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A Couple of Days in the Life of a Pre-Med

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at U Chicago chapter.

Proof that you can work hard and have fun at the same time. (a.k.a. a busy Thursday leading up to a busier than usual Friday)
 
Thursday
9:30 a.m.: I roll over, get out of bed, and turn the alarm clock on snooze (only twice, but in ten minute increments).

9:50 a.m: I finally climb out of bed, eat a bowl of Fruity Pebbles, get dressed, grab my o-chem homework and make sure I have everything I need to study for endocrinology in my backpack. It’s going to be a long day.

10:14 a.m: I realize I’m running late and sprint a block to catch the bus to campus. I make it just in time, which is perfect because my homework is due at 10:30 a.m. and there’s no way I would have made it in time walking!

10:26 a.m: I get off the bus and walk up three flights of stairs to turn in my homework, then head back down to my o-chem lecture hall.

10:30 a.m: Class starts.

10:34 a.m: A group of prospies comes in and throws off my professor. They leave in a few minutes and as they head out, he asks, “Was I too boring?”

11:45 a.m: Class gets out a bit early (yay!) and I head over to Stuart for lunch. I’m not very hungry so I have a bit of potatoes. Before I go to my next class, I stop by the café again to grab a small soy mocha and a Thai peanut noodle salad.

1:30 p.m.: Medical Ethics. Definitely high on the list of my favorite class this quarter. I try to make note cards for my endo exam the next day, but I fail miserably and end up taking meticulous notes on the lecture and getting involved in the discussion despite my best attempts to have a quiet day in the back.

2:50 p.m: Medical Ethics is a three-hour class, so we get a short break about halfway through. I talk to the professor about the chances of me being able to squeeze in a HIPS minor before I graduate next spring and the possibility of doing an independent study research project. (The only way you can write a BA is an honors thesis, and I’m a few GPA points shy of qualifying.) She says she’ll sponsor me. I’m really excited.

4:20 p.m: Class ends. I have an hour to kill before my endo review session, so I go to the post office to stick my lease for next year in the mail. Then I head over to Hutch to chat with my boyfriend for a little bit.

5:20 p.m: I see my friend Joann in C-Shop and we head over to endo review. There’s some yummy free food in the lobby of the BSLC and I grab some, only to find out that the sandwich I grabbed has blue cheese on it. I’m allergic to it so I give it to Joann.

7:30 p.m.: Review ends and I make plans with three friends to meet in the library after grabbing a quick dinner.

7:50 p.m.: I stop by Hutch again and grab a few slices of pizza. I’ve been trying to avoid it, but some days, you just have to give in. Then I head over to the Reg. Fourth floor, baby!

8:00 p.m.: I settle in, and then I start to procrastinate. Typical. I eventually get around to working efficiently.

10:00 p.m: The boyfriend joins us to work on his homework.

12:45 a.m: My endo friends head home for the night. Me, I’m just getting started really, so Jimmy (the boyfriend) and I stick around until we get kicked off the fourth floor around 1:20 a.m. We head down to the A-Level where we study until about 2:30 a.m.

2:30 a.m: We give Safe Ride a call (The shuttles stop running at 2.) and head home. I plan on doing some more studying, but instead crawl into bed.
 
Friday (post-sleeping)
9:30 a.m: I climb out of bed, get dressed, throw back another bowl of Fruity Pebbles and run for the bus again.

10:15 a.m: Having made the bus, I settle into a cozy chair on the fourth floor of the Reg again and do some last minute studying/refreshing for my endo exam.

12:30 p.m.: Test time! I flip to the back and start there. The first problem asks about a pheochromocytoma, which I can’t remember anything about to save my life.

1:30 p.m.: Done with my test. I head over to Argo Tea in the DCAM (part of the UChicago hospitals) to grab a quick lunch, and then I go upstairs to get my weekly allergy shot that protects me from being allergic to the world.

2:30 p.m.: Shot is done and I’m sitting in the waiting room for my mandatory half-hour. I talk to a nice older woman, who’s doing the same thing, about her allergies.  

3:00 p.m.: Exhausted, I walk over to my old dorm, Breckinridge, to pick up tickets to the 8:00 p.m. showing of Porgy and Bess. I’m really excited about it! Then I start walking home.

3:15 p.m.: I collapse on my bed thinking I’m going to nap, but I don’t.

5:30 p.m.: After I’ve wasted time I shouldn’t have been wasting, Jimmy comes over to visit and we go to dinner at Calypso, which is closing in early June. I’m pretty bummed out about it because I like that place. Sigh.

7:15 p.m.: After a yummy dinner, we head over to the Court Theatre for Porgy and Bess. It’s starting to get rainy-gross, so we drive.

10:30 p.m.: The show ends. It is amazing. There is an post-show discussion.

11:15 p.m.: We pick up my friend Erica and stop by my apartment. Erica and I try to have a girls’ night every once in a while, so I run in, change, and come back out. Jimmy very nicely drives us to around 51stand Kimbark, where we hop out and walk over to the BJ/MacPierce Scav success party.

1:45 a.m.: After toasting to Bernie, a very sweet member of this year’s Scav team (and also a list item), we head home for the night. I hop in my jammies and collapse into bed. It is a pretty good week overall.
 
 

Lynda Lopez is a first year at the University of Chicago currently considering political science and comparative human development as majors. Lynda has been avidly writing for publications, both online and print, since her sophomore year of high school. During her time in high school, she wrote for the Chicago Tribune, PBS Newshour, and the New York Times Upfront Magazine. She has continued her passion in college and is currently the News and Public Affairs Intern at the University Community Service Center at UChicago as well as heading the news department at a local non-profit. When not writing, she enjoys bike-riding, watching Youtube videos, and hanging out with friends. She is excited to bring Her Campus to UChicago and hopes that it will serve as an informative and entertaining resource for women on campus.