Mental Struggles of MDCAT Students

Medicine has remained the first and foremost future career in Pakistan especially for girls simply because of a common misconception that it is considered as a respectable and noble profession rather than other degrees. In Pakistan, even some girls are under due pressure from their parents to pursue medicine or else they will not have a good fortune and successful future which leads them to get more stressed out in the medical journey. Whilst of all this, MDCAT is the first crucial stepping stone for any medical aspirant, but cracking it can be quite distressing in most of the cases.

Lack of Proper Guidance:

As most of the candidates appear for the first time, the majority end up signing up for classes by paying a ransom amount of money to coaching centers due to their popularity and good reviews. Some students end up having a terrible experience, in turn producing further financial strain as well as tension on the parent's pocket and brain. However, candidates need to understand that this might not be the case for everyone as every individual has varying intellectual power while some coaching centers fall short behind to cover the entire syllabus in depth. Furthermore, aspirants also need to understand that they need to make extra effort to compile and learn information from all possible resources like PreMed.pk that offers free webinars in collaboration with DOW and AKU students, free trials, mentorship programs, daily tests and perfectly tailored courses at a subsidized rate and discounts. Besides this, many schools teach inadequate syllabus leaving MDCAT candidates burdenised and completely self-reliant on themselves to cover knowledge gaps.

Language Barriers:

As government colleges are more affordable for many families, they may pose a difficulty since their curriculum books are published and taught in local language while the MDCAT paper and its resources are in English. This puts an added pressure on MDCAT candidates.

Family and Societal Pressure:

This factor can take a great toll on a student’s mental health and often families tend to set high expectations from their child, especially from the one who has a good academic record consistently. Due to this extra added stress on the student's mind they get tensed and go past their 'optimal performance under optimal pressure'. Additionally, parents set up a 'do or die' trap for their child, worsening the student’s analytical thinking capability. Premed.pk conducted a Google Form survey and found out that around 60% of the MDCAT aspirant's do not have adequate family support in stress management or retaking MDCAT.

Losing Your Nerves During MDCAT:

Due to a spike in number of MDCAT candidates annually and the persistent number of seats in government medical institutes, the competition has become arduous. Eventually, this has lodged fear, stress and anxiety into the student's mind. Thus, they end up exhausting their brain by cramming all possible information just a few minutes before MDCAT when they should be relaxing to perform well in exams. As a consequence, this student's mind gets foggy due to an over-stimulated brain. Through PreMed.pk's survey we found out 12 out of 17 aspirants fail to recall keywords for understanding MDCAT questions. By gathering some data most student's relaxation techniques involve doing nothing, while some prefer watching medical series or videos.

Poor Time Management:

Frequently students focus on learning and memorisation and have insufficient past paper practice due to which even if they are well rehearsed with concepts they lack the efficiency to complete the MDCAT exam and fall short of time. As a result towards the end of the exam students enter a panic mode and their brain stops working when they want it to function the most. Candidates constantly ignore this part, and during the exam, although everything else goes smoothly, they struggle with time management for each section. Physics, in particular, takes up most of the time. As a result, students end up marking answers hastily, leading to many MCQ's being skipped. The aftermath of this leads to overthinking, fear of failure, losing trust of their parents, loss of worth and motivation amongst a lot of candidates. Instead they should take a deep breath, relax, communicate the situation clearly with their parents and avoid discussing answers with peers to relieve the signs.

Access Professional Mental Health Resources:

To effectively manage the stress and anxiety associated with MDCAT preparation, students should develop balanced study routines with regular breaks, practice mindfulness and relaxation techniques, and stay physically active. Seeking support from peers, mentors, and professional mental health resources [/nimh.nih.gov, /mentalhealth.gov, /yourmentalhealthpal.com, /elevateapp.com] can provide crucial emotional and psychological assistance. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle, with proper nutrition, sleep, and hydration, is essential, as is fostering positive self-talk and setting realistic expectations. Utilizing resources like PreMed.pk and college counseling services can help students prioritize their mental health, ultimately enhancing their overall well-being and academic performance.

After reviewing several personal experiences of MDCAT students, the best method is to practice past papers thoroughly in a timed environment and learn from previous mistakes to get that perfect score. Above all, aspirants also need to understand that peace of mind should always be top most priority to continue with preparation. Always remember that everyone is capable of doing something and their today’s challenges will become tomorrow’s triumphs!