Make sure you also read part 1!
Have friends that are in a different field than yours. You can be experiencing a lot of stresses in your studies (or work), and it’s important to have a support system. Unfortunately, and fortunately (depending on how you think about things), it’s sometimes easier to make friends when there’s no conflict of interest. I found this especially important after I got into medical school. Medicine can be overwhelming because there’s always so much to learn and so much more to do. Hanging out with my non-medicine friends (most of whom are also my high school friends) really allows me to take a break from the ‘medicine mindset’.
Be resourceful and ask for help! Find the right people to talk to about things you want to do. Connect with a current or past student in the program you want to pursue to get some insights about what the program is like and how the application process went for them. Connect with a professor in the department that best matches your field of interest. For courses you take that align well with your field of interest, talk to your professors after class or go to their office hours! They may be able to provide you connections or research opportunities.
Be yourself and be kind to yourself. Out of all things in the world, academic adequacy should not be the basis of your sense of self-worth. When you get stressed about school or research, remember that academia is only one part of your life and that there is so much more that you care about besides your career. Don’t beat yourself up for things that were out of your control. There’s always going to be a few bumps before you get to where you want. More importantly, the only person you should compare to is your past self. This can be who you were 10 years ago, 5 years ago, 1 year ago, or the person you were yesterday! Comparing yourself to other people is not very meaningful because you often only see their success but never their struggles. There’s a saying that goes something along the lines of “Don’t compare your behind-the-scenes to someone else’s front stage”!
Expect that there will be people who try to put you down or trip you up. This is the unfortunate part of academia. But don’t let this stop you from being kind to people and treating people equally. Know that there will always be people who would like to help you and support you. If someone (be it a supervisor, a mentor, or a classmate) is constantly trying to put you down (this can be obvious or subtle, see Mistreatment section in part 1), don’t get discouraged about your own capabilities or your career outlook. If you realize that something is not working out, don’t be afraid to quit, if quitting is the best option for yourself. Don’t be afraid to look for somebody else who can better support you to achieve what you want.
Don’t give up. Keep going :)
Self-care. It took me 4 years of undergraduate studies to realize that self-care is something I needed to actively practice. Caring about yourself can come in many different ways. It maybe cleaning up your room, going to a place for good food, hanging out with friends, or spending time alone. Since I got into medical school, I have been reserving my Sundays for doing things I enjoy, such as spending quality time with family or writing this blog! Of course, there are some Sundays where I have to study (if I’m behind or exams are coming up), but otherwise I try to schedule all of my work on Mon-Sat so that I gave at least a day (or half a day) off each week. Having good self-care habits early on will prevent you from burnouts down the road.
Finally, I hope you found these two articles useful. Though they are not similar to the hard skills I’ve shared on this blog, they are soft skills that I had to learn on my way and things that I realized were more important and more instrumental to achieving your goals in academia.
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