Before there were hospitals, before there were prescriptions, before medicine was a science, it was a calling, a promise to heal, to question, to understand the human body and protect it.

Every discovery began with curiosity. Every breakthrough began with someone asking, why? From the cells beneath the microscope, to the ethics behind life-saving decisions, from ancient remedies, to AI shaping the future of care.

This is where science meets compassion. This is where future healers begin. This is Aesculapian.

In our very first episode, we have an aspiring medical professional from my own neighborhood.

Welcome, Rohan. Thank you for being the very first guest on our show.

Yeah, thanks for having me.

Yeah. So our first question is, what inspired you to become a doctor?

I think that's obviously a very good question. It goes back to kind of my family.

So my grandfather, he was a doctor, and he was an ophthalmologist in India.

So that was kind of my first exposure. So every time I would go back to India, I would kind of shadow him.

Obviously, I didn't really know what was going on. But, you know, just the general setting of people coming to him, trusting him, you know, they're complete strangers to him.

But even though they were strangers, they completely trusted him, and he was able to help them.

And kind of that physician-patient relationship is what really spoke to me first.

And after that, you know, I was like still in middle school. It was whatever.

But I didn't really know what I wanted to do yet.

I used to want to think I wanted to do software engineering.

But honestly, the minute I like touched Python, like I knew it wasn't for me.

I didn't really like coding.

And then I gave more of like the health aspect a try.

So my mom isn't a doctor, but she's a dietitian.

And I kind of got exposed to the healthcare field there as well.

And my mom would take me in to her hospital.

And I was able to watch her have that similar relationship with her patients.

And then some of her colleagues, some of the doctors that she worked with, I also shadowed them.

And I kind of really knew there that's really what I wanted to do.

So I went to Penn State for undergrad.

And then I knew I was going to be a doctor.

So then now I'm here at Jefferson at Sidney Kimmel Medical College.

And I'm a first-year medical student right now.

So that's really kind of my journey.

It's a culmination of experiences.

My grandfather with my mom.

And also like in high school, I like science classes.

I don't really like any other types of classes.

And then I volunteered at a hospital too.

And just kind of all of those experiences.

It wasn't really like a one-moment type of thing where I discovered, oh, hey, this is what I want to do.

But it was more so like a bunch of experience that led me to being here today.

So that's a very good response.

My next thing is, did you ever seriously want to be anything other than a doctor?

Like seriously have a passion for it?

I mean, not really.

Like I told you, I thought I want to be a software engineer.

But honestly, like we all have those thoughts when we're younger.

You're just like you're not exposed to a lot of things, even in middle school and even in like high school too.

So it's just more about figuring out what type of person you are, what you like, what you don't like.

And that can really help you narrow it down.

But just like I said, figuring out who you are and also exploring different fields, like not being too close-minded to anything is really important.

But I wouldn't say there's anything else I wanted to be.

It was more so like from high school, I kind of had a feeling I would be a doctor.

But yeah.

So what type of doctor do you want to be?

Honestly, I'm not too sure yet just because it's my first year.

Going into medical school, I knew I liked hands-on procedures.

So I wanted something in surgery right now.

But I'm still like learning a lot, especially in medical school, right?

You get exposed to so many different organ systems and like things that you wouldn't know otherwise unless you went through the curriculum and actually learned about it.

So I'm kind of thinking about it from that aspect as well.

But it's honestly way too early to decide.

I have to decide usually in my third year.

But for right now, I'm thinking some type of surgery.

I really like my cardiology block.

So maybe like cardiothoracic surgery.

I'm also thinking about general surgery.

But there's a lot of options and there's still no rush.

But definitely want to do something procedural based, something hands-on.

And I mean, I really like specialties that incorporate.

A lot of different fields of medicine.

So like cardiology, if you think about it, you can make lifestyle changes.

There's a lot of tests you can do like EKG, stuff like that.

So it's all encompassing.

So something along those lines.

