Comments on: Are Credentials Overrated? http://rk.md/2009/credentials-overrated/ -- welcome to the life of a tech-savvy medical student -- Mon, 06 Feb 2012 22:09:07 +0000 hourly 1 By: Rishi http://rk.md/2009/credentials-overrated/#comment-2984 Rishi Mon, 26 Jan 2009 03:03:42 +0000 http://rk.md/?p=929#comment-2984 Anytime man. Look forward to hearing from you soon! :-) Anytime man. Look forward to hearing from you soon! :-)

]]> By: Meena Tadros http://rk.md/2009/credentials-overrated/#comment-2983 Meena Tadros Mon, 26 Jan 2009 02:56:06 +0000 http://rk.md/?p=929#comment-2983 Hmmm... interesting. I may actually contact you sometime in the near future about how to acquire domain names; I'm a novice at this stuff. Thank you so much for the help! Hmmm… interesting. I may actually contact you sometime in the near future about how to acquire domain names; I’m a novice at this stuff. Thank you so much for the help!

]]> By: Rishi http://rk.md/2009/credentials-overrated/#comment-2982 Rishi Mon, 26 Jan 2009 02:44:00 +0000 http://rk.md/?p=929#comment-2982 Congrats on the VP position!! You speak my mind so well. I was troubled applying to medical school with "HBU"-pinned to my name. Heck, the first thing we had to do at our Baylor College of Medicine interview is announce our names, our major(s), and our undergrad institution. Being in one of the last rows, I had my fill of hearing Harvard, Stanford, UPenn, MIT, CalTech, Duke, Princeton, etc. all mentioned and gawked at. Fortunately, HBU tends to have a good reputation among the Texas medical schools, and I was confident in my application. In my case, the interview (which was based purely on me as a person and completely independent of HBU) was my opportunity to shine. Hopefully, you too will find the quality of your work being valued far more than your background, though at first it's an obstacle you must overcome. On another note, you mentioned that blogging may be of interest to you? If you're looking to get started, you can get a free blog at <a href="http://www.wordpress.com" rel="nofollow">wordpress.com</a>, but if you're looking into something more personalized, maybe hosting a blog on your own domain may be of more interest to you? Let me know, and I can probably help! Haha, I actually did a quick check, and "meenatadros.com" is available for purchase. :-) Congrats on the VP position!! You speak my mind so well. I was troubled applying to medical school with “HBU”-pinned to my name. Heck, the first thing we had to do at our Baylor College of Medicine interview is announce our names, our major(s), and our undergrad institution. Being in one of the last rows, I had my fill of hearing Harvard, Stanford, UPenn, MIT, CalTech, Duke, Princeton, etc. all mentioned and gawked at. Fortunately, HBU tends to have a good reputation among the Texas medical schools, and I was confident in my application. In my case, the interview (which was based purely on me as a person and completely independent of HBU) was my opportunity to shine. Hopefully, you too will find the quality of your work being valued far more than your background, though at first it’s an obstacle you must overcome.

On another note, you mentioned that blogging may be of interest to you? If you’re looking to get started, you can get a free blog at wordpress.com, but if you’re looking into something more personalized, maybe hosting a blog on your own domain may be of more interest to you? Let me know, and I can probably help! Haha, I actually did a quick check, and “meenatadros.com” is available for purchase. :-)

]]> By: Meena Tadros http://rk.md/2009/credentials-overrated/#comment-2979 Meena Tadros Mon, 26 Jan 2009 02:13:29 +0000 http://rk.md/?p=929#comment-2979 To clarify (and sorry for the "rambling" nature of this post), I am not Baptist. I do not want to have a "Baptist" worldview imposed on my writing. I would like my writing to be taken on its own merits and not based on how people perceive my writing should be due to the religious affiliation of my place of education. To clarify (and sorry for the “rambling” nature of this post), I am not Baptist. I do not want to have a “Baptist” worldview imposed on my writing. I would like my writing to be taken on its own merits and not based on how people perceive my writing should be due to the religious affiliation of my place of education.

]]> By: Meena Tadros http://rk.md/2009/credentials-overrated/#comment-2978 Meena Tadros Mon, 26 Jan 2009 01:59:52 +0000 http://rk.md/?p=929#comment-2978 Thanks for the encouraging words! Things have indeed been going well. I'm Vice President of Phi Psi now, which places me the position of second in command to one of the most powerful social groups on campus. Ya, I have actually been looking into the internet for a source of distribution (something like this blog of yours), seeing as how one does not need any credentials for an internet page. It can also be a quick way to expose people to your ideas and writing without the pains of mass distribution of actual physical material. Also, I have noticed that credentials matter based on the particular field... what I mean by this is that if you're trying to promote yourself as a doctor, you'd best have graduated from a good med school, if you're trying to promote yourself as a businessman, UT is your best bet. Someone like me though, who wants to do unique writing about topics not yet explored, my best shot seems to be "word of mouth" like you said. My main concern however still stands; I know that HBU carries little clout compared the the Ivy Leagues, but part of me wishes I went to a public school instead. It's that "Baptist" part that is killing me. I majored in Biology and Philosophy, both of which (especially Philosophy) can be written off as "oh, well that's just the stuff they teach at those silly religious schools!" Essentially, I'm terrified of not being taken seriously due to the religious affiliation of my university. I guess I just have to put out my best and hope that my work gets judged by that and that alone. Thanks for the encouraging words! Things have indeed been going well. I’m Vice President of Phi Psi now, which places me the position of second in command to one of the most powerful social groups on campus.

