The Life Cycle of an "Average" Premed: a ragecomic chronicle

I've finally settled down enough to reflect on the last 4 years of applications... and thought it would be a good idea to share my application history for those of you who may be in similar positions.

As requested (many times), my year-by-year undergraduate GPA (OMSAS) :

Year 1: 3.64
Year 2: 3.75
Year 3: 3.86
Year 4: 3.86

cGPA: 3.78
wGPA (weighted for U of T): 3.88

Not the most impressive stats, as you can clearly see.

I first started applying during third year of undergrad, more for practice than expecting actual interviews given my stats at the time. I've applied every year since then, at one point applying to the US (which was a complete and utter fail- for good reason). Here's a year-to-year breakdown along with graphical illustrations of my reaction to rejections each year:

Cycle 1- 2010-2011

Applied: Queen's, Toronto, McMaster
Rejected: Queen's, Toronto, McMaster

Figure 1. Pre-intervew rejections.

Summary: Rejected pre-interview for the three schools I applied to. I was periodically checking the library computers during lab break times. My lab partner at the time didn't apply, but was accepted in our 4th year- to the same school I'll be attending, actually.

This was the year Queen's first started taking ECs into pre-interview scoring, hence the lack of an interview...

Cycle 2- 2011-2012

Applied: Queen's, Toronto, McMaster, Western, Ottawa, Manitoba, Calgary
Interview: Manitoba, Western
Rejected: Manitoba, Western

Interviews at Western & Manitoba- see How to really, really screw up important interviews: a ragecomic presentation.

Summary: As a (slightly) socially awkward & nervous interviewer, interviews did not go down well (see above link). This was during my 4th year, while I did not have any back-up plans planned. This was/is a terrible idea, I still can't stress this enough. See How I got my first research position: a ragecomic illustration for what is usually highly unlikely to happen for people without solid backup plans.

Cycle 3- 2012-2013

Applied: Queen's, Toronto, McMaster, Western, Ottawa, Manitoba, 14 US schools
Interview: McMaster (off waitlist), Western
Rejected: McMaster, Western, all US schools

Figure 2. Overly-exaggerated graphical illustration of post-rejection celebrations.

Summary: Sad times here. I prepared extensively for both interviews, practicing with friends, labmates, etc. I think the problem was (like many others) I was over-prepared, and sounded as if I was reading off a script... and consequently didn't seem like a real person. Interestingly, now that I look back- I actually thought I did well in the interview (see Interviews & raging times at the lab)... idiocy, idiocy everywhere.

To be honest, this was probably among the most (but not the most) depressing, disappointing moments in my life. Especially considering the amount of help I was given by some awesome people around me... also didn't help that I was receiving pre-interview rejections year-round (starting from September? Or something like that) from the US schools I applied to. More on that later, but mostly due to bad reference letter(s), terribly written essay & secondaries, and lack of quantifiable research during applications.

Cycle 4- 2013-2014

Applied: Queen's, Toronto, McMaster, Western, McGill

Interview: Queen's, Toronto, Western (MD/PhD)
Rejected: All MD/PhD programs, and 1 MD
Waitlist: 1 MD
Accepted: 1 MD (after initial waitlist)

Summary: This was the first year I could apply with actual research experience/accomplishments in hand, since I had only started my job around the time applications were due in the previous cycle (2012-2013). After 1-1.5 years of solid research slavery (see Enslaved by brains: a ragecomic representation), I had a reasonably decent CV for MD/PhD programs- and was lucky enough to get interviews.

The interview at the school I was accepted to was the last interview I did, whilst knowing I was rejected from all the MD/PhD programs and also highly likely rejected from the MD programs as well since the interviews occurred on the same days/weekends (and interview performance likely correlated among each other). I went into the interview saying to myself that this is the last med school interview I will ever do, and ended up as the most "real" interview I ever did- I was not nervous at all, and able to be "myself" during the entire interview. I left feeling confident, and continuously so until a week before May 13th.

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After 36 (that's a nice number) pre- and post-interview rejections, and 7 interviews over 4 application cycles, I finally have an acceptance in my hand. Even as I'm filling out paperwork, applying for my LOC, and doing all the med-like things I've always wanted to do (paperwork ftw), and as cliché as this sounds, I still can't believe I'm in. Imposter syndrome, even before starting med school...

