Is Med School really for you?

[michuleta]

Just wondering if anyone has any doubts about if med school is really the right avenue for them. I was a pre-med/humanities major and I am finding things that I love about literature as well as medicine. They are two very different fields and often times I feel torn about which one I truly want to pursue. I have had some really fascinating experiences in clinics as well as abroad as a pre-med but I sometimes have doubts about pursuing such a demanding career if I am not 100% sure. Just wondering if anyone out there has had a similar situation as well as any advice on how to make the biggest decision of your life? Thanks!

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[shamthis]

doubt is such a funny word.

doubt. why the heck is there a b in doubt.

dou-b-t
douBt

 

[VienneseWaltz]

michuleta--I pm'd you.

 

[bwc77]

I'm in the exact same boat that you are in. I'm a sophmore English major (premed), and sometimes I think that it might be more fulfilling to just double major in English/History, forget about premed, and go to grad school. The only problem is that I really don't want to teach. I'd just like to learn the subjects because I have a strong interest in them. That is not a very practical reason, though. I could write books, but that is about as stable as playing dice. I actually wouldn't mind being a professional student for the rest of my life, though that is a bit selfish...

 

[tBw]

1. doubt. Everyone has it, or at least I believe they do. I think someone that *doesn't* have any is probably not thinking about it hard enough! In most decisions you will have some doubt, and this is an important decision, so it's important to assess whether your doubts are large enough to warrant not going. You don't have to be 110% sure, or even 99%. There's only one way to know 100% if it was right or not, and that's to do it. However, see "choices"

2. choices. Just because you choose not to go to med school today does not mean you will never go. You could take some time off and decide to come back to medicine later when you have explored whatever is necessary for you to make this decision. Choices ALSO mean that you don't have to be a doctor even if you go to medical school. People do drop out in week 1 of medical school People drop out after 1 or 2 or 3 years. Some people do the whole degree then go do something else. Okay, so it's not ideal, but you should keep in mind that you almost *always* have choices. If you decide you don't like it, go do something else. Especially if you complete the degree there will be plenty of other careers open to you with an MD other than being a clinical physician.

So think about your level of indecision, what else you might like to do, what you need to do to explore your other options, and whether you feel more comfortable going and trying that and maybe coming back to medicine, or just going for it and maybe not ending up a doctor anyway.

I'm very confident that going to medical school is the right decision for me. But then I (a) already went an explored my other options as a non-trad and (b) I think things will work out but I also know that if things don't work out, I will figure something else out.

 

[Deuce 007 MD]

I'm an older premed, and I want to start a family as soon as I finish med school. But residents don't make enough to support a family on. It took me 1 years after undergrad and 2 application cycles to get in to med. school. I have fellow classmates that graduated my year who are almost done with dental school. They'll be making 100K+ soon, while I won't be seeing that kind of money for the next 8-10 years depending on my residency. Hell that's almost a million dollars that my classmates would have made, before I even get a chance to make some decent money. I have friends in dental school USC and UCSF who well be finishing next year, while I'll be just finishing my first year as a medical student. They rag on me, about how they're going to be buying the new MBZ E class, or new BMW 5 series, while I'm still driving my 94 montero. Sometimes I think I should've went that route, because I see myself as a family man first, and a phsycian second. Being able to support a family comfortably is more important to me then being an MD. I just thought I'd share with you guys my case of buyers remorse. Hey but now the down payment is down on this MD car, I've got to ride it out.

 

[Kovox]

How can you know what you want till you get what you want and you see if you like it?

Cha-ching! I would take boy wonder's advice. Go and volunteer at a hospital, or shadow a doctor, see if you like that type of lifestyle. And, also try other routes of occupation.

You can't sit and ask yourself if you like something....without testing it out first

 

[DarkChild]

HELL YEAH!!
this has been eating away at me for a while. for me though its all about finances - it'll take me (if i do the MD only program) 4 years of school and 4 years of residency to match the salary I've been making after my B.A.
i know this board has a ton of idealists on this board - but at some point everything has a price. for instance, right now i am giving up $920K (8X100K+ med tuition, ignoring interest, of 4X30K ) on the assumption that over the course of my lifetime i'll be happier.
what the h3ll do i know about the rest of my life? whats it going to be like when my college roommate retires at 45, goes sailing around the world and just bums around with his kids, when i'm taking call at 2AM because of a GI bleeder...?
and secondly and this will likely get me roasted (so flame suit securely fastened):
are you guys REALLY sure you're ready to deal with sickness, disease and death everyday?
i really dont know if i can face that day in and day out everyday. i mean at some point watching the constant stream of sick people has to get you down. i would argue that the fact that physicians have one of the highest suicide rates is an expression of this.
plus the other really disturbing thing about medicine is how little of it the physician really controls - HMOs and managed care, political and legislative changes and even hospital administration (one MD told me that working as an academic physician the hospital takes 80% of everything you earn in your private practice!!!)

