Being a college student, it is almost guaranteed that one of the first three questions asked of you by every new person you meet will be the classic “what is your major?" If you’re lucky enough, that will quickly be followed by “and what are you hoping to do with that?” Most of us have answered these questions so many times that we can answer them without even thinking about it.

Our perfectly-crafted responses include just enough detail to satisfy everyone’s curiosity, without discussing the three million times we’ve questioned ourselves and how we still aren’t even 100% sure that we’ve made the right choice. Despite this automated response that most of us have, these questions can actually stir up quite the existential crisis, especially in the case of a pre-med student.

I, too, have my automated responses to “what is your major?” and “what do you plan on doing with that?”, therefore I do not mind answering those questions (even for the umpteenth time). What I do mind is when people hear that I'm pre-med and start firing off follow-up questions like we’re suddenly in the speed round of a new game show called “your life goals, motives, and how you’ll get there—in painful detail!”

No, I do not know what medical school I will attend. Yes, I’m passionate about my studies (but no, I don’t have a 4.0). No, I do not know what specialty I will choose.

It seems to be a common misconception that every pre-med student loves talking about the fact that they are pre-med. I’ll be the first to say that I genuinely love what I am studying, and I’m more than excited to become a physician one day.

However, my specific reasons for wanting to become a physician are fairly personal, and not necessarily something I’d like to discuss with someone I met two minutes prior. Also, I think I can speak for many of us pre-meds who have other passions that we would perhaps like people to know about before we are inevitably stereotyped as the pre-med student who drinks far too much coffee, is known for skipping social events to study, and thinks highly of themselves for doing so.

At the end of the day, it is no secret that being pre-med is stressful. We are taking difficult classes, often falling deeper into debt by the day, while also managing the general ebb and flow of college life. With all of the inherent stressors and stereotypes associated with being a pre-med student, doesn’t it make sense that some of us do not want our pre-med status to serve as our primary defining characteristic?

Yes, we are pre-med students (and yes, we probably drink too much coffee), but we are also individual people with individual personalities.

Personally, I know that I am a heck of a lot more complex than I can describe within the context of being pre-med, and this is why I don’t feel like I need “pre-med” metaphorically tattooed on my forehead. It’s never the first thing I introduce myself with, and sometimes it’s not even the second, or third, or fifth. And that is ok.

We shouldn’t feel obligated to have the answers to everyone’s questions, and we shouldn’t have to shout things from rooftops to prove that they are a part of us.