Ndewo ndi banyi (Good day my peeps). Hope all is well. Like I mentioned in my last post, I have officially started my application process for medical school. I thought a lot about whether I should share my journey through this process, and I decided to for a few reasons. The first is that I know how hard it has been for me to find information. People don’t like to share their stories unless its a success, and that’s ok, but it often means that they miss out on important details. I want to share as much as I can, in as transparent a way as possible. Second is because of the uniqueness of my journey. I am an international, re-applicant and non-traditional student, and honestly the odds are stacked against me. But I know I have done a lot to prepare myself for this process. I know people just like me, who have been able to get into US medical schools, and like Nigerians will always say, *they don’t have two heads.* Oya let me update you all on my journey so far

1. I registered and started studying for the MCAT and started a prep course. So I am retaking the MCAT. My initial score when I took it in 2017 was 499. I didn’t prepare adequately, and I feel like I can do better. I am retaking this June, and hopefully, corobaby doesn’t cause my date to be cancelled. I purchased the online course from NextStep now Blueprint, and I don’t regret it. Money well spent.(I will do a whole post on tips and tricks I’ve learnt as I study).
2. I started working on my personal statement. Honestly, this has been the hardest part for me. I know my why but its so difficult to put pen to paper. I can talk about it, but its been hard writing about it. I am currently working on my fourth draft, and continue to edit as I go. May God help me.
3. I also started working on my activities section, as well as other essays. See my fellow premeds, and others who are not knowledgable about this process, there are a lot of essays. I suggest start them early, get many drafts and reviews done, for optimum peace of mind. Due to school and work, I’ve been behind on these, but I am catching up.
4. I filled in all the information that I could on the applications. I am applying to both DO and MD schools. I have already filled out my personal information as well as my coursework. I have also requested my undergrad transcripts, and I am waiting for grades to be published to also request my grad school transcripts(will be done this week).
5. Finally, I have requested and started storing my Letters of Recs (LORs) using Interfolio. I recently found out about Interfolio. It is a good way to store important documents, in my case LORs, and have it sent out to application services. What I like about it is its ease of use for my recommenders. These are busy people, so the more I can do to make their lives easier, the better. Some have already started sending theirs in. Also, I deeped that all my recommenders are women. It wasn’t planned but it made me realize that some of the most supportive people on this journey for me have been women. Go figure!