But I'm not too sure yet.

Okay.

So how important do you think parental guidance is in becoming a doctor?

I mean, it can definitely help.

So like I told you, my grandfather and my mom, not so much guidance.

To kind of help me get exposed to those fields.

And then I kind of realized, oh, like this is something that I want to do.

Right.

And so guidance obviously helps.

Like my parents like never really forced me or anything.

Because obviously you don't want to do medicine.

It's a very, very long path.

And like if you hate it, then like it's going to be miserable.

So you can't really rely on other people.

You just have to, you know, like be receptive to opportunities and experiences and decide for yourself whether you think it's worth it, whether you like it or not.

But definitely your parents can guide you.

Like I said, my mom was in the healthcare field.

So she played a big part in kind of being my inspiration.

Same with my grandfather.

So they always encouraged it.

But they never pushed me in any sort of way.

Okay.

So moving on to like the day-to-day life of like a student slash professional.

So like is there like any type of common assignment you take on in med school?

Common assignment like meaning?

So like is there any like sort of topic you guys constantly relate back to or have to learn on, do like a medical project on?

I mean, so I mean just to provide a background.

So med school is like after college, right?

So you go through four years of undergrad and you do four years of med school.

And then after that, you do residency and the type of specialty that you want to do.

So in medical school, it's four years.

So the first two years are kind of your pre-clinical years.

And then your second two years, your third year and your fourth year are your clinical years.

So the pre-clinical years are more, it's kind of like college, right?

It's kind of like, I wouldn't say like high school, but you're more so in a classroom.

And you're learning about all the organ systems.

You're learning about the drugs that you use to treat the diseases.

So like right now I'm in my pulmonology block.

So pulmonology meaning the lungs.

So we're learning about the lungs right now.

We're going to have an exam on that soon.

But so the first two years are just, you're learning everything about the organ systems.

So we did cardiovascular, we did hematology, oncology, which is blood cancer.

We still have to do like liver stuff, renal, which is kidneys.

So you're just learning about all the organ systems.

And the next two years are your clinical years.

So you go on rotations with different services.

So internal medicine, general surgery, that's more when you're actually in the hospital.

We still have some experiences in the hospital.

I shadow a lot.

We have a lot.

We have to, we have something called clinical experience.

We talk to patients.

So we still have some exposure, but it's more so like a, it's more so just like an extension

of college.

Just a lot more material, a lot harder.

You can't really compare it.

But yeah.

So if that kind of answers your question, I'm not sure.

Yeah, it answers it.

So my next question is, what's like a typical day for you right now?

Like how much do you spend studying, sleeping, eating?

A typical day?

I mean, right now I'm in like exam season.

So my exam is next Friday.

So we have three exams next week.

So it's been kind of busy and starting to get in that routine.

So probably going to be studying like a good eight to 10 hours a day.

Try to for the next, for the next week or so.

But before that, so our exams are every like seven weeks.

So before, beside that, like it's honestly like not too bad.

Study five hours a day.

You have enough time to go to the gym, do activities.

We usually have class from eight to 12.

And then on some days we have case-based learning,

which is you meet with a group of 10 people and you discuss cases.

You have a facilitator who's a doctor in the room.

You discuss cases, kind of present on the case.

And then, yeah, so it's not too bad, honestly.

Like I get enough sleep.

I have enough time to be, I mean, our med school is very social.

Go out and do activities.

So there's still a lot of free time.

I heard like the free time break goes away in M3 and M4 years,

which is your third and fourth year of med school.

But I mean, obviously this week will be rough studying eight to 10 hours a day.

But beside that, we have enough time to do whatever you want, basically.

So you mentioned a lot about the exams.

So how hard are they?

Like how many questions, difficulty?

I mean, it varies on like med school to med school.

Like not every med school is going to have the same exams.

Our exams are like, we usually have one like clinical exam.

So we have to like talk to a patient, do a clinical, like do the exam.

