Farewell, Old Friend

Dear incoming sophomores,

If you’re reading this it’s too late. Your biomedical innovations teacher is probably having you read this to understand the DAP Project and all of its stressfulness and importance. You are at the point of no return, and you will complete this project, despite the tragic amount of stress you have to endure along the way. We are here to present to you our reflections and advice, so you take advantage of this opportunity and maybe suffer less than we did… maybe.

From Ally: Hello! This project may be stressful, but it is an extremely important part of your development as a student. There will be times when you question the importance of your product, or the project in general, but remember that this is only practice for the world of biomedical innovations in which you will hopefully succeed due to the pressure you endured during the DAP project. I questioned the need for our product, the design, the customer: I even questioned life itself (which is not rare during projects at ARS). However, after finishing this project I feel overwhelmingly accomplished and I am confident that I can go into this field of biomedical sciences and succeed, as you will too. The important thing to remember is that this is a simulation, and one that should be taken seriously, as you will be presenting it to professionals. Even though it is not the purpose of your life, the end of the world, or the bane of your existence… you should go into Biomed everyday, and focus; Take it seriously, act as if the problem you are addressing in your project is the most important problem in the world, and try to fix is as though it was your job (like, real job- as if you’re getting paid to do this). If you focus in class, everyday, you will have less stress along the way (especially at the end). More importantly, if you take this process seriously, it will be more enjoyable, because you will care a whole lot more about the outcome. Have fun!

From Isabella: Step one in the DAP: pick a good group, (I cannot reiterate this enough.) You will be spending every class, for a whole semester, working with these people. I don’t mean simply asking the occasional question or having them overlook something for you… Instead you’ll have endless discussions the occasional disagreement and towards the end, the fits of rage and stress come out. I’m probably making it sound much worse than it is because in reality I had a great group, but there’s always things you can learn from. Step two: actually read the rubric and hold on tight. There’s not much you can do to avoid this project so you just gotta roll up your sleeves and do it. In the process you should probably make sure you’re doing it right so highlight the important stuff you’ve got to do. Step three: know that you’re actually working towards something. If you get  a high enough score you’ll get a letterman jacket and that’s pretty cool I guess, you also graduate with a ribbon? I’m still working on figuring out that last step. Either way good luck!

From Sarahi: Being in this group was a blessing, because I constantly got to be the best one out of them. Kidding, other people’s groups created some unnecessary conflict within their team which was distracting. You will be spending months with these people, so pick them wisely. Also, you WILL work on this outside of class. This project will consume you. You will think of this project day and night, I’m pretty sure I had a reoccurring dream about this project at one point. If you have any questions ask Ms.Miesner she is one of the most reliable/helpful sources in your classroom. Finishing this project was like mutually breaking up with somebody, you knew that eventually it was going to be over and once you got out of the relationship (or in this case the project) you have never felt more alive. Your DAP/Cornerstone has an intimidating name but just remember that this project will be worth it. Every hour that you missed of sleep, is worth it. Every saturday you have to stay in, is worth it. Every minute you spend in class, is important and totally worth it. Good luck y’all and remember to be creative!

From Shana:  At this point you may feel relieved to finally get over with Ms. McCrady’s endless lab paper and ten-page notes, and feel the sun is brighter and sky is bluer. Unfortunately, I’m going to tell you things will only get harder but easier. This is how everything works out, at least I didn’t figure out a way to escape from this mode, maybe you do. Talking about this project which requires you to apply knowledge you learned into real life instead of just writing them into an answer of a conclusion question will definitely be challenging and make you feel there is no tomorrow. Whereas, just like long-distance running, your attitude determines how you are going to go through this process. Tiredness is inevitable, but pain is optional. You will feel so achieved when you finish it.