenon, and it scares me.

These people I’m interviewing are so much more qualified for medical school than I ever was. Were I to apply now for admission to my medical school, I’d be laughed right into rejection (if they even bothered to send me a rejection letter). I mean, holy crap. I’ve talked to people with publications -- first-author publications, no less. I’ve met students who were varsity letter-winners and Phi Beta Kappa at the same time. I interviewed an applicant who lives in Paris and London and flies back and forth, and occasionally to New York, for consulting meetings. One student I spoke to was a TV news anchor on a children’s show as a kid, and another was a Congressional page, you know, in his spare time. I’ve chatted with at least three students who have been given university-wide awards for their academic and research prowess and several others who have done international volunteer trips to care for indigent locals. (Okay, I did this once, but it was “only” for a week, and I “only” taught a few orphaned kids some English. These folks have, for months at a time, assisted in operations and delivered medical supplies and served as translators and … the list goes on.)

So, what have I done? Let’s see, I graduated from college (by the skin of my teeth), got into a PhD program once (narrowly), and … oh, that’s pretty much it. Unlike one student I interviewed a few weeks ago, I haven’t even designed a prosthesis for one-armed water skiers for God’s sake! How would I possibly get into medical school these days?!?

While it’s disheartening and almost makes me feel even less like I deserve to be here than I already did, I continue to interview and evaluate these applicants. Why? Because I like it, because I enjoy being involved with the well-being and progress of my school, and because, especially given my situation, I feel like I can make a difference. Interviewing allows one to influence decisions about the makeup of future generations of students, and I happen to be in line to actually join those future generations in a few short mind-numbing years. For me, it’s even more important to pick people I see fitting in here, because I’m going to need to fit in with them eventually. (In fact, they could either become fellow classmates, or they could even be my residents and attendings when I return to medical school! There’s a strange thought: interviewing my future superiors for their acceptance to medical school…)

So, the moral of the story here is that, yes, brighter and brighter people are flocking to the medical profession all the time, and I’m continually impressed with them. At the same time, to all you current or future applicants out there: If you’re not a genius, do not sweat it. If you don’t have summa cum laude status from Harvard and/or Princeton, fear not. Normal peasants like me get into medical school all the time, so don’t let the success of others intimidate you or make you think you’re any less of a person simply because you haven’t accepted your prize money in Sweden yet. As far as I’m concerned, getting into medical school is as great an achievement as any these days.