And then we have one exam where it's anatomy practical.

So obviously there will be a cadaver and they'll have like markings on the cadaver.

You have to say like what muscle this is or what innervates it, what's the blood supply.

And then we have another three hour exam.

It's like multiple choices.

Like sometimes like 120 questions.

It depends, obviously.

But those are kind of the exams.

Are you doing well emotionally like most days?

Yeah, I definitely like, I mean, it's pretty easy to get burnt out.

But if you obviously have to make time to hang out with friends.

I go to the gym.

I like to play basketball and pickleball a lot.

So there's obviously a lot of outlets and ways to keep yourself still happy.

And at the end of the day, like I like what I'm studying.

I'm happy to be in the position that I'm in.

Obviously, it's a pretty big time commitment.

But I think, I mean, I wouldn't rather have anything else.

So how important are friends do you think in this journey?

I mean, of course, they're very important, right?

Like even having friends outside of medicine is important.

So sometimes you can kind of not clock out, but I'm not having to think about that.

But also friends at medical school are huge because everyone's going through the same struggles,

the same thing.

It's not like you're alone in this, right?

So it's important to have a lot of friends to take the stress off.

I mean, it's like, it's not even like in terms of being pertinent to medicine.

Just like having friends is important for a good social life, for mental health.

Like, yeah.

So moving on from the day-to-day life of a student to the skills do you think a student would need to have?

So what characteristics do you think are essential for being a doctor?

I mean, obviously, I'm not a doctor yet, so I can't comment too much on it.

But in terms of being successful in medical school, at least through the first year, I would say time management is really important.

You really need to be able to kind of divvy up your priorities, not spend too much time on one thing.

And that's very important because you have a lot of studying you can do.

And if you can't keep up with, like, the little things and you can't fall behind too much,

so just, like, keeping up with it every day, being consistent is the main thing, not falling behind.

But also, like, you have to remember, right, there's always something else you can do.

Like, even if you study 10 to 12 hours a day, there's always something else you can do, right?

But you can't really let that affect you, right?

You have to say, oh, I'm going to put the books down.

I'm going to spend some time with some friends.

I'm going to enjoy some time.

I'm going to go out to eat.

Like, stuff like that.

It's really important to make time for that because, I mean, if you're burnt out, you can't really study anymore.

It won't be effective.

So, I mean, time management, being consistent, being a team player.

Obviously, medicine is very collaborative.

Like, it takes a team, not just doctors but nurses, PAs.

Like, there's a bunch of people, a part of a team.

So, if you can't work with a team, then, I mean, forget being a good doctor.

There's a lot of things that come into play.

But in terms of being successful in medical school, definitely time management, consistency, and, yeah, being a team player.

Mm-hmm.

So, what skill would you think is more important, communication or being academic?

I mean, it's not really that, like, one thing is more important than the other.

It's important to have both, right?

Like, you obviously have to, like, you're not going to get into medical school if you're not pretty academically sound, right?

And, because you have to be able to survive.

Not just survive, but just, like, be able to keep up with the coursework because it's a lot.

So, academics is important.

If you don't have that, then you're not going to get into medical school.

You're not going to do well in medical school.

But, obviously, did you say collaboration or communication, right?

Yeah.

Communication, obviously, is very important, too.

I can't speak too much on that just because, like, I haven't been too much in a clinical setting, which means, like, in the hospital.

But in communication with your peers, communication with your mentors, being punctual in your responses, that's important, too.

That's important in any profession.

So, I wouldn't say, like, one is more important than the other.

They're not mutually exclusive.

You definitely need to have both.

Hmm.

Okay.

So, in this academic field, what advice would you give to someone who has the passion but struggles academically?

Like, for context, they would probably be, like, a high schooler?

I mean, in high school, you still have time, right?

You have to go through undergrad.

But I would say, I mean, it depends on, like, how they're struggling.

Like, are they not putting in time?

