I noticed from day one that people would go out and spend time with one another. That’s another thing that I really like about this place—everyone seems to be a nice person with their own diverse interests and we all work well together. There’s certainly no competition, or back stabbing—none of the medical school cliches. People are supportive of one another. Really open, respectful. I mean, it’s a great group of people. I like to get my work done but I’d go crazy if I couldn’t get outside and exercise.
I took a winter mountaineering class this year with some other medical students. We learned how to ice climb in New Hampshire. We were climbing Mt. Washington in New Hampshire in brutal sub-arctic conditions: 20 degrees below zero and 50-100 miles per hour winds. It’s nasty up there. I wore every bit of clothing I had. You learned to be resilient and self-sufficient—that’s the message of the class. We go backpacking and rock climbing as a group—down to West Virginia. Pitt does a great job of fostering interests outside of school and I think it pays off when we’re working together as future doctors.
