hi everyone
i have posted a few things but realized i never really told anyone who i was. woops.
i am 28 and I live in Berkeley, CA. I moved out here two years ago because I felt I should be here instead of Buffalo, which is where I went for school. too cold. and my life here has been wonderful ever since. i got lucky considering i quit my job to move out here, and it has worked out wondefully. anyway, i have wanted to be a doctor my whole life, but fear and boredom kept me from getting the necessary good grades in college. i survived a traumatizing experience at 21 that made me realize i better start doing what i want to do because your next day is never a guarantee. what i went through has guided me to my decision to pursue reconstructive surgery. if i can put other people back together and contribute to their living a relatively normal life, then that is all i want. 4 years of med school? 2+ years of residency? as far as i’m concerned, BRING IT ON!! i have tested myself many times since July when I made the official decision to pursue this finally. and i am sure i will have plenty of help with testing it in future months from outside sources.
i plan on taking the MCAT in Apr '05 and applying for the 2006 entering class. I have two very unrelated questions that I hope some of you can answer. You guys are an inspiration and whenever i start to feel like i might not be able to make this work, i read your posts. i have found answers to virtually every question i have(except the two below of course 
). So best of luck to everyone who has been accepted, who is finishing, who is still waiting for interviews…I will be in your position in a year and a half and i hope i am as levelheaded and cool as you all are coming across. I think it’s maturity, a gift in my opinion and something that medical schools should actively seek instead of question or discriminate against.
1. I am going over my grades from UG-NOT pretty 
i am thinking i should take as much coursework as i can and maybe adcoms will focus on that? i know they take it all into account but some of my grades are just ugly and i would ultimately like to create a complete compensation for them if possible.
2. are there any americans at OPM that have applied and/or have been accepted to canadian schools? i am curious and supportive(based on what i know) of the universal care system they supply for their citizens. actually futrfysician may be able to answer an additional question related to this? since england has a similar system, did they address that at all in your interview? and what made you decide to apply to a school in england?
well enough yammering. nice to meet all of you and i hope to meet you again in person in denver.
Thanks everybody!!
Melanie Hand
Hi Melanie,
Just wanted to say welcome to the boards. One thing you mentioned though about residency- I may be mistaken, but for any type of surgery(I believe you’re referring to plastic surgery) you’re looking at about a 5 year residency+ 1-2 years for subspecialty. However, I hope that won’t deter you.
Best of luck! 