...and I find myself wondering what I'm going to write about now in this blog of mine. Perhaps something about research? How to epic-fail at US med applications? Not really sure.

Matt

No longer a premed

Surprise.

It's finally official- I will no longer be a "premed". This is what happened in the last year:

Interviewed: U of T, Queen's, Western

Waitlisted: one of the above
Rejected: one of the above
Accepted: one of the above (after initial waitlist)

I will post something more coherent when I've settled down a bit.

Matt

Big List of All Med School Interview Questions- Part 1: Panel/Traditional Interview

http://business-english.pl/?p=344

Hello all- here is the ultimate compilation of traditional/panel interview questions, which is arguably the largest collection of medical school interview questions in a single document.

Link: Big List of All Med School Interview Questions- Part 1: Panel/Traditional Interview

Why this collection is useful:

1. Panel/traditional interviews can only cover so many topics of discussion and from a limited number of standard questions.
2. Medical schools tend to organize their interview questions based on certain categories- which I've tried to emulate in this guide.
3. The sheer number of questions & comprehensiveness of areas covered allows for a thorough understanding of the interview process, while at the same time acting as a large reservoir of practice questions for applicants.

That being said, the collection is currently organized into the following categories:

• 1. Personal Questions
• 1.1 Personal History
• 1.2 Personal Details
• 1.3 Relationships/Interactions with others
• 1.4 Personality & Character
• 1.5 Behavioral/Situational
• 1.6 Personal Experiences: collaboration/teamwork/leadership
• 1.7 Personal Experiences: character
• 1.8 Goals & Plans
• 2. Application Related
• 2.1 Knowledge of Program/Specific motivations
• 2.2 Motivation/Commitment for Medicine
• 3. Experiences: education/medicine/healthcare
• 3.1 Academics
• 3.2 Healthcare, Volunteer, Extracurricular Experiences
• 3.3 Knowledge of field/realistic view of profession
• 3.4 Knowledge of Healthcare System/Issues (Canada)
• 4. Ethical questions
• 5. Other
• 5.1 Current events/World/History
• 5.2 Weird/out-of-the-blue/creative questions
• 31 Questions I Wish I Had Asked: from Organization of Student Representatives Association of American Medical Colleges, January 1992

Things to note:

• There are sometimes comments or "sample answers" at the end of questions- these are sample response and/or advice from people with more insight and knowledge than myself (successful applicants, current medical students, admission committee members).
• Please note that this is only the first release of the guide. The questions have been through a "brief" first pass (which still took  long). There will still need to be some changes, including (but not limited to):
• There are sometimes questions that are only relevant to US medical school applicants (this guide was originally meant to assist with both Canada and US interviews).
• Redundancies, badly worded/bad/unnecessary questions which need to be filtered out in a more thorough review.
• Better/more efficient categorization of questions.
• The "Ethical questions" section is not as expansive since I will be releasing an additional collection of MMI questions which will have a large number of ethical scenarios/questions.

Release info:

Version 1.0 (April 5th, 2013): Initial release

Acknowledgements: this collection was based on more than a dozen sources, anywhere from premed101, SDN, various medical school admissions websites, etc. My goal was to at least attempt to put together a much more complete and organized collection of interview questions based on every available source.

...and just in case:

Terms of Use:

In accessing the documents and its content ("Materials") on this site, you agree to the following terms and conditions:

1. Permission is granted to electronically copy or print portions of the Materials for your own personal, non-commercial use. Any other use of materials on this site without our prior written consent is strictly prohibited.
2. You must not modify paper or digital copies of the Materials you have printed off or downloaded in any way.
3. You must not use any part of the Materials for commercial purposes.
4. In no event, unless required by law or agreed to in writing, will "The Average Korean Premed" (krnpremed.blogspot.com) be liable to you for damages, including any general, special, incidental or consequential damages arising out of the use or inability to use the Materials.

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Again, please feel free to share your opinions/concerns/comments/criticism/etc. I always welcome feedback (which I really don't get a lot of). 

Part 2 will be a collection of MMI questions, and an accompanying guide for answering interview questions (both panel and MMI)... which may take a lot longer to put together.

