Health Science Reviews

By Tanith Fester

This year started with high hopes in one hand and high stress in the other.

I was excited for a new start, both academically and personally. Excited because Honours in medical science meant choosing a project in a field we were interested in. It meant lab work- which was the main thing I was looking forward to. However, it also meant larger workload, so much more responsibility and one step closer to experiencing the ‘real world’. Expectations, not only from others but ones I had for myself. It also meant waiting 5 months to hear if I was going to get funding after finding out that if I didn’t, my options were really slim. 

Despite how nerve-wracking it was to embark on this journey, semester one ended up being an interesting and enjoyable experience. I learnt about techniques that I hadn’t heard of before and began to think of knowledge and research in different ways, and what it means to contribute to science and society at large in a meaningful way. Not only was it interesting, but it taught us relevant information about the health sciences discipline like ethics and all the innovations that are in the works to help better people’s lives (hopefully). Classes took place in the form of lectured material and thought-provoking discussions which I truly believe has made me a much more effective critical thinker. And so many presentations. So… many… presentations (they did end up making me a little less terrified to speak in front of people, but let’s see how the end-of-year thesis presentation goes). What made it a little easier to bear was to remind myself that I was, and I am not doing it alone. Being able to unwind and joke around with friends after a particularly grueling day ensured that I didn’t feel like I was losing my mind.

All in all, there were many tasks (read: a million tasks), but I completed them all and didn’t do too badly. 

It’s crazy to think that something can seem so scary and unattainable until you’ve completed it, then it almost feels silly for it to have bothered you so much in the first place. I suppose that’s human nature, and maybe it keeps you hopeful to remind yourself that you have made it through 100% of your worst moments to get here.