When I began college, I remember struggling with tests and with time management. Being a premedical student from the very beginning meant that I was forced to learn very quickly how to overcome these challenges. My attempts to become a successful student were filled with perseverance, which became the theme of my professional endeavors. After working extremely hard to be accepted into my top choice medical school at Duke University, I again found myself in a situation where I felt under prepared and lost. Through much work and research about study skills, proper test preparation, and test taking strategies, I eventually have reached a level where I am comfortable assessing my own test readiness and how to best strengthen my academic weaknesses. I believe that through my own personal experiences, I have become a stronger life-long learner and I plan to use these skills throughout my career as I plan to stay in academic medicine to further the field of medical education.