Welcome to day three here at VSA! It’s been a dark and stormy one with the Nashville rain pouring down. Last night the students enjoyed their first taste of college life and I was pleased and excited to hear the deep and thought-provoking conversations that were happening on all of the different floors of Sutherland House. Students are truly thriving in this environment with their newfound autonomy and similarity to the other students here.
Student Updates:
Alan Fan
"Many children will recall fond memories of learning to swim by being dropped into a pool by their parents. I’ve learned how to brave the “VSA Pty’s Medical School 101” program after being dumped in Nashville all alone on July 6, 10:00a.m. After all, I had to since my return flight to Chicago (and civilization!) is on the 2b.
Upon arrival, there was some slight chaos as the proctors had not yet arrived to pick me up leaving me dazed and confused (and somewhat panicky, but I won’t admit that in person). However, it’s been (relatively) smooth sailing from that point on. My greatest challenge now is obtaining toothpaste as I misplaced mine into my carryon bag and had it confiscated. Nevertheless, I will face this challenge head on (applied directly to the forehead).
Sunday afternoon, we had a “tour” of Vanderbilt University. Before a some-what appealing dinner yet after the tour, the staff gave an opening ceremony. Dinner was followed by icebreaker games which were cute.
Monday was our first day of class, although first days are always introductory so that they can’t really be counted as full days of studying. In “Med School” we obtained photo IDs, went on a tour of the medical center, and received this weeks work load. Most everyone else in the course out of us 21 had our hearts set on being a doctor and at least once student a doctor with training from Vanderbilt! Myself, I decided to attend this program to get firsthand experience in the medical field, not just television fairytales of McDreamys and McSteamys, to determine if it is a field worth pursuing and whether Vanderbilt is a potential candidate for my undergraduate school.
Today in class, Caitlin a rising senior from a village near Cambridge and I shadowed Dr. Hood, a cardiologist at the Vanderbilt Medical Hospital, as he worked in the hospital seeing patients who had follow up appointments. All in all, things are proceeding very smoothly here in Tennessee."
Tonight the students will have game night at Sutherland where they can play a range of games from Twister to Poker. There will also be movies playing in different floor lounges for a low-key option as well as a quiet floor reserved for studying. It’s sure to be a good time. Hope you are all well and thanks for checking today!
