Nothing off limits Q&A pt 1- specializing, loans, D2 life

[@SeaSphynx]

I'm a recent subscriber so I missed that Q+A post but I did have just one question. I'm finishing up my undergrad junior year and still need to take biochem, calc, and physics 2 over senior year. I'm taking orgo 2 rn and srsly struggle to motivate myself to study the topic as ik for a fact it will never pertain to the actual day-to-day job as a dentist and I just DONT care about what I'm learning in it. How do you find the motivation to study topics that seem so disconnected from the work a dentist does? Calc is the furthest thing from dentistry but I've still got to take it as it's a requirement for several of the dental schools I will be applying to. I'm probably just picky but, at the end of the day, I struggle to study things ik won't end up mattering in the long-term. I also know that there will be many classes in dental school that will be niche topics that are not especially meaningful for day--to-day dental work but I'll feel much more motivated by then as I'll be already SET on the path to becoming a dentist instead of being in the unclear foggy path that is on the way TO dental school. How do you do it?😮‍💨

[@SmilesPending]

You are unfortunately correct that there will be MANY classes that don’t pertain to what you’ll do as a dentist but you can try thinking of it in the sense that yes maybe that SN2 reaction isn’t related to dentistry but learning patterns and outcomes is very similar to trying to remember symptoms and using them to diagnose a disease. Try looking at it as a means to an end but also find things that may be useful from each class. And hang in there! Undergrad is just one more hurdle you have to get through. It’s not always about motivation but discipline.

[@SeaSphynx]

@@SmilesPending Yeah you're probably right. At the end of the day, there's plenty of things to not be entirely happy with in terms of workload and whatnot along the path to becoming a dentist. I'm thinking the very fact that I'm asking about how to find motivation is probably just a sign that I haven't developed much discipline in terms of studying consistency, no matter the subject. I'm definitely going to try to my best to view these classes as more of a test of my learning ability and study technique rather than just focusing on the thought of "ugh this isn't interesting"😂. I also wanted to just mention that I really appreciate your openness in all your videos. There are quite a few popular (pre)dental schooling youtubers that have an overly closed-off feel about them but every one of your videos end up feeling like I'm revisiting a friend in a way! Thanks a ton!

[@SmilesPending]

Wow that comment just made my day 🥹🫶🏼 I’m always here if you have more questions but really I just wanna serve as a resource bc no one was sharing things like this when I was in undergrad sadly. Keep working hard! Remember the goal and also you’ll need the orgo and biochem on the DAT so learning it now will help you knock off just one more notch on your pre dental checklist. You got this!

[@SmilesPending]

Also, I love videos by Ali Abdaal and Faye Bate on productivity as they’re both from the medical field so their perspective is the closest to someone going into dentistry! Check them out. They’ve helped me restructure how I study

[@SeaSphynx]

@@SmilesPending Ah gotcha I'll def check them out! I used to watch Ali in high school to the point where he single handedly persuaded me to get an iPad for college lol. But yeah I'm going to need to figure all this out by the start of the summer as that is when I will start studying for the DAT from scratch and take it towards the very end of August. That's going to force me to take a gap year since I'd like to apply as soon as applications open in June of 2024 since ik that applying in late August 2023 is not a great idea if you're not some extraordinary or non-traditional applicant. I'd also like to get some research with a professor over senior year so I'll have a stronger application by next year anyway, instead of just taking the huge risk without even finishing my prereqs at the end of this summer. We'll see how things go, thanks so much!