Chapter? Na Book 2.

Looking back on my old posts and reading the memoirs of my former self, fills me with gladness that I somehow reflected on my mistakes and learnt from them.

Due to my love of circular logic it was this that caused me to change to physiology as it was generally a process of feed-forward or feed-back loops which made it seem so logical, that I quickly took a radical change in my course of degree. From neuroscience to Physiology.

I guess to sum up my experiences as an undergrad and disciple of science, it was amazing, if not life changing. By going through a degree I learnt a lot of things. Perhaps the most prominant was how amazing and rewarding research is. Studying minisule things such as sodium channels and how these can affect and determine ones life is absolutely stunning but humbling at the same time.

After all the hard work and times spent slaving at my work while my friends enjoyed the drum n bass uptown, taking my stepping towards infinity I was granted a place in the Class of 2016 at the Otago School of Medicine.

I am now in my third year at medical school. For anyone reading this who want to gazin entry into medicine, strive, study, motivate and keep on trying to achieve the goal you want. Sometimes town and socialising will have to wait, but even if its for 1 or 3 years, to sacrifice that for a few years is worth your weight in gold. Medicine is indeed a very rigorous but very enjoyable and integratable course.

Good luck and enjoy those steps towards infinity.

Chapter 5: U Want Med?

This is a good example of what NOT to do. (Most of these things I did LOL)

*Note biene*: These don't apply to those who have above average academic skills.

- Get tooo far behind. 

This is probably the key to Health Sci. Always stay on top leaving time for study and not 'Trying to catch up' - Probably where i went wrong.

 - Miss Lectures.

 All to often the lecture was put on blackboard and the podcasts also which gave me more of an incentive that it's FINE to miss a lecture BUT IT WASN'T. However for HEAL they will not put up certain lectures up. Which means  potentially lost marks in your exams

- All nighters.

 I would tell myself constantly that the study that night was worth it. . .  but NOPE. By the time you get to breakky you feel fucked and all you want to do is sleep. If you go to early morning lectures, you'll just fall asleep, NOT WORTH IT

- Have Coffee before bed.

As above

 - Miss Tutorials.

 For me not being as smart as most of the SMC folk i wish i'd taken advantage of it.

 - Maccas Runs to north dunners at 11pm.

 I blame this on the early dinners again at  5.30 pm.

 - Go to bed straight after study.

 Doing something not related to your course before bed would be healthier than worrying about how much study you 'could' have done.

- Go back to your hall and lay around .

 In the very start of HSFY i would just go to the library and stay there being very productive and getting on to it. However i got WAY too lazy. If only i'd kept up with it. 

-Try learn everything in Chem labs.

Exit tests = Marks = % 

- Drink too often.

Waking up at 1-2pm Sunday with a hungover was the norm if i were to venture beyond the Uni and into the drunk hole that is dunedin. It didn't help that I had to get in a suit if I wanted dinner too. 

- Don't be afraid to work hard. 

-  Not Study in Mid semester breaks, 

STUDY HERE, Valuable and precious time YOU NEED

- Change your style or way of doing note. 

All too often i went from writing notes in books compiled from the textbook, lecturer, lecture slides. To computerised notes, to ring-binders, to clearfiles. You name it, i did it. 

- Get so into reading.

Too many times i would pick up a fiction book and not put it down untill 2-3am the next morning.

 - Not Exercise. 

Feeling motivated and inspired were feelings usually induced by going for an early morning run i only got round to doing once a month. 

- Not have Fun

Maintaining the delicate threshold between Creativity and logic is a smart thing to do.

 - Not do a Umat Prep course.

I was a total noob at UMAT and it pwned me! Some will do well without it. 

Last thing is probably just you got to

WORK hard. That's serious shit! Work like a dog my warden told me to. It's only one year of your life. 

So GO HARD.

Hopefully this will serve as a reminder for me also. Im trying to learn from my mistakes and hopefully i'll stick to this. If so, Then im tooo goood :)

Elymas

Chapter 4: A Mindset

As most of us know, the Health Science English diagnostic test is a prerequisite in order to gain entry to any professional course.
Rumours would surface saying “it was shit easy”, which gave me peace of mind it wasn't something from scholarship English I had encountered the year before.

Next thing i knew i was facing the results and I had failed. 
A blow to my ego?, No. A blow to my English?, fuck yes! Be that as it may I was not alone in this predicament . I needed someone to talk to and that was to my warden, he however was on sabbatical leave in Italy. Being unable to cross that first barrier on the journey was devastating, however redemption and resolve came back around in the form of a re-test and it was my turn to step up to the podium again and i triumphed so all g!