Matt

How to really, really screw up important interviews: a ragecomic presentation

I'm not in med school- as much as I'd like to be, I'm not. This is because I am apparently terrible at interviews (or severely lack experience with interviews, which is also the case), which led me to screw up my med school interviews in the past cycle. Here I have a graphic presentation on how to really, really screw up a med school interview. There are lessons to be learned:

Figure 1. Three awesome people I wish I would never meet again.

Figure 2. One does not simply walk into med school.

My MMI went similarly- few excellent, some good, average, and 2-3 terrible stations. Fortunately, I learned some things:

• Prepare. Prepare early and intensely if you don't have a lot of experience with interviews, or if you're just not good with such situations (especially with MMIs).
• Don't try to be something you're not.
• This was my biggest mistake. Panels 6, 7 clearly show my failed attempts at trying to be someone I wasn't and the disastrous consequences that followed. You hear this advice all the time regarding interviews, but you don't actually realize it until it's too late (i.e. halfway through the interview).
• Never get nervous.
• Never. I was told that I lost points (during an MMI) because I seemed too nervous. I'm guessing they're not looking for people who'll grow up to be twitchy, emotionally wrecked doctors...

On the bright side, I'm really enjoying my lab work and for the first time actually glad that I got rejected (yes, seriously. Science is hard but research is awesome). Hopefully in time I'll be able to draw on some good news!

Matt

Coming Soon

So it's been a while since I did anything with the blog... thought I should let people know about some awesome posts that will be coming soon-ish.

People's (Premed101's) Guide to the U of T Essay

• Comprehensive guide based on compiled/analysed accounts of those (on Premed101)  that were successful in receiving interview invitations for U of T med. Will aim to post by August at the latest.

EDIT: U of T no longer requires the essay, starting this year I guess. They now have 4 questions, similar to the ones that McMaster had a couple of years ago.

Big List of "Back-Up" Plans for Premeds

• An all-inclusive, easy-to-read list of alternate plans for applicants that were rejected from medical schools and considering (a) gap year(s), or another career in health care.
• Will include factors such as minimum, average, "competitive" GPA, tests required, deadline to apply, program locations, prereqs, potential salary, job market, etc.
• Multi-part series (~15?), including a short guide to US medical school admissions.
• This one will take quite a while, will post intermittently throughout the year. 

Guide to Canadian med school admissions

• An up-to-date admissions guide with recent statistics and honest advice. No BS.

...and possibly more. Probably the most useful stuff I'll ever write.

Incidentally, daily view count of this blog has almost doubled due to MCAT writers this summer (I can see google search keywords that led people to this blog)... good luck to you all. 

Matt

How to destroy the MCAT with minimal study time (Part 3- General Advice and Test Day Tips)

Update (7/18/2014): Commenting has been disabled- it's been more than 4 years since I wrote the MCAT & I don't think I should continue giving out random advice & the new MCAT will render a good chunk of my MCAT-related writing obsolete. Good luck to everyone, regardless.

Even if you've prepared well for the actual MCAT, there's still some things you need to keep in mind to ensure you can do your best on test day. I also included some general advice in studying for the MCAT. Just a reminder that all the tips/advice I give out are based on prior (copious) research, and selected for from personal experience as well.

General (Overall) Study Advice:

• During the week(s) leading up to the MCAT, do full timed practice MCATs every day (except day before) to get you mentally prepared.
• This is where you would use the AAMC practice MCATs. 7 and on are the most representative of the real thing (more recent).
• If you have practised with Kaplan material (BS and PS), you will undoubtedly be able to breeze through those sections.
• Do nothing the day before the MCAT.
• At that point, any studying is futile and more likely to have a negative result. Take the day off to relax, sleep. 
• Give yourself a long(er) time to study for Verbal Reasoning if you're struggling with it.
• Although I say "minimal study time" in my titles, you should probably give yourself ample time to study (at least 1 1/2 month in my opinion). Unless you enjoy tormenting yourself and burning yourself out for the entirety of the upcoming school year.
• I didn't do this- a decision I regretted sorely. It was miracle it all worked out- another story to come.

Test Day:

• During the test- use every break to have a snack, a quick drink, stretch go to the bathroom.
• Distract yourself from the previous section and start to focus on the next one while getting some nourishment (energy bars with tea work great).
• Quick (5-10 seconds) breaks between passages- a lot of people recommend this, and has worked for me as well. Great for re-tuning your focus.
• Don't bring any study material to the test site, because:
• Only increases your anxiety as you would frantically go over stuff that you don't need to memorize anyways.
• You would look like a noob. Seriously.