Like, are they not understanding the concepts?

Like, I would need, like, more context on that.

But I would just say, if you have the passion, right?

I mean, it's hard to identify your passions in, like, high school, right?

Like, it's hard to be exposed to the life of a doctor, what they actually do, what you need to know.

But, I mean, if you're struggling academically, obviously, reach out.

Like, don't be afraid to seek help.

Like, sometimes we kind of let our egos get in the way, right?

Like, I don't want help.

I don't want this or that.

But, I mean, it's okay to reach out for help once in a while.

So, definitely reach out for help.

Work hard.

Like I said, like, being able to develop kind of a routine and being able to time manage is very important.

So, I'm going to say reach out for help.

There's a lot of resources online, tutors.

But, yeah.

Okay.

So, moving on from the qualities and skills to the path to becoming a doctor.

So, what's, like, the full timeline from being in high school to getting your degree to becoming an actual doctor?

Yeah.

So, that's a good question.

So, I kind of already explained this.

So, complete high school, then four years of college, right?

Bio major, any type of science major.

I think you can be any major, but you have to take the pre-med required classes.

Don't quote me if I'm wrong, but it's usually, like, biochemistry, like, orgo chem, physics.

There's a bunch of classes that you have to take as a pre-med.

And you take those classes.

You take the MCAT.

And then, after you take the MCAT, hopefully, you'll get accepted to medical school.

And during college, obviously, you have to do, like, research activities, stuff like that.

Stuff that you're passionate about in order to get into medical school.

And then, that's four years of undergrad.

And then, after those, after that, you have to do four years of med school.

So, in med school, you have to take, I mean, you have to do well in class.

But you also have to take your licensing exams.

So, your USMLE, like, step one, step two exams.

And those are three exams, or two exams.

So, your step one, your step two.

And you take those, and then that's four years.

And then, after your medical school, it's another three to seven years based on your specialty.

So, like, three years, I mean, you can do, like, internal medicine, family medicine.

There's a bunch of specialties.

Three years, and then seven years, like, neurosurgery.

So, it all depends on, like, what you're passionate about, how long you want to spend time in school.

I mean, obviously, it's a very long path, right?

Anywhere from eight all the way up to 15, 15, 16 years.

So, and then after residency, you're an attending doctor.

So, long term, do you think it matters which medical school you went to, like, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, anything?

I mean, I personally don't think it matters too much.

I mean, obviously, you want to go to the best school you can, and also take into account finances, which are very important because med school is pretty expensive.

So, you got to take everything into account.

But, I mean, I would just say go to the best school.

Let's see what's the best fit.

And also, financially, that makes the most sense.

I think that's what matters.

So, you took the MCAT, right?

Yeah.

So, like, what's its entire, like, a quick overview of its scoring system and, like, the score ranges you need to get to get accepted?

I mean, it varies.

Like, the scores are, like, from, like, a 470-something to, like, a 528.

And there's four sections.

There's chem, phys, cars, which is, like, a reading section.

There's a bio section.

And then there's a psych, social section.

So, it's, like, an eight-hour exam with the time breaks.

So, it's a pretty long exam.

Just to build up stamina, right, like, takes a long time.

Because, like, sitting in one place for, like, close to eight hours, right, that's, like, pretty bad.

And having to be focused.

But, I mean, how well do you have to score?

It obviously depends on the type of med school.

I'm not, like, too – I don't think you have to worry about that right now.

But I couldn't tell you, like, what you have to score.

Like, it depends on, like, which med school.

I mean, the average for getting accepted to a USMD school, I think, is a 512.

So, I mean, beside that, kind of, obviously, for your better schools, like your T20s and your Ivies, you're going to need higher scores.

So, yeah.

Okay.

So, during your undergrad, like, you just need to major in any science topic, right, and meet the pre-med requirements?

You can major in anything, actually.

You just need to meet the pre-med requirements.

Oh.

