To the student at un-named medical institution who gave me the best advice for medical school,
I will forget a lot of things in my life, but what you said on my interview day will stay with me longer than most of what I'm currently learning. You were a first-year at the time, having lunch with the interviewees, there to answer "any and all questions, without bias." One eager girl asked what one piece of advice you would give to incoming medical students. The other first-year gave some BS, mediocore response about not getting behind (gee...thanks captain obvious, you barely deserve the free chicken Caesar wrap you are eating).
But not you. You answered, "Don't hook up with your classmates"
Obviously some shit went down in your love life to make you say this. Was it an anatomy lab partner? Did you screw a girl over and now she won't give you her study guides or notes? Was there a class whore who everyone, including yourself, slept with and now there is a raging STD outbreak?
Regardless, you were spot on. Yes, we do have a few class couples who have worked out - they are amazingly perfect, the story will make a great toast at their wedding, blah, blah, blah. For the rest of us, it's a shit show. Forget relishing in the fact that you'll never have to see the person again as you sober up from a moral hangover after an awkward hook-up. You have to sit in a classroom for 40hrs every week with this person. It's like constantly getting slapped in the face. Then you have to worry about the other 123 people in the class and what rumors are starting on g-chat/facebook messaging/text messages because god-forbid anyone actually pay attention during said 40hrs of class time. Whoever invented the game telephone was sitting in a medical school class.
Let's say things get really crazy and you actually pursue a relationship with a fellow-classmate. Not only do you get to obsess about the normal relationship stuff, but now you can worry about who's in his/her study room. Is he/she ignoring you on g-chat? Did he/she linger on his/her partner's pubic symphysis during OPP? And like I mentioned above, there are 123 other people with nothing to do but notice these things too. Let's say it doesn't end well. Good luck getting over the person, you now have to spend 40+hrs a week with him or her. Obviously you wouldn't make the same mistake twice and start a relationship with another classmate, but let's say your ex does. Now you get to watch their love blossom in front of you. It's about as fun as a dry wedding.
So I am taking your advice. From now on, you can find me studying at the law school library. I think I was meant to marry a lawyer anyway.
xoxo,
Kate