Figure 1. Artistic representation of people's faces when they saw the girl
with 17 sheets of study material 20 minutes before the MCAT

• Unless you're writing next to a construction site, don't bother with headphones.
• The obvious one- get a good night's sleep the day before.

 ...and that's the end for my useful posts on the MCAT.

Good luck.

Part 3- Done.
Matt

How to destroy the MCAT with minimal study time (Part 2- Writing Sample)

The Writing Sample

Update (7/18/2014): Commenting has been disabled- it's been more than 4 years since I wrote the MCAT & I don't think I should continue giving out random advice & the new MCAT will render a good chunk of my MCAT-related writing obsolete. Good luck to everyone, regardless.

If you have done any prior studying for the Writing Sample, you would be familiar with the general format of the essay:

1. Thesis- explain the prompt/statement

• Explain what the prompt is talking about, how it applies in a situation.
• You can start the thesis in a couple of ways:
• The statement that "prompt" is true in the sense that... (follow-up with explanation of prompt using examples) OR
• Restate prompt in your own words, summarizing what you thought the prompt means and why (with an example).
• I generally went with the second method, but that depends on the prompt and whether you're comfortable with rephrasing.

2. Antithesis- opposing view of the thesis.

• Explain how the opposing view of the prompt may apply in certain situations.

3. Synthesis- resolve the conflict between opposing views.

• Create a "rule" and explain it clearly, when the rule should apply, and when it doesn't. Basically, how to decide when to do one and when to do the other?
• Conclusion, but not taking a side (leave it ambiguous)

That's about as short as I can describe the general format of the essays you should be writing on the MCAT.  There are a lot of online resources describing in detail on how each section should be presented, but that's really unnecessary- you know the format, you know how to think and write, it should be fine as long as you prepare properly.

Preparing for the Writing Sample

1. Before you start anything, read this PDF thoroughly:

Scoring the Writing Sample- AAMC

It's surprising how so many people preparing for the MCAT don't know about this document, which basically provides a very detailed guideline to the marking scheme as well as many examples of marked essays (with detailed explanations behind the marking) with a variety of scores (1-6). Reading through the marked essays and descriptions will give you a very good idea of what is expected, and how you should be writing to get the score you want. You will even be able to mark your own essays by making comparisons to the samples in the PDF, which is obviously very useful. 

2. Always practice writing under timed conditions.

This is pretty self-explanatory- it's pointless getting good at writing the essay in an hour+, when you should be aiming to finish one essay in ~25 minutes. Practice under strict timed conditions for maximum efficiency, and you will be ready for the real thing.

3. Be self-critical: judge your own work harshly.

If you have read the PDF above, you should know where you currently stand in terms of your writing level, how prepared you are for the writing sample, etc. You may be at a 2, 3, or a 6. Don't BS yourself- if you know you need a lot of work, then do so. Continue practising with prompts from AAMC, until you are at a score range of your desire.

4. Use real-life examples to support your arguments.

This is also something a lot of people don't know about, unless they did prior research elsewhere. In using examples to support your arguments:

Real-life examples >>> Theoretical examples >>>>> No example at all

Using any real life, specific examples to support your arguments makes your essay a lot stronger. The writing sample asks you to only explain the prompt but doesn't ask for an example to support it. However, you should provide examples for both your thesis and antithesis (examples for when the statement applies and when it doesn't), preferably real-life examples. Remember that your essay is marked by a computer as well as a human marker- this is why using real life examples usually results in a better score.

Some things you should know:

• You can twist real-life examples to fit your needs- you can write the examples with some bias so that it can support your argument better.
• In fact, the examples I used were real-life examples about things I knew very little about, some things I heard in passing- it was almost lying, but I was able to use the little bit of information I had regarding the subjects to twist it into a good examples to support my arguments.
• I used examples that the marker couldn't possibly know about, just in case (i.e. corporate espionage in Samsung's DRAM technology, recent actions by the president of South Korea, etc). I knew very, very little on the subject but I knew enough to vaguely cite the example and make it into good examples for my essays.
• You can use theoretical examples ("For example, if a fireman walks into a burning building while knowing..."- possibly for a "heroism" prompt), but they are less effective than real-life examples.
• Use any example you can think of, even those you know barely anything about- maybe something your friend mentioned the other day, a news article you skimmed through. However, make sure to word it in a way that supports your argument.