Ya, I have actually been looking into the internet for a source of distribution (something like this blog of yours), seeing as how one does not need any credentials for an internet page. It can also be a quick way to expose people to your ideas and writing without the pains of mass distribution of actual physical material.
Also, I have noticed that credentials matter based on the particular field… what I mean by this is that if you’re trying to promote yourself as a doctor, you’d best have graduated from a good med school, if you’re trying to promote yourself as a businessman, UT is your best bet. Someone like me though, who wants to do unique writing about topics not yet explored, my best shot seems to be “word of mouth” like you said.

My main concern however still stands; I know that HBU carries little clout compared the the Ivy Leagues, but part of me wishes I went to a public school instead. It’s that “Baptist” part that is killing me. I majored in Biology and Philosophy, both of which (especially Philosophy) can be written off as “oh, well that’s just the stuff they teach at those silly religious schools!” Essentially, I’m terrified of not being taken seriously due to the religious affiliation of my university. I guess I just have to put out my best and hope that my work gets judged by that and that alone.

]]> By: Rishi http://rk.md/2009/credentials-overrated/#comment-2975 Rishi Mon, 26 Jan 2009 01:18:28 +0000 http://rk.md/?p=929#comment-2975 Hey Meena! Great to hear from you, buddy! Haha, I know exactly what you mean man. Let's face it, when it comes down to comparing HBU to one of those Ivy League schools, we have very little clout. In your case, though it may be difficult to get people to read your literature initially, word-of-mouth will become a very useful tool in promoting your work. The handful of people who choose to look beyond your alma mater and focus on the quality of your content will definitely promote just that. Hope you've been well. :-) Hey Meena! Great to hear from you, buddy! Haha, I know exactly what you mean man. Let’s face it, when it comes down to comparing HBU to one of those Ivy League schools, we have very little clout. In your case, though it may be difficult to get people to read your literature initially, word-of-mouth will become a very useful tool in promoting your work. The handful of people who choose to look beyond your alma mater and focus on the quality of your content will definitely promote just that. Hope you’ve been well. :-)

]]> By: Meena Tadros http://rk.md/2009/credentials-overrated/#comment-2974 Meena Tadros Mon, 26 Jan 2009 01:14:50 +0000 http://rk.md/?p=929#comment-2974 And reading over that... I noticed like 20 different typos... damn. myself as a writer.... And reading over that… I noticed like 20 different typos… damn. myself as a writer….

]]> By: Meena Tadros http://rk.md/2009/credentials-overrated/#comment-2973 Meena Tadros Mon, 26 Jan 2009 01:13:27 +0000 http://rk.md/?p=929#comment-2973 Hey Rishi! This is the first post that I've posted on your blog. I'm not sure if this post will go noticed or not, being that this is an older topic, but it is one that bares interest to me. I remember reading something (I wish I had the link for evidence, but alas, I do not) about Harvard students where not more likely to succeed due to their education at Harvard, but rather that they were more likely to succeed due to their being the type of people that are determined to get into a place like Harvard. Essentially, to summarize, if one gets accepted to Harvard, one doesn't actually have to go there to be successful, because if that person's work ethic is high enough to guarantee him/her a spot, then that person's work ethic will guarantee a successful outcome nonetheless. I guess this is a personal issue I struggle with, as I fancy myself becoming a writer later in life, but sometimes I wonder what "Houston BAPTIST University" will mean for me printed in the front cover... Hey Rishi! This is the first post that I’ve posted on your blog. I’m not sure if this post will go noticed or not, being that this is an older topic, but it is one that bares interest to me. I remember reading something (I wish I had the link for evidence, but alas, I do not) about Harvard students where not more likely to succeed due to their education at Harvard, but rather that they were more likely to succeed due to their being the type of people that are determined to get into a place like Harvard. Essentially, to summarize, if one gets accepted to Harvard, one doesn’t actually have to go there to be successful, because if that person’s work ethic is high enough to guarantee him/her a spot, then that person’s work ethic will guarantee a successful outcome nonetheless.

I guess this is a personal issue I struggle with, as I fancy myself becoming a writer later in life, but sometimes I wonder what “Houston BAPTIST University” will mean for me printed in the front cover…

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