The Hardest Part...About Applying to Medical School

I'm not sure if I've mentioned before how much of a Coldplay fan I am but I unabashedly love Chris Martin and his beautiful voice and music. Last night "The Hardest Part" was stuck in my head and it led me to ponder "the hardest part" of the application cycle. Having gone through it once already, I feel like the most difficult factor to deal with was the constant waiting. The entire process is marked by this persistent theme. First, you're waiting for your MCAT results, then you're waiting for the AMCAS application to open up, after that you have to wait for your primary to be verified, your application to be sent out, and secondaries to come to you. As you start getting interviews the waiting gets even harder because you're either waiting for invitations (which is terrifying, what if you don't get any? what if you've done all this work for nothing? these are the thoughts that will run through your head), or you'll be waiting for your actual interview. After your interviews you have months and months to wait for an admissions decision. It's enough to drive anyone mad, honestly. The problem with waiting is that there is no way for you to improve upon it. You're stuck in limbo, at the mercy of someone else and all you can do is constantly check your email to see if you've received an update. It's exhausting and unfortunately there is very little I can tell you to make it better except that you will get through it. It's particularly daunting to consider that I will have to go through this a second time (those of you who are reapplying will know exactly how this feels) but it's almost better because now I know that I can get through it. Now I know that I need to stay busy, stay occupied and try my best to remain positive and I recommend that you try that too. I promise, it will help! Oh and maybe have a listen to some Coldplay while you're at it ;)