Another Show to Watch

If you have the Discovery Fit & Health channel you can check out 911: The Bronx.  This has some real-life emergency footage with some good insight from the doctors being filmed.  One episode showed a patient with a flesh-eating virus.

Do You Have What It Takes?

Academically speaking.  Sure you might be altruistic, selfless, and in love with medicine but do you have the academic record to put you into medical school?  I'm not an admissions counselor.  I am however, not naive and I do realize that your MCAT and GPA will get your foot in the door.  By no means are they the only part of a good application, but I would venture to say they are the most important part of your application.

So, if you want to know what your chances are, then check out the MSAR (Medical School Admission Requirements, United States and Canada) guide and the U.S. News Ultimate Guide to Medical Schools.  These will give you the mean GPA and MCAT scores of last year's matriculants.

Learn by Watching TV

Yes, you can become educated by watching your TV.  Trauma: Life in the E.R. is a good series to watch, especially if you're interested in emergency medicine.  You can find the episode schedule here: http://tlc.discovery.com/fansites/trauma/trauma.html

 Or buy a nostalgic VHS at Amazon.

Life in Medical School

PBS' NOVA: Doctors' Diaries is an excellent documentary following the lives of Harvard medical students.  This is highly recommended to anybody considering applying to medical school.  PBS also had some free clips from this series with followups on the students on the PBS website.

One Man's Journey

For some, it can be inspiring to hear about another person's journey.  This book describes a nontraditional student that rolled up his sleeves and worked his tail off to make it to med school.  Blue Collar, Blue Scubs is a quick and easy read.

Want to be an Army Doc?

If you're considering joining the military as a doctor, check out this documentary.  This will give you an idea of the senseless violence and injuries military doctors encounter in a war zone.  This is not for the squeamish and might provide a good gut check if you're serious about becoming a doctor.

Jumping Ahead

This book is not about the premed experience, but it provokes interesting thoughts about the life of a surgeon.  Take a gander at this book for some insight into the life of a real doctor.

Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science