The Arts

As a pandemic-era baker and chef, I (Stephanie) was excited to continue this wonderful and tasty journey during med school, but was hesitant how much time I would have amidst all the Anki-ing and 3x speed lecture watching. I (Annabelle) actually got into cooking / baking once we got to med school, when we had our own kitchens and I realized how much I enjoy feeding people (and it can sometimes be done during the 3x speed lecture watching … )  

We’ve actually found cooking/baking to be such a relaxing study break and an opportunity to bond with friends! Despite some mishaps (using the wrong paddle attachment on the stand mixer … and trying to bake something at the wrong temperature), Annabelle and I have tried out so many fun recipes (black sesame cinnamon rolls and mulled wine, anyone?) and recruited some very willing taste-testers. 

It’s been so much fun experimenting (despite Stephanie’s desire to follow exact measurements) with new foods to feed our friends, and we have so many future projects lined up. We’ve been dreaming about bread, and planning out a multi-course Lunar New Year meal for weeks (roast duck … maybe?).   

Cooking/baking with friends here has been one of my favorite parts of being here so far and I’m excited for more to come! 

There are many opportunities to dance while living in St. Louis and during medical school! Whether you are a beginner or experienced dancer, all of these opportunities are open to people of all skill levels. I would highly recommend you join the WUSM Dance email distribution list so you can have first dibs to sign up for space-limited dance workshops. Generally, the workshops occur on a monthly basis and have covered a wide variety of genres, including Bollywood dance, salsa, contemporary modern, Afrobeats TikTok dances, and more. These workshops offer a free, low-stress, and fun environment to learn new dance styles among your fellow WashU Med peers. I also recently joined the ensemble for the Med School Musical (we’re doing Footloose this year), and I have really enjoyed learning our dance choreography — all levels of dance experience are welcome. A non-WashU space that I have really enjoyed is the Consuming Kinetics Dance Company (CKDC) dance studio. They offer a variety of styles including ballet, contemporary, hip hop, and more, are open to all skill levels, and you can join with a one-time drop-in fee or you can purchase a multi-class pass. Another Central West End spot I’ve explored with classmates is Club Viva, which offers complimentary intro lessons to salsa and bachata on Thursday nights.

If you’re a fellow creative human, make sure to continue investing time in your art while you’re a medical student! Finding the right balance of time management can be tricky, but setting aside time to create has been very rewarding for me. Photography and blogging is a big part of my life, and by setting aside time each week (although admittedly not exam weeks) to prioritize my art has allowed me to have an identity outside of medical school and keep me thinking beyond medicine. If you like creating with others, there’s Art to Heart (an art and crafts club that puts on an art show), Doctored (a photography group), Narrative Medicine (for creative writing), and Hippocrene (an annual literary and visual arts magazine).

I have been a musician for my whole life, and continuing to play in ensembles was something I was hoping to be able to continue upon coming to medical school. I was incredibly excited when I found out that medical students are more than welcome in any of the ensembles over on the Danforth Campus — both the Wind Ensemble and the Orchestra, as well as the smaller ensembles. Myself and another first-year medical student are both in the Wind Ensemble, and it is a great time every week to destress and make music with others! Rehearsals for Wind Ensemble are on Thursdays from 7–9:30 p.m., so it is a lower time commitment and easy to fit into our schedules. Additionally, those that want to participate in the Medical School Musical can join the pit orchestra! Logistically, the auditions for the Danforth ensembles usually occur the week before the Medical School Orientation, so just make sure you factor that into your arrival date or reach out to the ensemble manager to work something out!