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Last year though, I was in class for about 3 hours a day. I generally try to study for at least an hour a day after finishing assorted homework and whatnot.
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<p>Oh ok that doesn't seem too bad. Some people I know make it sound like you only have time for school, studying, eating, and very few hours of sleep every single day as a pre-med student. </p>
<p>Do most people follow the "rule of thumb" to study at least 3 hours for each hour of class per day?</p>
<p>To Masha: For me, I'll be living in the med school's apartments. I am fortunate that my parents still have a little extra cash so they will still be paying for most of my expenses. And yea, money is gonna be tight especially later on when my parents won't have enough to pay for tuition. I highly doubt you will have time for a job so I think the best thing to do (and what I will probably do) is to just take a Stafford loan and then see what my school can offer me in terms of financial aid. But yea, it's pretty rough in med school but also rewarding at the end.</p>
<p>To dmvp29: The rule of thumb varies from school to school. I went to a fairly weak undergrad school (PSU) and as such, it wasn't necessary at all to study 3 hours a day. At times, the one hour a day was excessive. But I know in some of the tougher schools, there are pre med students who never saw daylight. It's pretty much dependent on how difficult/prestigious your undergrad college is and how easily you are able to pick up/retain information.</p>
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<li>How stessful is doing premed? Will I be studying like maniac every day of my college life or will I be able to socialize and have fun as well? I think this depends on your school and your intelligence level. I know premeds who spend every waking moment of the day in their rooms studying (i.e. me) and I know premeds who party every night and get by with a 24 hour cram session before the exam (i.e. my roommate)</li>
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<p>Just my two cents...</p>
<p>A buddy of mine is currently going through organic chem, calculus based physics, and some other course series. HE STUDIES ALL THE TIME! For example, last Saturday we went out most fo the night (until three or so), and Sunday morning he was up studying! I didn't wake up until like three or so, but he was up at 8am hitting the books. Then again, that's what works for him. I am a non-science major, so I am trying to spread my pre-med requirements over all 4 years.</p>
<p>As far as paying for medical school, I'd assume it is mostly loans, and/or scholarships. I doubt you'll have any time for a job. I also <em>think</em> that it depends on the school, as to where you'll live -and personal preference of course.</p>
<p>ive taken calculus and higher math courses required for engineering. i did not study my ass off for calculus. granted than im probably better than non engineering majors at math and physics, but i spent maybe 2 -3 hrs a wk and 1 hr of review for exams in calculus and math. u can get usually get by w/ just memorization the calculus w/out really analyzing how it works. </p>
<p>physics takes much more time, but its all doable, and again it depends on the person. Electricity / magnetism part is time consumin cuz of calculus required proofs, but everythin else is jus a kind of harder than calculus, not that bad jus implementing theories. keep in mind that i took engineering physics, some schools offer the easier physics series for premed majors.</p>
<p>Only because YOU did so at YOUR school doesn't mean that it is the rule of thumb! Unless the OP is very strong in the sciences, and/or want to devote his/her entire day to hitting the books, I would definitely plan carefully as to how I will meet the pre-med requirements.</p>
<p>More so, if you read my post carefully you would notice that I said "just my 2 cents..." I wasn't advising anyone to do anything! Instead, I was just commenting on what a friend of mine goes through.</p>
<p>Take O. chem, and get back to us. Also, please take some reading comprehension classes.</p>
<p>As I said earlier, it depends from school to school. A school like PSU with its reputation as a party school probably won't require as much studying time. (Although even this depends on the student in question)</p>
<p>A school like Cornell with a much stronger pre-med curriculum will probably have its students scrambling to the library more often.</p>
<p>I would also agree that during the semester I took ochem, I was noticeably busier and much more miserable!! :-)</p>