Q&A with Dr. Sachdev

Aanya Rangaiahgari, 9/10/24

   need and your requirements are there to make sure you have a solid foundation of knowledge before becoming a     physician. But my classes in psychology, statistics, and literature were far more useful for my overall success. 

When taking the required pre-med classes in your undergraduate year, did you feel the workload to be overwhelming with your chosen major?

• I was able to double major in a different field and found it to be manageable. I did have a significant amount of college credit when I started, which helped, but I did two majors, including all my requirements, and graduated a year early. 

What was the hardest part of medical school and how did you overcome it?

• The hardest part of medical school was learning to apply facts that I had memorized and learned to actually application of concepts. They will teach you whatever biochemical cycle you need to know, but you have to learn how to apply the anatomy, physiology and pathophysiology to the patient in front of you. Majority of your education up to medical school is memorization, not application and it is in application that you learn to be a good physician. 

Why do YOU believe most doctors take biology as their chosen major?

• Most people do biology because it covers majority of the pre medical requirements for medical school, so it makes sense to choose that as a major. Many of us are interested in science, part of why we go into medicine, so biology is a relatively easy choice. Personally, I only needed one additional class to be a biology major on top of my psychology degree, so the workload was minimal. But I think people are now learning that the more diverse your experiences are, the better physician you can be.