Med school after law school?

[SuperSix]

I graduated with a law degree this year and passed my state's bar exam. The issue I'm facing now - as some of you no doubt have read about - is the brutal job market for lawyers currently.

I ended up deciding on law school after initially being pre-med and not having that work out. I applied to more than 20 med schools and didn't get in anywhere. I honestly wasn't sure what the next step was, and after thinking about my aptitudes and skills, I decided on law school.

So I'm sitting here a few years later, not knowing when and where, and even if, I'll get a job with my law degree, and how much that job will pay. Counting interest, I have just under $150K in loan debt from law school.

My question is whether it's feasible or a good idea to try med school again, either MD or DO. I graduated from a top-10 undergrad, and my MCAT was a 37 last time I applied. I think what hurt me in my application was my pedestrian BCMP GPA - around a 3.0 - and lack of impressive extracurriculars. I did some shadowing, visiting with patients, volunteering, etc. in undergrad, but nothing really eye-popping. I think this is what drove me away from medicine in the first place - not knowing what hoops to jump through to become a competitive applicant.

I'd obviously have to take the MCAT again, as the scores aren't good forever, but does anyone think I'd be competitive at any MD or DO program? Would the admissions committees view me negatively because I'm applying after I got my law degree - would they think I'm a quitter or have no direction, etc.?

Another big concern is cost. Looking the cost of attendance for med school, and adding in my law school debt, I'd be staring down $300K minimum, plus interest. Even with a physician's salary, can I even hope to pay that off in a reasonable amount of time? Or is this just a terrible idea?

Would love some feedback from you guys. I do honestly think I would enjoy being a doctor as much as I did in undergrad, just as I would enjoy lawyering if I can ever get a job. I'm going to continue to try to put my law degree to use for the time being, but if another six to twelve months pass with no job, I'm seriously thinking about trying med school again.

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[RegisBioMedMS]

A 3.0 undergrad is indeed probably what held you back. Assuming you could repeat your high MCAT though, you could do a SMP or post bac MS to prove your academic/scientific abilities. The shortest route... repeat your MCAT, get in the 30s, do a year of intensive post-bac and I think you have a good chance. Applying again without significant science grade improvement seems like a waste of time and money.

And, for the love of Mike (or Pete or Mikayla or Petra or whomever), stop saying you want to go to med school because you can't find a job in law. Not a winning strategy. Focus on the future, not on the past. Find a much better reason for switching careers that has to do with the draw of medicine, rather than your failure to find a path in law. You want your profile to be shaped by the positives in your resume, not the negatives.

So, could you get in? Probably, I definitely have seen other JD students make the switch. But, in your situation, likely not without the extra debt of that year of post-bac, which goes on top of that 300k. Does that extra debtload sink you? Well, only you can anwer that question. It is pretty hard to predict what your income will be post med-school and residency. I can see why it is daunting... and with lower grades, the state schools may be out of reach for you as well, you'll be looking at private tuition, so that just adds more.

I think if I were you I'd start looking for a job in clinical research (the pharm companies pay pretty well and will like your JD... means you are very detail oriented), sign up for a few post bac classes and see what happens. If you love it like crazy and can't get enough of patients, doctors and medical knowledge, keep going until your GPA is in range and go for med school, if not... you'll at least have a job that pays the bills.

This is a tough situation. I definitely wish you the best.

 

[SuperSix]

A 3.0 undergrad is indeed probably what held you back. Assuming you could repeat your high MCAT though, you could do a SMP or post bac MS to prove your academic/scientific abilities. The shortest route... repeat your MCAT, get in the 30s, do a year of intensive post-bac and I think you have a good chance. Applying again without significant science grade improvement seems like a waste of time and money.

And, for the love of Mike (or Pete or Mikayla or Petra or whomever), stop saying you want to go to med school because you can't find a job in law. Not a winning strategy. Focus on the future, not on the past. Find a much better reason for switching careers that has to do with the draw of medicine, rather than your failure to find a path in law. You want your profile to be shaped by the positives in your resume, not the negatives.

So, could you get in? Probably, I definitely have seen other JD students make the switch. But, in your situation, likely not without the extra debt of that year of post-bac, which goes on top of that 300k. Does that extra debtload sink you? Well, only you can anwer that question. It is pretty hard to predict what your income will be post med-school and residency. I can see why it is daunting... and with lower grades, the state schools may be out of reach for you as well, you'll be looking at private tuition, so that just adds more.

I think if I were you I'd start looking for a job in clinical research (the pharm companies pay pretty well and will like your JD... means you are very detail oriented), sign up for a few post bac classes and see what happens. If you love it like crazy and can't get enough of patients, doctors and medical knowledge, keep going until your GPA is in range and go for med school, if not... you'll at least have a job that pays the bills.

This is a tough situation. I definitely wish you the best.

This is good advice, thanks very much. One other question, though - if I decide to go with a DO program, do you think there's much else I need to do other than shadow a DO and re-take the MCAT? My cGPA was a 3.4, it was just the sciences that were a 3.0. Seeing as I went to a top-ten school for undergrad, I feel like that might help a little, though I still recognize my science GPA should be higher for best results.

Although the tough job market for lawyers is pushing me toward thinking about medicine, it is by no means the only reason I'm interested in med school, and I'll certainly make that clear if and when I re-apply.

Thanks for the well-wishes.

