A typical day for an AUC student
The medical students that live and study at American University of the Caribbean (AUC) are a diverse lot. They come to St. Maarten, young and enthusiastic, sometimes knowing very little about the island, spend their two-plus years here and graduate on to careers as medical doctors in the larger worlds of North America or Europe. Some come alone, but others bring spouses, even children, along on their Caribbean adventure.
WEEKender had a chance to find out more about one of these young couples. Ben Johnson is the AUC student, and his wife Breanna writes a blog called “3rdculturewife, Adventures at Home and Abroad.” Graduates of Arizona Christian University, they have been coming out to assist with the Little League’s Tutoring Program regularly, especially Breanna, who doesn’t have to study and take classes all day.
With Breanna’s permission, we would like to share one of her posts from a few months ago which is sure to inspire anyone who appreciates what hard work and dedication it takes to become a medical professional.
Here is Breanna’s post.
Every day, Ben wakes up at 6:00am to study before classes. I prepare breakfast while he studies the Bible and then sets up his laptop to read about anatomy. A little after 7:00, he kisses me goodbye and heads to the auditorium at school to get a good seat and study more. The auditorium is a silent zone when not in use for classes.
At 8:00am, classes begin. First is Molecular and Cellular Biology with Dr. van Oost. At 9:30, it’s Anatomy; and at 10:30, Histology begins with Dr. Beveridge.
At 11:20am, Ben comes home for lunch. After lunch, Ben studies at home for a while and returns to school by 1:00 for lab. Lab alternates every day between wet lab and dry lab. Wet lab is cadaver lab. Ben is part of a group of nine students who work together on the same body all semester. There are a couple dozen different groups of students. Dry lab is in another room, where students study bones and other things that do not include body juices and formaldehyde. After lab, he usually stays at school to study with friends.
Ben comes home around 6:00pm for dinner. After dinner is – you guessed it – more studying! Usually, Ben goes back to the auditorium for quiet study.
Late in the evening, after a loud and exciting game of ping-pong, Ben comes home again. We have a little time to talk and then we do devotions together – worship songs, prayer and reading a Christian marriage book. Ben does the last of his studying and then turns off the light around 10:30 or 11:00.
This blog post prompted followers to ask: “What about you, Breanna? What is your typical day in St. Maarten like?” We will supply her answer to that question next week.
