Top 5 Tips to Avoid Burning Out As a Pre-Med

Preparing for medical school is much more like training for an ultra-marathon than a sprint. You will have to dedicate yourself to this goal completely during all of your undergraduate studies, to make sure you are as competitive as possible when the time arrives for your applications.  

You need to keep focused as you prepare to enter medical school, but there is a fine line between dedicating your free time to extracurricular activities and overwhelming yourself to the point of a mental and physical breakdown or burnout.  

In this article, I will present the Top 5 tips to avoid burning out as a Pre-Med to help you plan your efforts effeciently to reach a Medical School in a few short years. 

Number 1:  Time-Management is Key As You Prepare for Medical School

The best way to not burn out is to make sure you have a strategic plan as you go into your undergraduate program.  It is not unrealistic to assume that you need to have some type of acclimation period to learn the ropes of university.  

There will be a large number of opportunities that you may have never expected to consider, but the point is to make sure you won't waste too much time during this window. You should find a research opportunity during your Freshman year and start to look for places to volunteer in.

It is a good idea to stagger your schedule so your first semester will not be too daunting — so use this time to get involved in other facets of your application. You will be able to find a balance between school and extracurricular activities much more quickly so you can do your best in each component.  

Number 2:  Seek Help Often

A semester will fly by much faster than you may think, so it is essential that you seek out guidance whenever you have an opportunity. Classes may be difficult and you do not have the leverage to delay.  A low grade can push you into a deep hole that will be difficult to climb out of, so utilize the Teaching Assistants and Professors during office hours to improve your understanding of the material.  

If you want to get accepted into a US medical program make it a habit to get to know the professors and the TAs. If you do, you will face less pressure about needing to score exceptionally well on every test in order to score highly.  

That can make it much more pleasant for you as you move from year to year because you will be studying more effectively.  This is a good strategy to get used to now, because in Medical School, it is essential that you seek the help of doctors and colleagues to help explain a concept so you can grasp it.  

The pace is so fast that if you delay, you can find yourself spiraling downward with all the material that you need to focus on.  Pre-Med is not a time to be shy or prideful. It is impossible for someone to know everything — yes, that includes doctors — so you need to seek help whenever possible to not waste your time. You will feel more relaxed because you can understand a concept faster and you will not burn out.  

As an added bonus, if you develop a good rapport with these professors and TAs, it will be much easier for you to approach them when it comes time to ask for much-needed Letters of Recommendation so you are not scrambling during the process.  If you visited your professors and TAs everyday, they will surely be willing to help you with a letter with is a giant weight off of your shoulders during the medical school application period.