I had the same question but was fortunate enough to ask a friend of mine who just finished his basic sciences on the island. These are some of the things he recommended:
1. use barrels (Especially if you're flying with LIAT): Apparently there's a good chance your luggage wont make it on the island same time as you because a. it got lost or b. it couldn't fit on the plane. The luggages are also much more expensive to bring and barrels can bring you nice amenities from home to make you feel less aware of the difference in living conditions.
2. bring meds: the ride to medical school from the airport is supposed to be quite the ride. So packing anti-histamines was highly suggested to me. Since the island itself is also very limited on the imports, some of the meds will not only be expensive but can be limited, if available at all. So'm pretty much packing myself a mini pharmacy and asked my doctor for antibiotics in case things take a turn for the worse.
3. buy First Aid: i thought this was a little contradictory because even in the book it tells you not to start too early and many students on forums have said the same thing. I think what he was suggesting wasnt so much start studying from day 1, but start annotating lectures and other supplementary information onto first aid book so that its easier to study when its time rather than trying to look for all the old materials and etc. Apparently he and many of his friends said their only "regret" is that they didnt start looking through First Aid sooner.
4. Learn to adjust what works for you: This one he said appplies to lecture vs mediasite, studying method, and food. Some people who thought they were lecture person ended up being mediasite person and etc and it really depends on the person. So finding out what works for you can save time and make better use of it. He said that he stopped going to lecture after 2nd semester because he preferred being able to stop the lecture to annotate, take breaks when needed, cooking and eating when he felt the need to do so, and etc. Obviously mediasite dont work for everyone so its important to find what works. Studying alot is great but studying efficiently is better. I was a little confused when this was mentioned because I couldnt really understand this statement in full context. In general, what I understood was if you're tired/hungry you wont study well so keep your body well fueled, find out what kind of studying method yields best result (not necessarily get you through most lecture slides). Lastly, learning to cook, going to markets and stuff can benefit you greatly as island food does get expensive (apparently some of his classmates ordered pizza on multiple occasion and they were $50 CAD...)
5. Don't get caught up in rumors/drama/cliques: I've actually heard this from my family doctor as she is also Ross Alum. Apparently because Ross is small, everyone's business become everyone's business. Rumors and gossip (Rossip is the term apparently) can bring you down but both my friend and doctor advised me to pay no attention and just "be on my way". There are "elitists" cliques and etc so I guess if you're not into bragging rights and etc its best to avoid them. Finally, some people there look for relationships while on the island and I heard this is a thing. My friend just advised I stay far away from it if studying is the main focus (which it should be without a question...otherwise you really have no business there). Some of his friends were fortunately to have found their partner/companion/potential spouse and etc, but it was highly recommended to me that it wasnt something to get caught up in...Luckily I'm not single so this isnt much of an issue.
