In this session of The Premed Years I give a brief introduction to the origins of MedicalSchoolHQ.net and why it was started. I talk about why I think podcasting is the next step in bringing great premed information to the masses.

I also take you down my path to becoming a physician and the obstacles that I (like many others) had to overcome.

Shadowing can be a deciding factor in getting into medical school. Shadowing is the act of following a physician as he/she does his/her typical work activities in a clinic or hospital setting. You might ask why this experience can be so important. First, it may be the defining experience which tells you whether or not you want to be a physician.

If you're interested in contributing to this series, then drop me an email. The series can be a very valuable source for readers and I need a steady stream of new ones to keep it going.  Next in the series is MedicalSchoolHQ reader AP. She answered my questions (in red below) as follows: 

Please tell us a bit about yourself (include where you are in your path to becoming a physician).

  I have a PhD and a couple years of clinical experiences. Through working with cancer patients daily, I reaffirmed my interest in medicine and decided to take the plunge and started this journey about a year and half ago.  I will be starting med school next Fall. I have 2 MD acceptances and 1 DO acceptance so far.

Starting in 2015, pre med students that aspire to become physicians have to be more than prepared as the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) has changed the Medical College Admission Test or MCAT. The updated test is known as the MCAT2015. The changes were made in response to the ever-changing health care system in order to better address the needs of the population. With that said, pre med students now face even greater pressure since their exam will differ greatly from those that took it before.

If you're interested in contributing to this series, then drop me an email. The series can be a very valuable source for readers and I need a steady stream of new ones to keep it going. 

Please tell us a bit about yourself (include where you are in your path to becoming a physician).

  I'm an engineer living in the northeast with a wife and a beautiful baby boy. I recently got accepted to my state's medical school so I'll be starting next fall. To say I'm excited would be an understatement.

The AAMC has updated the test dates for the newly changed 2013 MCAT. Keep reading below to find out how the AAMC is going to pay YOU for taking the test.

According to the American Medical Association (AMA), the average debt facing medical school graduates in 2011 was $161,290. At the current professional student loan rate of 6.8%, you are looking at almost a quarter million dollars in total cost of medical school. The cost of tuition has gone up 50% over a 20 year period for private medical schools and 133% for public medical schools[1]. Paid over 10 years, the total price of the current average loan is $222,735. What are your plans to pay for this? A mortgage, a car payment and student loan payments, it is no surprise that doctors are struggling paying their loans.

The U.S. News is at it again! Unlike their other lists, this top 10 list is based on one simple FACTUAL number.

The new 2011 numbers are in (10 Medical Schools With the Lowest Acceptance Rates), and according the U.S. News, over 500,000 applications were submitted by an number of applicants (each applicant often applies to multiple schools, so the 500,000 applications, is not from 500,000 applicants).