How is MS1?

For those who know, MS1 is the first year of medical school. After being accepted to Ross University School of Medicine (RUSM) as a non-traditional student, I attended MS1 on the island of Dominica, West Indies. Post-hurricane relocation is to Barbados, where they have permanently situated now. 

 

MS1 was quite a challenge, not only in terms of academics, but adjusting to a new environment. For those who know me, I am born and raised in New Jersey. I have never really left the country or the state, for that matter, unless it was for vacation. Moving to a new country, which is not like the United States of America was definitely difficult. Nonetheless, with the support of my cousin, who at the time was in his last semester of the accelerated program was there (he was the one who encouraged me to apply and start when he was still on the island), I was able to adjust better. Assimilating to a new culture was enhanced through the rich transition I had via the help of my strong support system. After he left the island, my support system grew and became stronger, as my amazing friends who made me feel that RUSM was my second home. Plus, I did not live too far from the campus – I lived right across the street, so if I ever needed to go home and speak to my parents, grandparents, sister or boyfriend at the time (now fiancé), I would go home and comfortably speak to them over FaceTime. Thank you for the era of virtual/video chat, I am able to feel somewhat close to my loved ones. Apart from the emotional aspect of that year, there were many other aspects to discuss.

 

Academically speaking, my first semester was not hard because of the material, it was hard, because the question format was vastly different from when I was in undergrad or even different from when I was in graduate school for my masters degree. Nevertheless, I was able to find a way I could effectively study. To give you an idea as to how my day looked:

 

Monday through Friday: 
- Wake up at 6 A.M.

- Work out from 6:15-7 A.M.

- Get ready for class and breakfast 7:00-7:45 A.M.

- Class 8 A.M.-12 P.M.

- Lunch 12 A.M-1 P.M.

- Study 2-5 P.M.

- Dinner 5-6 P.M.

- Study 6-9 P.M. 

- Sleep by 10 P.M.

 

Saturday and Sunday

- Wake up at 8 P.M.

- Work out from 8:15-9 A.M.

- Get ready for class and breakfast 9:00-9:45 A.M.

- Study from 10 A.M.-12 P.M.

- Lunch 12 A.M-1 P.M.

- Study 2-5 P.M.

- Dinner 5-6 P.M.

- Study 6-11 P.M. 

- Sleep by 12 P.M.

 

This schedule gave me 8 hours to sleep, and even in the 6 hours I had dedicated to studying per day on the weekdays, I would still have some time to do other activities such as participate in clubs. For studying, the first few weeks I started off in the cubicles in the library, but then I moved to a classroom, as I needed more space daily. The beginning of second semester, I started off in what we used to commonly call ‘The Fishbowl’, as I wanted the quiet environment of a library, but I needed more space. During the first couple of weeks of second semester, instead of attending class in person like I did in first semester, I started to watch classes on Mediasite. My first exam did not go so well, so I understood that as I am an auditory and visual learner, and the best way for me to learn is in a classroom setting. I gain more from the in-person experience, and the good thing was that the recorded sessions were always available for me to refer back to, if I misunderstood what a professor said or just needed to hear something again to reinforce the material. 

 

The materials I used to study for MS1:

- Lecture Notes 

- Textbooks assigned to me in the curriculum 

 

If you have any questions about MS1, please feel free to reach out to me! 

 

Sincerely,

Priyanka Deepak Gianchandani, M.D., M.B.S.

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