That's pretty much it- you know what you're expected to write, you should know the level of writing you should be at to get the score you want. It's just a matter of (strictly timed) practice until you can get to the level you want. Keep these in mind as you write:

• Good transition, flow, and structure in your overall writing (look at the scored essays in the PDF, especially the ones marked 6 for an idea of what you should be aiming for)
• Strong, clearly stated arguments- both thesis and antithesis- backed by relevant (real-life), specific examples.
• Clear, concise writing that's easy to understand- especially your synthesis. Don't use unnecessarily long and difficult words you're not familiar with, stick to short, effective sentences.
• Good vocabulary (wide range), grammar, spelling- remember your essay is marked by a computer as well, and minor mistakes in spelling and grammar will cost you marks.
• Practice until you feel comfortable under timed conditions and are writing essays that are in a score range you're aiming for.

Part 2- End for now. Part 3 will discuss test day tips, as well as general advice for the MCAT.

Matt

How to destroy the MCAT with minimal study time (Part 1- Study Material and Strategies)

Update (7/18/2014): Commenting has been disabled- it's been more than 4 years since I wrote the MCAT & I don't think I should continue giving out random advice & the new MCAT will render a good chunk of my MCAT-related writing obsolete. Good luck to everyone, regardless.

Prior to writing the MCAT after my second year (summer, 2010), I had been researching on the MCAT and its “secrets” for over a year. It was almost as if I knew I would have very little time to study for it—which was fortunate, because I really did have very little time to study due to previously unforeseen circumstances. All the prep I did prior to actual studying helped minimize the amount of time needed to do well on the MCAT, which is why I always stress the importance of research.

“So it is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you can win a hundred battles without a single loss.”

Best Study Material

Using the most effective study material is probably the most important factor in studying for the MCAT (other than actually studying). There are significant differences between major test prep companies and their materials, with some obviously being better than the others. After thorough, thorough research across premed forums (SDN, premed101), I was able to determine optimal material for each section of the MCAT as well as corresponding study strategies.

***Important to note: You will not succeed on the MCAT by memorizing all the facts, formulas, minute detail in prep books. Understanding the concepts outlined and correctly applying them on the test material is the only approach you should be taking—to do that well, you need ample practice with the best material.

But wait, why should you listen to me?

Good point. Short answer is- I studied for exactly 18 days before my MCAT. My scores were in the top ~2% percentile. I will elaborate on my story in a later post- it is a thrilling tale; I wish to do it justice.

Learning the Material

This really depends on your background—if you have an extensive background in the sciences, use Kaplan to review concepts you’ve learnt before as the Kaplan prep books are not overtly detailed and provide a good general overview of the concepts. If your background is not in sciences, I would recommend Princeton Review (Or even Berkeley Review, but those are hard to come by) for their detailed outline of the material. As long as you understand the concepts, you should be fine.

Practice for Physical Sciences (PS), Biological Sciences (BS)

For the two science sections, Kaplan practice tests are the way to go. In terms of difficulty (on average):

Kaplan PS, BS > Actual MCAT >>> AAMC practice tests

Other test prep companies fall somewhere below the actual MCAT. Kaplan is consistently cited as having the most difficult practice tests—by the time you get to write the actual beast, the PS and BS sections will seem so much easier because you’ve spent all your time tackling passages and questions that were significantly harder.

Study Strategy

• Work through as many practice test as you possibly can.
• After a few practice tests, you should do all your practice under strict timed conditions.
• For every question you answer incorrectly, read the solutions manual and completely understand the concept behind the question before doing any more practice.

In my case, I worked my way through about 10 practice tests each for PS and BS. On the actual MCAT, I had a decent run through PS, breezed through BS. After endless hours of ripping through countless practice tests, I found that I understood the concepts much more clearly and could easily see through the passages and questions to find the answer.

Verbal Reasoning (VR)

Practice. Only practice, and learning from your mistakes & adjusting your strategy accordingly will help you here. However, the gold standard for VR practice is the Examkrackers 101 Passages, as well as their VR strategies book (Verbal Reasoning and Mathematical Techniques). Every other test prep companies fall way below EK with regards to difficulty, accurate representation of the actual MCAT and quality practice questions.

