My goal is to be a doctor. I am a senior in high school right now and I am going to attend UCR and try to get into the Thomas Haider Program and get a medical degree from UCLA. I also want to do ROTC in between all this. When can I join ROTC? Will it effect me in any way of reaching my goals? Are there any benifits that will raise my chances of getting into the Thomas Haider program or any medical school by joining ROTC? Can I take ROTC after medical school? Will ROTC cover my graduate school expenses? Please help me...thank you in advance

Originally posted by mygoal=doctor
My goal is to be a doctor. I am a senior in high school right now and I am going to attend UCR and try to get into the Thomas Haider Program and get a medical degree from UCLA. I also want to do ROTC in between all this. When can I join ROTC? Will it effect me in any way of reaching my goals? Are there any benifits that will raise my chances of getting into the Thomas Haider program or any medical school by joining ROTC? Can I take ROTC after medical school? Will ROTC cover my graduate school expenses? Please help me...thank you in advance

I did ROTC in college for four years of college before going to medical school. I'd actually recommend not doing it if your career goal is to be a doctor. You can always get into the military through HPSP in medical school, which is a much safer route and smarter finacially. If you talk to recruiters, be wary. I hate to say it, but they really can't be trusted.

The reason I'd recommend not doing ROTC if you're pre-med is that many students don't get into medical school the first time they apply (there's a lot of luck involved). That's no big deal though b/c most people can then just do research for a year and apply again. It's generally a lot easier to get in the second time around. However, if you do ROTC, you won't have the freedom to do that. You'll have to go directly into the military for 4 years. Afterward, your MCAT scores will have expired and you'll have to take them again after forgetting all of the knowledge. Plus medicine is a long path and adding 4 more years until becoming a doctor is undesirable. Furthermore, it could inhibit you from ever accomplishing your goals. For example, maybe by the time you get out of the military you'll be married and won't have the time/energy to dedicate to medical school which is very demanding.

I was under an incredible amount of stress my senior year of college because of this. Fortunately I was lucky enough to get into one medical school, but it was close. My roommate, who had a 35 MCAT score (very high) and was a very good student, ended up not getting in b/c of a couple bad interviews (although since he wasn't in ROTC, he was able to take a year off and get in the next year). If I been unlucky like him on the interviews, I'd be in Iraq right now. Although part of me wishes I was because thats where a lot of my old friends are and I kind of feel like I ditched them by going to med school.

Originally posted by Sledge2005
I did ROTC in college for four years of college before going to medical school. I'd actually recommend not doing it if your career goal is to be a doctor. You can always get into the military through HPSP in medical school, which is a much safer route and smarter finacially. If you talk to recruiters, be wary. I hate to say it, but they really can't be trusted.

The reason I'd recommend not doing ROTC if you're pre-med is that many students don't get into medical school the first time they apply (there's a lot of luck involved). That's no big deal though b/c most people can then just do research for a year and apply again. It's generally a lot easier to get in the second time around. However, if you do ROTC, you won't have the freedom to do that. You'll have to go directly into the military for 4 years. Afterward, your MCAT scores will have expired and you'll have to take them again after forgetting all of the knowledge. Plus medicine is a long path and adding 4 more years until becoming a doctor is undesirable. Furthermore, it could inhibit you from ever accomplishing your goals. For example, maybe by the time you get out of the military you'll be married and won't have the time/energy to dedicate to medical school which is very demanding.

I was under an incredible amount of stress my senior year of college because of this. Fortunately I was lucky enough to get into one medical school, but it was close. My roommate, who had a 35 MCAT score (very high) and was a very good student, ended up not getting in b/c of a couple bad interviews (although since he wasn't in ROTC, he was able to take a year off and get in the next year). If I been unlucky like him on the interviews, I'd be in Iraq right now. Although part of me wishes I was because thats where a lot of my old friends are and I kind of feel like I ditched them by going to med school.

i was a 4 year ROTC cadet as well, and completely agree. luckily i got in on my first try, but if i hadn't i'd be in some medical service corps platoon somewhere waiting to pay off my 4 years.

the ROTC + medschool thing is tricky-- save yourself some stress and just use HPSP once you get accepted somewhere.

can't you also do ROTC and not accept scholarship $, thereby having no service obligation after graduation from undergrad but if you do stay in it still counts as years of service or something?

Originally posted by brats800
can't you also do ROTC and not accept scholarship $, thereby having no service obligation after graduation from undergrad but if you do stay in it still counts as years of service or something?

yes, you can take the classes without being on a scholarship. they don't count toward any time in service (whether you're on a scholarship or not) that i'm aware of.