At Long Last!: The End of Classroom Learning and White Coat Ceremony

The four years of medical school are split up such:

(You can click to make this larger.)

The USMLE exam between year 2 and year 3 of medical school, has an impeccably horrendous reputation.  I remember first hearing about the exam on day one of Medical School orientation, and I just sort of nodded my head, as in "yeah, yeah, that's nearly two years away!"

First year went by, with challenge, but yet smoothly enough.  Then, second year, as the difficulty picked up, and reality of this approaching exam became more evident, things started getting a bit more stressful.  As the end of year 2 came upon us (March, April, May), things became more stressful than ever. Before we knew it, the days until this all important exam could be counted in just double digits (86 days and counting, etc.), and our every day of studying became more than just studying to pass a single class, but studying to pass the Boards, and by result, studying to pass all of medical school (and earn our Medical Doctorates)!

The end of this last school year, mid-May, was a joyous occasion!  After 7 years of college straight, and 384 college credits completed (yes, I really calculated this), the end of year 2 marked the end of all classroom learning!  The last lecture was perhaps one of the best attended of the year, and at the end, a couple classmates broke out silly string, and we applauded, hugged, and cheered!

 

Many cheers were had as we exited our lecture hall for the last time ever!!

Later that week, we had a "White Coat Ceremony" in which family from all over the world flew into celebrate with us at Benaroya Hall in downtown Seattle.  The White Coat Ceremony symbolically marked our exit from the classroom, and entrance into the clinics, and we were each individually brought to the stage to be handed our white coat, inscribed with our individual names.

But, as relieving as the end of the year was, and as joyous as the White Coat Ceremony was, what still loomed unspoken was this yet-to-be-completed Boards Exam....

Duh duh duh....duh.......