But show me the pre-med requirements and then get –

I think there's a law major just because, like, law is, like, a graduate program.

But there's, like, political science.

But, yeah.

Okay.

So, what kind of extracurriculars or volunteer work help strengthen your application?

I mean, like, volunteering, research.

Those are, like, the two main things, like being a part of clubs that you're passionate about.

Those three are mainly the big things that I think helped.

Obviously, I'm telling a good story as to why you want to be a doctor is very important.

And, yeah, so mainly, like, research, shadowing, volunteering, being a part of clubs has probably helped a lot.

Okay.

Is there anything you wish you had done differently in your pre-med years?

Not really.

I mean, I wish – honestly, my freshman year I was a little behind.

But other than that, no, not really.

I think I had a good time with friends.

I was able to do, like, fine.

So, I think overall it was a pretty great experience.

I wouldn't say, like, I would have done anything differently academically.

Okay.

And my final question for this topic is, how did you, like, manage to balance stress and maintain a social life so far?

I mean, that's a great question.

I think it varies person to person, right?

And it all comes back down to that, like, time planning thing, right?

You can make time for things that you really value.

And so, like, for me, right, I'm a very – like, I'm a morning person.

So, I'll wake up kind of early.

I'll get my work done out of the way.

I'll do – I'll start with something hard and then I'll finish that off first.

And then I'll study.

And then after that, I'll have enough time.

So, I mean, obviously, during exam season, right, like, we're going to be studying all the time.

Like, my social life is going to be, like, less priority for the next week.

But that's only for a week, right?

And so, sometimes you have to make sacrifices.

Like, in medicine, you have to make a lot of sacrifices to become a doctor, right?

Like, that's just a part of the job and a part of our training.

And I can't quite speak to that yet because I'm just in medical school and I'm not, like, a doctor.

But, I mean, so far, at least, we have to make sacrifices.

And so, as long as you understand that.

But it doesn't mean you can't live your life, right?

I have enough time to do whatever I want as long as you make time for it.

And there's 24 hours in a day.

So, it's more than you think.

So, as long as you, for me, like to wake up early morning, like to get the hard things out of the way.

And then, after that, I'll make time for whatever I want to do.

Okay.

Sounds good.

So, this, like, next section is about, like, your career and your finances and how you plan to live your life after.

So, for you, what percent of being a doctor is about money and about helping people?

I mean, like, it just financially doesn't make, financially and time-wise, like, doesn't really make sense to go into medicine just for the money.

Because it's, like, so long of a path.

And, like, you could do anything else, like, do, like, finance, like, investment banking.

You only have to do four years of college, right?

And you can make, like, more money.

So, I think, like, if you don't have, like, passion for it, and that passion can be, like, you know, helping people.

I mean, but also, like, you're passionate about the subject, right?

There's so much to learn about the human body, the physiology, everything.

Like, I mean, that just interested me from the beginning.

So, I mean, I feel like, obviously, like, it wouldn't make too much financial sense if we weren't compensated well.

Because, just because the training path is so long.

But, I mean, first and foremost, you have to be pretty passionate about it.

Because it's just, like, so much hours you have to put into it.

Like, even if, like, you're making a lot of money, you're not going to be happy, right?

If you're working that much and if we're studying this much, right?

So, I don't think it's, like, mutually exclusive in any way.

Like, it's, like, not, like, percentage-wise.

But, I mean, like, my philosophy is, right, like, if you're passionate about it and if you're good at what you do, then, like, money will follow.

Like, I don't really, like, worry about that too much or pay too much about money.

Okay.

So, my next question is, like, how much student debt does the average medical school student graduate with?

How much do you think you'll graduate with?

I mean, like, you can, like, look up the numbers.

I don't know what the average is.

Maybe, like, 200 to 300.

And so, I personally don't want to get into too much of, like, my details.

But, obviously, it's very expensive.

And if you need to take on loans, then you have to.

