When Rami Sartawi began his studies at the College of Medicine and Public Health he had reservations about the task ahead. But accompanying those initial fears were aspirations and hopes that one day he would don the white coat and improve the well-being of many.

So, driven by his dreams, Sartawi, along with 35,000 other college graduates, applied for medical school this past year.

According to the Association of American Medical Colleges the number of medical school applicants for the 2003-2004 school year rose 3.4 percent from the previous year.

Ohio State received 3,292 of those applications. From there, only 11 percent, or 369 applicants, were made offers of enrollment. 210 students accepted the offers.

In their first quarter at OSU, medical students are divided into six-member teams, where they take 12-week courses in gross anatomy and embryology.

“In one quarter of class, I feel like I have learned more than I did in all my years of undergrad,” Sartawi said. “Medical school is a lot of work – much more than I had initially anticipated.”

Sometimes this early course work proves to be too much for students.

“In any given year, one or two students will withdraw in their first year, usually for personal reasons or change in motivation,” said Judith Westman, associate dean for Student Affairs. “Of the remaining students, five or six usually have to repeat the first year of medical school.”

Sartawi said another aspect of medical school that can be quite challenging is the realization that you are in class with the best of the best.

“Another aspect of medical school I felt I needed to adjust to was the fact that everyone in class is very intelligent,” Sartawi said. “Medical students are some of the top students in the country, and I admit I was a little intimidated at first.”

Sartawi, who has an undergraduate degree in chemical engineering said his main fears when he began medical school dealt with his classmates’ preparations and undergraduate education.

“Initially, I was worried that I was at a disadvantage because I thought that the majority of medical students had far more experience with biological subjects than I did,” Sartawi said. “As it turns out, a significant percentage of the medical students at OSU had majored in something outside of the traditional biological fields, which I found to be comforting.”

After the first quarter is complete, students spent the remainder of their first and second years in one of two curricular tracks: the Integrated Pathway or Independent Study Pathway, where students learn interviewing skills and strengthen their diagnostic ability.

The Integrated Pathway is a two-year structured track of curriculum that emphasizes the body systems by study of the basic sciences. Students are introduced to examining and interviewing patients in this track.

The alternative is the objective-based Independent Study Pathway. In this path, students, under the counseling of instructors, determine the nature and speed of their learning. There are no formal lectures, thus giving students personal responsibility for their learning.

“The decision between ISP and IP was a tough one,” Sartawi said. “Ultimately, I realized that I am the type of person that works better in a structured environment, so I chose the Integrated Pathway.”

According to the College of Medicine and Public Heath Web site, students move into clinical training rotations in a number of different fields until the they complete medical school.

Because medical school is such a long process, Sartawi said it is best to set short-term realistic goals.

“I wanted to be able to maintain a balance between school and my social life,” he said. “So I always tried to make time to go work out or just hang out with some friends.”

Upon completion of four years of medical school students then endure another three to five years of residency in a selected field – the time varies between students.

Medical school might seem like a long and demanding process, but Rami suggests enjoying the time before medical school as much as possible.

“In order to succeed in medical school you have to be willing to work extremely hard,” Sartawi said. “If you truly love helping people and learning about the medical sciences, there really is no experience quite as rewarding as medicine.”