The Journey of a Medical Student: Part Three
Jerica Muzik
I am very busy balancing residency interview season and the upkeep of everyday life. In the times when I’m not cursing technical difficulties during virtual interviews, I am chasing my four children, fishing, swimming, raising a flock of ducks and chickens, and staying involved in the community that supports me.
What's an accomplishment you're proud of?
My biggest accomplishment in medical school remains having a fulfilling life outside of medicine. Though I love the long and winding journey of learning medicine, it is not my only endeavor, nor the only thing that defines me. I believe it is the building up of the parts of myself that make me a neighbor, an advocate, a servant, a leader and altogether someone who perseveres that will make me a good doctor someday.
What do you look forward to?
I’m looking forward to standing on USD’s stage this spring with my closest friends and family in attendance to celebrate with me knowing that all the long days, the studying nights, the reflection and the refinement, the successes and failures of medical school, and even the hospital food, were all worth it.
Andrew Nerland
As a Pillar 3 student, I have been busy with elective rotations, my residency application, residency interview season and wedding planning. My elective rotations during Pillar 3 have given me the space to definitively decide on pursuing psychiatry as my career choice. I have also participated in month-long rotations in addiction psychiatry in Sioux Falls and combined training in psychiatry and family medicine in Iowa City, which both contributed to my personal growth as a fourth-year medical student exploring the field.
What's an accomplishment you’re proud of?
From a professional standpoint, my most significant accomplishment is my completion of the Frontier And Rural Medicine (FARM) program. When I reflect on my medical school journey, I continue to gain more appreciation for my experience in the FARM program. My FARM experience allowed me to develop my clinical identity while experiencing significant community integration, which set the foundation for my residency training.
What preparations for your future have you been making?
I feel very fortunate to have found my professional calling within medicine, and the training I’ve received through the University of South Dakota makes me feel prepared to enter the next stage of my career as a resident physician in psychiatry. I believe that the University of South Dakota has given me an opportunity to develop the intangibles necessary for impactful, person-centered medical care.
What life changes have you had?
Outside of medical school, Pillar 3 has been a significant time of growth for me in my personal life. I became engaged, and I couldn’t be happier. My fiancé and I are participating in the residency match as a couple, and the process has been a new adventure for the two of us as we prepare to graduate, get married and relocate to our new home for the next several years.
Andrew Reuter
I’m most busy with the interview season right now. It is a lot of work to balance scheduling and completing interviews with an ongoing rotation schedule. Luckily, my preceptors have been very understanding of the hectic schedule during this time.
What's an accomplishment you’re proud of?
Finishing Pillar 2, as well as passing the shelf exams and Step 2, has been my biggest recent accomplishment. I’m certainly excited to have those big hurdles in my rearview.
What do you do in your spare time?
I've been spending lots of my free time with friends, family and my fiancé. The Pillar 3 schedule is a little cushier than Pillar 2, which has allowed me to catch up on the social activities I was less involved in last year.
What life changes have you had?
My most recent life event was getting engaged to my awesome partner, Taelor, this past summer. I’m lucky that she’s still willing to put up with me!
What do you look forward to?
I’m already looking forward to match day in March. Interviewing is fun and allows you to learn about the personality of residency programs, but it also makes me anxious to find out where I’ll be going someday!
Nadya Sanaee
I am currently busy with emergency medicine residency interviews. Most interviews are virtual, however, some of my interviews are in person. I am also participating in medical school rotations. My two most recent rotations were infectious disease and palliative medicine, both of which were great.
What preparations have you been making for your future?
This summer I completed three away rotations in emergency medicine at academic centers in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa. During these rotations I was expected to perform at the level of an intern and take ownership of the care of my patients in the ED. Ultimately these away rotations were excellent preparation for emergency medicine residency and challenged me to start thinking like an emergency medicine physician rather than a medical student. These rotations also taught me what to look for in a residency program which was incredibly helpful when deciding which programs to apply to.
What preparations have you been making for your future?
This summer I completed three away rotations in emergency medicine at academic centers in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa. During these rotations I was expected to perform at the level of an intern and take ownership of the care of my patients in the ED. Ultimately these away rotations were excellent preparation for emergency medicine residency and challenged me to start thinking like an emergency medicine physician rather than a medical student. These rotations also taught me what to look for in a residency program which was incredibly helpful when deciding which programs to apply to.
What life changes have you had?
Over the past year I settled on emergency medicine as my specialty choice for residency. I also got engaged and submitted my application for residency and the couples match.
What do you look forward to?
I am really looking forward to becoming an emergency medicine physician. I feel lucky that this specialty found its way to me and feel ready and excited for the increased responsibility that comes with being a resident physician.
Bailey (Pickering) Thooft
I am busy completing Pillar 3 rotations and residency interview season. Most recently, I have been back at my Pillar 2 FARM site in Milbank for a rural rotation.
What's an accomplishment you're proud of?
My biggest accomplishment, school wise, is taking Step 2 and applying for residency.
What preparations have you been making for your future?
I have been doing quite a few rotations in Pillar 3 that will benefit me as a family medicine physician. I have really enjoyed my various Pillar 3 rotations.
What's life changes have you had?
I got married in August!
What do you look forward to?
I’m really looking forward to Match Day in March!
Journey of a Medical Student
Journey of a Medical Student: Part Two
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