Freshie Orientaaaayshun!

We just had our Freshie orientation 2 days ago and I have to say, it. was. awesome.

The 2 day event/program was held in the V. Hall, 4th floor of the Angelo King Building. The hall was brand-spanking new. Clean floors, new air conditioners, new chairs, a working sound system. You might be thinking, "ano ba naman itong batang to, parang deprived sa bagong gamit..." 


Sa totoo lang, oo.

In our old school, the desks were crummy, with graffiti, bubblegum, cartoons depiciting boys'..um...junk... and walls were literally falling off because of the old plywood, and use of masking tape to keep it all together. Despite all this though, I still felt at home, (and it was the most wonderful 4 years of my life).

Actually, I was in a state of culture shock. Hahahaha, nope, im not overreacting. I really was uneasy with everything, the type of people (not anything bad, just different), the  culture of the school, the lingo, and how everyone was speaking in English (mind you, at my old school, taglish kung taglish, baklish aka baklang english, and whatnot was spoken in class, reports, presentations, meetings), and so much more.

Good thing I attended both days of the Lasallian Orientation for Aspiring Doctors, or as they call it, LOAD.

The incoming 2nd years were the ones who organized the whole thing. The day started off with a prayer, and learning the university's "standard" Lasallian prayer and school hymn. 

2nd Year Facilitators in all their awesomeness!
Photo courtesy of Don de Guzman

That's one thing that was new to me. University pride. You finally get to be proud of your school and be able to show it. Not that Im saying that Im not proud of my old school, Im damn proud to be a graduate of one of the most prestigious universities in the Philippines. But my old school was more focused on the idea of service to others, giving back to the country, and less on the image and pride for the school. 

To clarify, focusing on the value of service rather than school image and pride is not a bad thing, its just that I never fully experienced a unified, outward appreciation for the school itself. 

Anyways, going back to the orientation, after opening ceremonies, we had group building games, a quick snack, more games, lunch break, and then, the highlight of my day, the mock exams.

The very name itself describes the general feeling I got from this exam. a feeling of being mocked. 

 Well, all 50 questions, i have to say. I had no idea what I was doing in both the written and practical exam.

And I wish I could answer a lot like this in EVERY QUESTION that popped up on that piece of paper and practical exam.

Some students during the Practical Exam a.k.a. Prax

The purpose of the exams were to acquaint the students with the type of questions and manner of how the practical exams are done.

EXAMS= MIND BLOWN. There was not a single item I could answer correctly, I should think, and gave me the shocking realization that maybe, just maybe, I may not live through my first year in Med.

But with the mind-boggling, wallet murdering tuition, I have to at least fight like the devil in my first year rather than play dead and drown.

The mock exams certainly were an eye-opener, and Im kind of glad that they did it.

For the second day, we had the campus tour in the morning, and a short intro from all the doctors/ professors in the afternoon.

The campus was astounding. Big, spacious, newly renovated or built, and extremely conducive for studying. They had a new building made especially for the med students, i think it was 2-3 floors, with air conditioned auditoriums that could fit 300 students for lectures.

DLSHSI also has a gymnasium called the Animo Center, thats where they do their sportsfest, any social gatherings like the first day of school, and every year, they throw an all-out party for one of the Lasallian Brothers.

Near the Animo Center, they have Dormbuilt, which i mentioned in my previous post, and behind that, is a small soccer field/ track/ general area for whatever sports you are into.

They have a small chapel that holds services everyday, located in the hospital, which is very convenient when you need to pray for a passing in one of your exams.

The Library is equally great, one floor for the med students, and the other floors for the other courses in HSI. All airconditioned, with small conference rooms that students can use to form study groups. There are times where upper years would teach other students in biochem and other subjects.

Anyways, by the end of the two day orientation, I was feeling high and fine. Before, I would actually scoff at the thousands of students who would shout out for their respective teams during basketball season, school pride and stuff. I never really understood it, and at times, laughed at how spirited they were about these simple ball games.

But after these two days, I finally understood this whole school pride thing. After trying to foolishly sing along to the school's hymn, raising my fist in the air and punching the air to the beat of each hail!, I had this totally new feeling, it was kind of liberating and hard to explain, but, it was just an amazing experience.

Facilitators teaching us the school hymn, hail! hail! hail! Photo courtesy of Kim Agustin.

Kind of like an open forum where the 2nd year facilitators shared their experience in Med, the different dorms (Dormbuilt, Villa Isabel, Deer Land, Uwian), their lovelife, academic difficulties and tips on surviving med.

Im psyched about starting Med this year. Animo La Salle!