With the beginning of the new school year, the vibe on the medical center campus has no doubt risen a few levels.
The adrenaline is especially flowing for the nearly 130 first-year medical students who are gracing our campus for the first time.
The first week of medical school is something that I know I’ll never forget.
I finished my undergraduate degree at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., and returned to my family home in St. Louis for the summer. After a couple months, I flew to Los Angeles to begin medical school at the University of Southern California – more than 3,000 miles from New York.
I didn’t have a car and shipped only minimal personal possessions back to California. I lived in a dorm for medical students.
It was the mid-1970s. The weather was sunny and beautiful it seemed like every day, but the smog was another thing. For nearly two months, I didn’t realize that there were mountains lining the north side of LA. Finally, the smog lifted, and I could see them.
Without a car, I was pretty much confined to campus. The USC campus was close to East LA, where gang activity was prevalent. If I left my dorm window open at night, I could hear faint gun shots in the distance.
Welcome to LA!
It was a major transition for me. About 80 percent of the incoming class was from California with the other 20 percent from outside California. Now, nearly 40 years later, I can definitely relate to our nearly 15 percent of students who come from outside Nebraska.
It’s a major transition. The sheer volume, pace and classroom work of medical school were overwhelming.
My best advice for new students – engage with your fellow classmates, develop support systems. Be sure to take a break every now and then and have some fun.
For USC students, there was a volleyball game going on just about every lunch hour. As someone who is vertically-challenged, volleyball probably wasn’t my optimal sport, but it was a great way to interact with other students and make new friends.
I was soon able to develop a routine, and the seemingly insurmountable task of going to medical school became quite manageable. It can be done – trust me!
I spoke to new students and their parents at the College of Medicine White Coat Ceremony on Aug. 21. As I told them, this is truly an incredible time to be a UNMC medical student. By the time they reach their third year and start seeing patients, they will be seeing them in two of our most state-of-the art buildings – the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center and the Lauritzen Outpatient Center & Fritch Surgery Center.
It doesn’t get much better than that.
So, to our new students, I say welcome to UNMC. Enjoy the ride. It will be like nothing you’ve ever experienced.
And if someone asks you to play volleyball – or maybe go ice skating – go for it. You might make a friend for life.