 

[VienneseWaltz]

DarkChild--I think you are wise to think about that. I don't have a lot of advice, as, like you, I'm just getting started, but the people who are further ahead tell me that the rewards make up for it. You see people die, but you also deliver babies. I worry about having the emotional equipment for dealing with it, but I've gotten through shadowing in a peds ED (abuse cases--Jesus!), so I have an inkling of what some of the worst can be. People find ways to cope.

 

[LoneCoyote]

I'm a slightly older pre-med and went through a lot of the same questions some of the other posters mentioned. I was a history major and loved it and was encouraged to go to grad school in history but I knew I would not enjoy the teaching part of the academic life. And I think if you know you don't want to teach academics is a bad fit... we've all had those professors who hate teaching and just want to do research. It's not a good thing. And I have friends in humanities PhD's right now. It is not an easy road. The job market is bad. You really need to make sure you love your field to make it worth it.

I had thought about medicine because I have always wanted a career where I can "make a difference." But I never really pursued science as an undergrad. So I graduated and went out and explored the legal field and realized that wasn't for me. I met a lot of different people, traveled, read, and just explored, and ultimately found my way back to post-bac. From there it has been doing a lot clinical volunteering in different settings, and seeing many difficult things, that has made me realize this is what I love and what I want to do. Am I 100% sure? No, but I don't think we can ever be no matter how much we think we are. So my advice is do what you like and if you stop liking it, do something else. Many of my friends from the law firm hated it and stayed on that path cuz it was easier and are now unhappy in law school. Just have an open mind, explore, volunteer, get experience and realize it is never too late to change you path in any direction. Good luck the decisions. Peace.

 

[spanky]

Don't let doubt discourage you. Going to med school is alot like getting married. Even when you're at the altar, your still wondering if it's going to all work out. Try to think about your longterm goals. Don't let fear rule the decisions in your life.
Explore all of your possiblities.

Best of luck with your decision!!

 

[Iain]

I hear all of the above.

I just graduated University and am working in finance making just over $50K per year (lots of spending money when you are 19 and live at home!), which will go up to $100K next year. With this type of earning I can afford a luxury sports car, a house, and basically be set for a future before I can buy a beer! However ever since I was in junior high I have wanted to be a doctor and I am planning on jetting off to do a post bacc course in Sept. There are many things that scare me about it.

I never took science in college, and in High School I did as little amount of work as humanly possible to pass the class. With no science experience, will I be up stream without a paddle before I even start.

I would be giving up so much, not only financially, but also I love it down here in Socal, and a medical career you do not get a freedom of choice as to where you live. Also I want any children I have to go to boarding school in the UK like I did. I had a great time there, and it really is starting on the right foot into life, however as a doctor will I be able to afford the $20,000 fees that go a long with it.

And lastly and probably the most importantly is my parents. My parents are not particularly pleased with the impracticalities of the whole decision. The realise that I would be throwing away a made opportunity to get myself into a large amount of debt, for something that has an uncertain end.

Will I pick up my stuff and go of to the post bacc course, the more I think about it the more I want to, however the more scared I become of it. I do think I will give it a try, as I would hate to be 50 and want to do it, as then it would be too late.

 

[ashkan33]

gosh, it's as if this thread has been reading my mind for that past few months. what scares me the most is that i use to be 110% and now i'm somewhere near 80%. i guess if you think about it as much as me, it would be wise to ask this: do you spend more time thinking of how much you'd like to be a physician or how much you wouldn't? right now, i'm like 70:30(favoring medicine). the only thing that bums me out is all the people that say medicine is going to ****, and that the insurance companies are taking over, the doctors are losing control, losing their money, losing their prestige, etc. I just want to tell all those people, SHUT THE F#@K UP! stop ruining my dream. don't **** on my career just because you don't have what it takes to be a doctor. the truth is, being a doctor takes a special personality. you must be a warrior, but a compassionate soul at the same time. you must have the guts to knock out some child molesting priest, but at the same time let the child cry on your shoulder(well, maybe it's only me that would knock him out). sorry man, i know i'm suppose to give you advice, but i'm in need of some myself. i guess the only thing i could tell you is: do your best, get a good gpa, good mcat score, and make your decisions later. you don't want to be limited as to what you could do later on in life. best of luck.