How to Survive and Thrive in your Special Masters Program

Igor Irvin Bussel

By Igor Irvin Bussel

“Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.”
- J.Q. Adams

I am absolutely fortunate that I have realized life’s biggest secret: there is no point in stressing out; one day you will be dead and none of this will matter. This is easier said than done when you are trying to get into medical school. Somehow your entire life and the decisions within are viewed in light of you being in medical school.

Is there a reason that you weren’t accepted into medical school or that you don’t have the record to even apply? Perhaps, but this is not the topic of this discussion. We can’t change what has happened, but we can change how we respond. If you are reading this, I will assume that you have decided to pursue your goal of becoming a physician despite the barriers you have already faced.

Many will attempt to breakthrough this proverbial brick wall via a Special Master’s Program (SMP); a one-year intensive study graduate program designed to strengthen a student’s credentials for application to U.S. medical schools. People end up in SMPs for a variety of reasons: some from fear, most from lack of options, and none for fun. You can view this as the worst thing to ever happen or merely a speed bump on your journey into medicine.

Before starting my SMP, I wanted to make sure that I develop the right type of mindset for success. A stoic and adaptable approach allowed me to gather relevant information about the challenges I would face as well as the environment in which I would be operating. I dove into the literature of medical school success, examined the message boards, and had countless discussions with anyone I could reach that went through an SMP or was in medical school. I wanted to know what I was up against so that I could survive, thrive, and stay sane enough to enjoy the process.

I successfully completed my SMP and am currently a first year medical student. Throughout this year, I have spent time mentoring SMP students by sharing my strategies from the past year as well as the additional realizations that developed. I hope that you can benefit from my experience and that these nuggets of wisdom help you develop the perspective to really achieve your dreams.

1.            Medical School is not rocket science.

You are not inventing Silent Velcro or the Space Pen, but you do have to put the hours in… a lot of them.

2.            Budget and prioritize everything so you can focus on the big wins.

What is more fun? Messing around all week and achieving little and then having to waste your weekend studying? Or, working diligently all week and having an awesome yet productive weekend?

What is more rewarding? Throwing away money on awful unhealthy junk food at the expense of your waistline or shopping and cooking for a week in advance? The latter saves your health and gives you the option of actually enjoying a delicious meal.

3.            Ignore everybody.

Avoid the LBS Gang – Library Bull S***ters Gang. These are the individuals that approach you to do nothing more than complain about the very situation you are in.

“That quiz was stupid!…I hate biochem!…Why do we need to learn that!…What a waste!”

Besides avoiding these toxic parasites, be determined to not waste useful time – mornings, breaks between class, etc.

4.            You are responsible for your own experience.

Fail or succeed, you have no one to blame but yourself. But in regards to the mundane life: there is no such thing as boring places, only boring people. You can always find good people and have fun if you make an effort. Spontaneous and exciting things don’t randomly happen. Place yourself in a scenario that can facilitate strange, eccentric, and exciting events.

5.             It doesn’t matter what everyone else is doing.

Graduate students are drawn to the illusion of work almost as much as they are to grand claims of how little or how much they study. The fact that someone spent 12 hours at the library can be reassessed when you realize much of that time was spent on web indulgences like Facebook. What’s urgent and important is that you realize where and how you are most productive. Experiment with approaches and do not keep doing the same thing if it isn’t working.

6.            If you accept the pain, it cannot hurt you.

Your SMP year will suck. You will work harder than you ever have. You will push your limits to breaking points. Your social life will suffer. You will doubt yourself constantly. It may be detrimental to your mental health.

You will never go back to where you have once been….and this will be the best thing to happen to you. Now that you know the emotional events that lie ahead, you can act accordingly and not be caught off guard.

7.            Nobody cares. We are all suffering on some level.

Do not waste your or your classmate’s time incessantly complaining and moaning about your circumstances. If you are frustrated, go get it out – gym, gun range, shopping, whatever.  Everyone has their existential angst, the “why am I here” paradox, or bouts of uselessness to struggle with.  Deal with it but remember that if you’re going to sleep and you’re not tired from doing or working on something you love, why keep doing anything?

8.            Learning is not a linear positive progression.

Do not get demoralized or lose steam when a day’s work seems to not have had any results – this is a universal human experience. We would like to think that with every hour we work our conscious knowledge builds respectively. However, you are actually building unconscious thought patterns and exclusion criteria that will eventually come together into conscious information recall and reasoning. Trust your mind’s abilities and just keep on trucking.

9.            Avoid the need to build a narrative about admissions.

Too many people tell stories – often times for themselves. We are a rationalizing species that has a need to explain the unknown. Don’t listen and definitely don’t add to the theorizing. Avoid the need to rationalize or pontificate ad nauseam the nuances and minutiae of admissions. You are not in control of life’s events but you do control how you perceive and respond. Time spent discussing getting into medical school is time wasted doing something to get into medical school. Want an insider tip from admissions? Be so good they can’t ignore you.

10.            Assume anything you’re told is wrong.

Admissions rules and criteria change every year. Professors adjust what they focus and test on. Interviewers are rotated and questions are modified. This is not always true because one should never underestimate the extent of human laziness to make changes. For the most part, you can use past events as a basis for what to do in the future. However, do not follow anyone’s advice to the letter. Inquire about past events and ask for guidance and suggestions, but proceed according to a strategy you have developed in light of new evidence.

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If experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted, then you can consider yourself an experienced individual when you start your Special Masters Program. The aforementioned advice is not a silver bullet to success nor is it a strict recipe for achievement. It is intended to provide the fundamental concepts to develop an outlook for achieving your goals.

Irvin Bussel completed his undergraduate studies at University of California, Irvine. Currently a student at the Chicago Medical School at Rosalind Franklin University, he is also concurrently earning a Masters in Healthcare Administration and Management.