I’m a final year med student and just got the results for my last set of exams. The result was fine, but it now rules out the possibility of graduating with honours. That was never a major goal for me – the specialty I’m aiming for doesn’t award any extra points for distinctions, and I’ve already got a national-level surgical prize that holds more weight for applications.
So technically, there’s no real “loss” to my portfolio or career path.
Up until now, I’ve never really cared about my results. But seeing my friends pass with flying colors has meant that emotionally, I still feel quite disappointed. Not that I’m not happy for them, I’m usually seen as the “smart one” in my peer group – confident on placement, good clinical knowledge, tend to get things right, often the person people ask for help. But when it comes to results, I’m consistently outperformed by friends who are also very bright and work incredibly hard. It feels like I’ve hit a plateau and that I don’t deserve that reputation.
I’ve been lazy throughout med school, but this year, I did actually try to revise properly – put in around a month of PassMed – but I still didn’t score as highly as those who had been working steadily throughout the year. It’s made me question whether I’m genuinely as capable as people assume, or if I’ve just been coasting on natural ability and a decent memory. I feel like I’ve wasted my time here and not learned anything, like a child who still lacks discipline and can’t study like any other student should.
I’ve done a lot to work on my portfolio this year, but I also spent a lot of time this year on hobbies like cricket, which I’ve really enjoyed, but I’m now second-guessing whether I should have invested more of that time into things like research, which many of my peers already have under their belt.
I also can’t help but wonder how much of my confidence and past performance has come from background advantages – I went to a private school, and I’m starting to think that maybe I’ve benefited more from that than from actual ability. The idea that I might underperform in the MSRA and not even get an interview has been playing on my mind a lot.
Mentally, I find myself falling back on the thought that “I could’ve worked harder” – because that’s easier to believe than the idea that I’ve already reached my limit. I think what I’m dealing with is imposter syndrome, but I’m not really sure how to navigate it. If anyone’s felt something similar or has advice, I’d really appreciate hearing it.