Strategy

This is the EK strategy for approaching VR:

(adapted from premed101)

1. Read the passage critically (attack it like you are a professor reading a student's work)

2. Take a 5 second break before each passage, including the first one. This helps you to maintain focus on the passage.

3. Read every word.

4. Try not to go back to the passage so much (they recommend doing a few passage questions without reading the passage at all, to show that you can gain a lot of info from the question stems and answers themselves)

5. Do the passages from start to finish. You have to read every single passage and attempt to answer them.

6. Don't get caught up on the hard questions - if you aren't finishing on time, then you have to learn to give up and move on.

The above strategies are excellent (and has worked very well for many people), but eventually you will find your own personalized method of tackling VR passages. In terms of studying:

• Do not use more than one practice test in a day—there are only ~14 (golden) EK practice tests available, you want to maximize their use by spreading them out.
• After each practice test, look to see what questions you answered incorrectly, assess what you’re doing wrong and make adjustments to your strategy to improve. Continue making adjustments until you’re scoring at a consistent range (10-11).
• Learn to have the framework of the entire passage in your head before answering the questions.

Part 1- End. My score breakdown: 12/11/14/R (PS/VR/BS/WS)

Part 2 will discuss the Writing Sample (WS) as well as general advice.

Matt

Coming Soon

I've always had a lot of ideas about a blog such as this, and it looks like I've been subconsciously collecting ideas for posts. In fact, some of my posts will come directly from previously written Notes on Facebook. With that said, here are some upcoming posts in the near future:

• Why Korean-Canadian students fail in the admissions process- simple observations
• 3 main reasons stemming from Korean social culture, ethnicity and familial background

• General advice for Korean-Canadian students aiming for medical School
• Why you should never NOT listen to your parents (sometimes). Seriously
• Things to avoid

• Comprehensive guide to Canadian med school admissions

• Up-to-date admissions profiles for Canadian Med Schools- 캐나다 의대 집중탐구
• Statistics, Processes, Unknown Facts
• 1 post per medical school with the most up-to-date information and analyses

• How to destroy the MCAT with minimal study time (<1 month)
• Prior research and finding the best study material, proper study and review strategies to maximize productivity (Part 1).
• Writing sample strategy, and so-called "MCAT secrets" (but really just information and documents you can find online with careful searching)
• Mental conditioning, proper resting, test day preparations

• Queen's Life Sciences- it's not as terrible as they say

 ...and more to come. For the above listed, I already have prewritten rough drafts which may take some time to complete. Posts related to admissions, statistics, etc, will definitely take a while as I gather all my data/previously written stuff. Again, I hope to post regularly so that this blog doesn't become a pathetic waste of server space. Stay tuned.


Matt

A New Blog

Hello there,

I've decided to start a blog.

This blog will serve 3 main purposes:

1. Chronicle the struggles of an "average" "premed"* student (i.e. me) in Canada trying to get into med school. Should be funny, one hopes.

• I'm currently in my last year of a Life Science program at a Canadian University.
• As of now, I'm in the midst of an application cycle awaiting interview invitations. 

2. Share the very annoyingly ridiculously large amount of various information/advice/documents I've accumulated over the years regarding med admissions in Canada.

• Premed101, has been my core source of all knowledge regarding med admissions. If you look carefully, you will find answers to all your questions in life. True story.
• But seriously, I will be condensing the most relevant and important info (that one spent hours upon hours searching for) regarding admissions into what I hope to be semi-regular posts.

3. Serve as a reliable source (hopefully) of information for students aiming for med, especially Korean-Canadian students.

• Over the years, I've noticed that many, many Korean students fail to succeed in admissions despite our parents continuously mauling kicking us in the process (nothing I say is literal).
• As a result, there is a fundamental lack of support from previously succesful students for current students struggling in the process. It's appalling how some sources of information that Korean students are exposed to are so ridiculously unreliable (articles in Korean newspapers, random websites, parents etc).
• My wish is to bridge this problem by communicating in both English and Korean, providing accurate, reliable, up-to-date info and advice geared for Korean students. Hopefully, you will find it useful.

4. Preserve my sanity.

• I heard writing about stuff is great prophylaxis for insanity. Checking my e-mail and premed101 a thousand times a week isn't helping, either.

That's about it. I will attempt at anonymity for a while.

Matt