Halfway through S1, my MAC screen gave up its battle with the treatment I gave it upon transport to lectures and died. Luckily enough apple said quite warmly ‘even though it’s past the warranty we will get it fixed this one time’ when really I'm sure they meant ‘look after ur fkn mac now coz we aint fixn it again’. But good c**t’s they are indeed.

In terms of my academic progress, immersing myself into the world of health was probably the best independent choice I had made. I knew I wanted Medicine and nothing else, a mindset that overcomes many taking the course, but now is not the time to give a reason as to why. Favourite courses by order of best to worst are as follows:
CELS191, HUBS191, CHEM191, PHSI191.
This also coincided with the marks I was to receive for them.

Im sure everyone ‘wishes’ they ‘could’ve, would’ve, should’ve' studied or worked much harder than what they did. But I guess in the end you can only move on and learn from your mistakes. I don’t wanna get corny but I know everyone makes mistakes (unless ur a retard), without them we can’t learn from it, if we don’t learn from it there’s no way one can comprehend and understand.

My endeavours in S1 took me on journeys to Milton and to the deep depths of the nervous system AND back again. It taught me the true meaning of study and hard work and in essence good management. For every hour I missed I had guilt saying ‘I could have studied’ but the inevitable truth is that you just can’t change what was but you can change what will ... S1 in a sentence: A tempestuous and seemingly endless ride that quaked my centre of gravity.

Chapter 3: Altiora in Votis

Integrating and mingling with freshers who just like myself had the same dream, the same interests was a tough thing to do. Most of my life I had grown up and became used to living in the low levels within society and to me that was fine. In this post i guess i will disseminate how living in a ‘Residential College‘ which bases itself on prestige, class and academia is both beneficial and arduous.


By the time Summer school was finished i was well into drinking and partying, however that all changed starting with the introduction of Residential Assistants R.A’s lol whom we had met before doing their ‘camp’. Thus came the dawn of ‘quiet time‘ from 7pm - 7am which sucked horse dick, but I did buy into the place expecting that.


☤ Surrounded by peers with > or = knowledge was something i was unaccustomed to considering the hori place from which i came. However this helped me with the academic support which was invaluable especially in such a tyrannous course such as health sci.

Con: My grades were never a strong point during discussions as they seemed all too miniscule in comparison to others. 
Yes, I could have said ‘but it will make me work harder‘ but to me that’s bullshit. Confident, cocky? call it what you like!, but I become motivated by my works and efforts, not by someone else's.



☤ DINNER IS AT 5PM, RIDICULOUS, especially for those who have an affinity for the night .Hash browns galore and eggs benedict are just some of the things I lived for during this year for breakfast. Lunch was better than dinner as it didn't contain

 the unvarying supply of carrots, broccoli and potatoe.

☤ The consecutive nature of having to dress up every Sunday to get dinner was both enriching and detrimental on me. Getting into a suit this year became somewhat natural to me and disorientated the meaning of formality to mediocrity.



☤ Tutorials being taught by lecturers and in some cases even Paper Co-ordinators was a resource that exceeded expectations far beyond what i was told.



☤ You meet 2nd and 3rd year students who unlike 2˚ school did not build walls according to age. I found them to be mentors and friends and will remain as mates for a long time. most of whom are gonna be doctors,dentists and rich people so that’s a bigger plus haha.



Overall i have to say It has a good atmosphere. It allowed me to get further out of my shell, meet some amazing and talented people with skills ranging from ATCL violin to livers of steel. Opportunities are things that aren’t scarce if one dare venture beyond the brick and vine facade of St Margaret’s College.



Chapter 2: Advent of Uni

To begin this tale of hardship, struggle and whatever sounds good to make something sound better I will start at the ignoble beginnings of Summer School.

Like many, taking physics beyond Level 1 was not something I had in mind when i was year 12 let alone going into First year Health Science at Otago.
Due to my lack of knowledge within the Physics dept i decided to take the 'Jumpstart Physics' program 2 weeks prior to the start of FYHS.

After a few days of summer school, i had embraced the Otago tradition of excessive drinking, clubbing, raving and the guilt of how much study i could have done, although I'm sure its not only otago students who get that.
For 10 days straight Physics and more Physics was drummed harder and harder coming in forms of youtube, spongebob and all-sorts.

However after the many lame scenarios of men falling out of planes or cars instantly stopping, came the end of Physics summer school which was both pleasing and dissappointing.
Pleasing, that there would be no more 8am - 4pm days of Physics and dissappointing because we had to leave and seperate from the first friends we had made during our Advent of Uni. At the end of it i do wish that i could have worked harder, and I would have attained a much better mark assuming i did the work, afterall they did teach the first half of PHSI191 in 2 weeks.

ADVICE to any doing jumpstart physics or Bridging Chem, Write up your days notes just like you would lectures, and study study study.