Session 320 Justin is a former military special operations medic who grew a stronger fascination with taking care of patients. Now he has multiple acceptances to med school. Please check out MedEd Media Network for more podcasts. I'm also doing great video courses about the personal statement as well as for the medical school interview where you get access to many hours of video content, including access to a secret Facebook group and some live office hours. [02:10] Interest in Becoming a Physician Justin realized he wanted to be a physician while he was training as a medic in the special operations. Fascinated by the sciences and found success in it, he also loves the hands-on portion of it and be able to affect change immediately with bare bone resources. Prior to joining the military, he just finished a four-year degree back in the financial crisis. At that time, his degree didn't bode well for job prospects. However, he has always planned on joining the military. His parents stopped him from doing it back in high school, even had a special friend sit down with him where it was explained to him the importance of having a backup plan. So out of his business degree, he went on to try out at the special operations unit and made it. He went down the path through a series of tests and with his test scores, he was encouraged to work at the medic area. Initially, it didn't come to his attention that he was going to be a doctor but he has always had that commitment to his service. What really solidified in his mind to go to medical school was when he started seeing patients and treating people. Having gained experience and confidence in his abilities, it was crystallized that his path to becoming a doctor was what he was set to go on. In the military, medics are left with several situations where there were no other doctors present but them. Justin points out that you should be constantly aware of your limitations. That being said, he considers this as a fantastic opportunity. But at the same time, you need to be aware of your limitations. Additionally, they always get in contact with the physician overseeing their medical situation. And it's a good thing he had a good relationship with the physician that oversaw his scope. "You're constantly aware of your limitations and what you can and cannot bring to the table to help the person in front of you." [08:37] Serving as a Medic in Special Operations For Justin, the coolest thing he had to do was to be able to help guys who got hurt during the mission. Just being there for them was very powerful enough. He adds that he was able to provide the medical capability for a unit he was conducting operations with. Still, on active duty, Justin was still able to do things while active duty before he had the opportunity to completely separate to become a civilian. He made his intentions known to his Command near the end of his enlistment. Good thing they supported him and his endeavors. And he just made it happen, taking classes in the evening. He also had very supportive teachers who were aware of his scheduling and his priorities, especially to the mission. "Everybody supported me and we just made it happen!" [11:40] Finding the Next Steps He initially asked his friends and sought out people who have gone on the same journey. He came across this podcast and did some research - seeing the first steps like the prereqs he had to get and which exact classes he needed. He would also ask schools and asked them about some resources and guidance. Basically, he just went on and sought as many resources he could find. Unfortunately, this is something a lot of students don't do enough of considering we live in this day and age with so many resources, websites, podcasts, etc. Yet students are still coming in naive to the whole process because they're not going out and finding information. He was actually concerned about his grades having a GPA that was not as strong. And knowing that, he just prior mili