We asked members of the (recently graduated) MD Class of 2016: What advice would you give to yourself on your first day of medical school?
Rachel Blake MD’16
Specialty: Obstetrics & Gynecology
Residency: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center / Harvard Medical School
“Dive into every opportunity, even if you’re not sure whether this will end up being your specialty choice or your career path. Make sure to try to enjoy every moment of this journey.”
Natasha Coleman MD’16
Specialty: General Surgery
Residency: NewYork Presbyterian-Columbia / Columbia University Medical Center
“This will be really hard and that’s OK. Don’t waste your time on doubt because you’re supposed to be here and you can do this!”
Minoo D’Cruz ’11 MD’16
Specialty: Family Medicine
Residency: Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island / Alpert Medical School
“Be kind to yourself. Celebrate the small victories, and brush off the bad days. Everyone has them. And remember, at the end of the day, this is not about your grades or your accolades. This is about those extra moments you spent by a patient’s side, whispering words of comfort, when no one else is watching.”
Patrick Lec ’12 MD’16
Specialty: Urology
Residency: UCLA Medical Center / David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
“Every year gets busier, so enjoy the days off!”
Theresa Lii ’12 MD’16
Specialty: Anesthesiology
Residency: Stanford University School of Medicine
“Trust yourself and trust others. I frequently struggled with reconciling my desire to learn with my fear of accidentally harming patients. I was good at putting on a confident face whenever I tried something new, but internally I would be fretting about messing up and hurting someone. It took me until fourth year to develop enough confidence to comfortably go after new tasks and trust my seniors to supervise me appropriately. The system had enough checks and balances to let me safely stumble through my ‘firsts,’ and with each successful first, I grew more confident in my ability to try the next new thing. I just wish I had known earlier that trusting myself and others is key.”
Olivia Linden ’12 MD’16
Specialty: Radiology
Residency: Cambridge Health Alliance / Harvard Medical School (transitional); UC San Francisco / UCSF School of Medicine
“Be open to everything, don’t be afraid to try anything, and you’re going to make some really amazing mentors and friends!”
Will Mangham MD’16
Specialty: Neurological Surgery
Residency: University of Tennessee College of Medicine
“Take time during your first two years to learn about all of the different medical specialties. Spend time with doctors from different specialties to get a sense of where you can see yourself. Your grades during the first two years of medical school are not important, so invest time now into making career decisions. It works to your advantage to know early on what specialty you want to go into so that you can begin strengthening your résumé.”
Caitlin Naureckas ’12 MD’16
Specialty: Pediatrics
Residency: Massachusetts General Hospital / Harvard Medical School
“Bring a sweater because the lecture hall will be freezing! And keep an open mind—there’s a lot you don’t know yet, and even though you think you have it all figured out, med school will always find a way to surprise you.”
Liz Rubin MD’16
Specialty: Obstetrics & Gynecology
Residency: Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania / Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
“Wake up early, and when that inevitably fails, stay up late. Do the things you want to do, not the things you think you should want to do. Find mentors who think you are more awesome than you think you are. Shoes that give you blisters don’t get second chances. Eat more kale. Everything is going to be OK.”
Ravi Sarpatwari MD’16
Specialty: Emergency Medicine
Residency: Rhode Island Hospital / Alpert Medical School
“Gain exposure to as many medical specialities as possible from day one, whether through shadowing, research, or longitudinal exposure. You may be surprised by what fields you find interesting, and the only way to appreciate that is to see how the field is practiced on a daily basis. There are so many medical fields out there, and unfortunately there is not enough time during the clinical years to gain full exposure.”
Jovian Yu ’12 MD’16
Specialty: Internal Medicine
Residency: Yale-New Haven Hospital / Yale School of Medicine
“Look out for the opportunities to learn more about myself. I think that the most valuable thing I have gained from medical school beyond the knowledge, experience, and privilege of working with patients is a better understanding of my personal identity both as an individual and as a future physician.”
