It's been incredibly long since I have made a post. I have truly neglected this page.
I'll admit, the year has been a rollercoaster ride for me in every kind of way: Academically, emotionally and mentally.
So how has my first year of medical school at the University of Pretoria been? Challenging. The first semester was incredibly difficult for me. After years of not doing any academic work that is physics or chemistry related, being thrown in these first-year courses felt like an impossible mountain to climb. This was compounded by being added to the course very late in the semester due to administration issue.
First semester of first year medicine
The first semester of year 1 medicine at the University of Pretoria is structured such that most, if not most, BSc students are doing the same general modules. There are 11 modules in the first semester, yes, ELEVEN!!! These include subjects like Physics, Chemistry, Medical terminology and Molecular and Cell biology to name a few. I was incredibly shocked especially since my undergraduate degree at a different university only ever had 4 modules per semester. Physics and Chemistry were by far the most challenging. Every test felt like a battle of survival with these two modules and it was no surprise to me when I had a supp exam for chemistry. I was overwhelmed with feelings of despair and disappointment. As a mature student, I didn't have the luxury of failing any modules or being held back by 1 year. Time is not on my side. I was also angry that I had to do these modules in the first place. I had completed them elsewhere before and basic chemistry had not changed at all in the past 5 years. It made no sense. I wrote the chemistry supplementary exam and waited with bated breath for my results. The way things work here is that if you fail any modules in the year you cannot progress to the next ...another thing that was very different from my previous university. There, you could progress to the next year while repeating a previous year's modules as long as it was not a prerequisite for the following year. I had moved halfway across the country and committed myself to a 60K debt. How could I explain my failure to anyone?
I passed and what a relief it was!
Passing my supp exam and getting distinctions for some of modules made my imposter syndrome calmer. The doubts in my academic capabilities were subdued. I felt like I still had a chance at fulfilling my goal
Second Semester
Second semester is where all the different courses separate. BSc students continue at the Hatfield campus while health science students now attend lectures at Prinshof campus. I finally got to meet my fellow first year medical students. The class was diverse, and I was pleasantly surprised by the number of students I encountered that had previously completed degrees elsewhere.
The academic challenge began.
Modules here are done in blocks and there is a test every Monday based on the work covered in the previous week. This is then followed by a subject test whenever a particular subject is completely covered. At the end of the block is a block test which honestly is no different to the exam in weighting, content to be studied and time allocated. These weekly tests and subject tests comprise of 30% of a block mark and the block test makes 70% of the finally mark (an unfair weighting if you ask me). If one's final mark is >65%, and you've passed all your subject tests, you can "Promote" which basically means skip the exam (HORRAYY!). They have found that the final block mark is good indicator for one's final exam mark and therefore can be used as the final module mark. This possibility became the motivation for every student to work incredibly hard through the semester.
The work is fast paced and there's consecutive lectures for most part of the day. There's new concepts and topics begin taught every lecture session and at some point, I thought my brain would not manage. Every weekend is spent studying in preparation for Monday's test. Thirty marks and hundreds of slides with questions coming from anywhere. To top it all off, there is no long spring break like the other campuses. Your brain is literally being overloaded with work from the very beginning of the block until exam season. I still marvel at how much I have been exposed to these 5 months. Long story short, I was most fortunate to promote for all modules which meant, NO EXAMS for me and holiday as early as 31 October. I don't think I give myself enough credit for achieving this given how much of me it actually took.
In summary
The year as been incredibly challenging and despite these challenges I am still as happy and as thankful as the day I received my acceptance letter. I know, with certainty that finally studying medicine was the right decision. I feel excited for my future and the impact I can have as a physician.
My greatest challenge now is that financially I have no business being a student. I can barely afford to take care of myself, let alone a > R60 000 school fees debt but I pray something will come along. Academically I have done the best that I could under the circumstances, and I can only hope some of the bursaries I have applied to will respond. If you are aware of any bursaries for medical students (that are not restricted to matriculants and first-time university students) please do share. I would appreciate it.
I know there are currently many students waiting for their response, and I truly hope at least one of the universities in the country accepts you. All the best with your journey.
Sunny