And, I mean, obviously, like, we're fortunate enough to be compensated kind of well to the point where, I mean, we can try to pay off those loans.

But even, like, $400,000 or $500,000, if you have to take full loans, it's, like, pretty rough, right?

And so, you just have to be, you have to, you know, kind of plan for that.

Obviously, we don't know, I mean, what's going to happen with loans and stuff in the future just because of, like, whatever is happening politically.

But, yeah, so it's a lot of money to pay for school.

But people come from different backgrounds.

I mean, so, like, it's, like, a very, like, variable situation.

Okay.

So, moving on from finances.

What are some downsides or sacrifices of this career that people don't talk about throughout the entire career path?

Hmm.

I mean, I think, like, people talk about it a lot.

Like, I mean, the sacrifice, like, sometimes, like, you can't, I mean, go to, like, your friend's, like, function or whatever.

My friend recently had, like, an engagement party I wasn't able to go just because I was in school.

But, I mean, those are the type of sacrifices.

Like, I mean, a lot of people don't realize, unless you're in the medical field, how much we have to work and how much we have to study.

And they kind of might not understand it.

And they might think, like, oh, like, this person is not making enough time for me.

But, I mean, that's, like, something that you have to live with, right?

And that's just a part of the life.

I'm sure after you're attending and you're a real doctor in some specialties, you can make enough time to do whatever you want outside of work.

So, yeah, there's a lot of, I mean, sacrifice is just, like, you have other things you have to attend to or drop.

When sometimes you have other obligations that you want to go to, but you really can't.

So, I think it's talked about, but obviously, you don't really understand it unless you're in the field or unless you're going through it.

Okay.

So, my final question is, right now that you're a student, where do you see yourself in the next 10 years?

I mean, sorry.

In the next 10 years, I mean, I might be a doctor.

I might still be in residency.

I don't know yet, depending on what specialty I take.

I think it's in terms of academically.

Not academically, I definitely want to still be on the East Coast.

I like having four seasons.

Hopefully, like, have a family.

Have a dog.

Yeah, I mean, just to hopefully be more advanced in my career, but also be able to make time for the things I enjoy.

Still want to be playing sports.

Still want to be watching sports.

Hopefully, on the East Coast still.

So, I mean, there's a lot to look forward to, but I also think, like, the beauty is, right, we don't know what the future holds for us.

And there's still a lot of variability.

And so, just not planning too far ahead, but seeing where life takes me, I think, is important, too.

So, we'll see.

Okay.

So, that's done with the entire section.

So, my final question is, what's one piece of advice, any piece that you would give to a high schooler who dreams of being a doctor?

I mean, I would say, obviously, it's important.

Like, I knew in high school or later high school that I wanted to be a doctor.

So, I would say keep your head down.

Obviously, do well in school, right?

Be focused academically.

But more importantly, you know, just, like, have fun.

Like, once you're a doctor, once you start this training path, right, it's a lot of work and it's a lot of time, commitment.

And you don't really realize it.

Like, now I realize how much more time I had in high school than college, right?

So, I would say just have fun.

Make the most out of your memories.

And don't worry because everything will work out.

Like, that's, like, the main thing I would tell myself.

I stressed over a lot of things in life.

And I wish, you know, I could have those moments back just because they didn't mean much.

So, don't stress.

Everything will work out to be just fine.

And in terms of academically, obviously, be, I mean, be up to date with everything.

Do well in school because that work ethic will carry through college and medical school.

So, definitely do that and then also try to get some exposure, some shadowing, some, like, volunteer at your hospital.

Get involved and get your name out there because, like, you can make connections and contacts that you'll have as mentors for life.

So, that's very important.

Okay.

Well, thank you so much again, Rohan, for being my very first guest.

Yeah, thanks for having me.

It was a pleasure to be your first guest.

And, yeah, please feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

Yeah.

I wish you the best in your studies and career.

Yeah, thank you so much.

Wishing you the best, too.

Thank you.