 

[RegisBioMedMS]

Well, since you need to retake your MCAT anyways, you won't be able to apply now and
I wouldn't recommend NOT doing classes over the next 9 months as it will look like you aren't really serious in your intentions. If you are looking at DO schools only, you could try doing a few well chosen post-bac classes at a 4 year institution (get As) shadow a DO, get that clinical research job for some good hands on experience, and apply next cycle, but put a lot of effort into crafting your essays. They will be very important to set the stage. And yes, I do think the top 10 university will help you, but just be sure you don't get arrogant about it. DO schools are especially sensitive to and screen out that kind of arrogance, I think. They are not at all into the snob appeal game.

Right now you come accross (at least in this admittedly restricted medium) as that you just want to tick off the boxes and "get in" and get it over with as quickly as possible, rather than really wanting to absorb the academic material, the culture and life path that is a career in medicine. I can tell you that is not often a recipe for success.

You really do need to want it bad to become a physician and specifically a DO, as every single year many qualified candidates are turned away from med school seats and you need to be better and more eager than they are. You seem to have the raw material... now you need some passion. Maybe I'm off base, but I can imagine that this might be a bit hard to do, considering maybe the last time you got really excited about a profession it didn't pan out so well. Of course, I don't know you well (there's an understatement) but if you were my student I'd encourage you to find a way to make sure you are over your dissapointment with the law so that you can move on a bit more and become enthusiastic about medicine. I know this is a terrible analogy (but I'll use it anyways), it is a bit like having a new fiance, if you aren't yet over the old one, it is hard to get really excited about forever and ever with the new one. And, believe me, medicine is a forever and ever kind of thing.

I think a clinical research job in the right place will really help you out there... there is nothing like a year or so of helping try to cure cancer patients to light the fire.

 

[Goro]

MD, no, but if you can ace MCAT again, you should be OK for DO programs.

Keep in mind that your law school GPA means nothing to a med school AdCom.

I graduated with a law degree this year and passed my state's bar exam. The issue I'm facing now - as some of you no doubt have read about - is the brutal job market for lawyers currently.

I ended up deciding on law school after initially being pre-med and not having that work out. I applied to more than 20 med schools and didn't get in anywhere. I honestly wasn't sure what the next step was, and after thinking about my aptitudes and skills, I decided on law school.

So I'm sitting here a few years later, not knowing when and where, and even if, I'll get a job with my law degree, and how much that job will pay. Counting interest, I have just under $150K in loan debt from law school.

My question is whether it's feasible or a good idea to try med school again, either MD or DO. I graduated from a top-10 undergrad, and my MCAT was a 37 last time I applied. I think what hurt me in my application was my pedestrian BCMP GPA - around a 3.0 - and lack of impressive extracurriculars. I did some shadowing, visiting with patients, volunteering, etc. in undergrad, but nothing really eye-popping. I think this is what drove me away from medicine in the first place - not knowing what hoops to jump through to become a competitive applicant.

I'd obviously have to take the MCAT again, as the scores aren't good forever, but does anyone think I'd be competitive at any MD or DO program? Would the admissions committees view me negatively because I'm applying after I got my law degree - would they think I'm a quitter or have no direction, etc.?

Another big concern is cost. Looking the cost of attendance for med school, and adding in my law school debt, I'd be staring down $300K minimum, plus interest. Even with a physician's salary, can I even hope to pay that off in a reasonable amount of time? Or is this just a terrible idea?

Would love some feedback from you guys. I do honestly think I would enjoy being a doctor as much as I did in undergrad, just as I would enjoy lawyering if I can ever get a job. I'm going to continue to try to put my law degree to use for the time being, but if another six to twelve months pass with no job, I'm seriously thinking about trying med school again.

 

[Aminex]

Some bonkers debt figures but who isn't facing that anymore? Declining reimbursement/physician salary in the future vs. abysmal law job market...#YOLO and the Great Correction will clear out all that debt anyway, sovereign and personal. At least you will be able to treat conditions of malnutrition when it hits. No one cares about the nuances of contracts when there's no food or jobs.

 

[woltej1]

I graduated with a law degree this year and passed my state's bar exam. The issue I'm facing now - as some of you no doubt have read about - is the brutal job market for lawyers currently.

I ended up deciding on law school after initially being pre-med and not having that work out. I applied to more than 20 med schools and didn't get in anywhere. I honestly wasn't sure what the next step was, and after thinking about my aptitudes and skills, I decided on law school.

So I'm sitting here a few years later, not knowing when and where, and even if, I'll get a job with my law degree, and how much that job will pay. Counting interest, I have just under $150K in loan debt from law school.

My question is whether it's feasible or a good idea to try med school again, either MD or DO. I graduated from a top-10 undergrad, and my MCAT was a 37 last time I applied. I think what hurt me in my application was my pedestrian BCMP GPA - around a 3.0 - and lack of impressive extracurriculars. I did some shadowing, visiting with patients, volunteering, etc. in undergrad, but nothing really eye-popping. I think this is what drove me away from medicine in the first place - not knowing what hoops to jump through to become a competitive applicant.

I'd obviously have to take the MCAT again, as the scores aren't good forever, but does anyone think I'd be competitive at any MD or DO program? Would the admissions committees view me negatively because I'm applying after I got my law degree - would they think I'm a quitter or have no direction, etc.?

Another big concern is cost. Looking the cost of attendance for med school, and adding in my law school debt, I'd be staring down $300K minimum, plus interest. Even with a physician's salary, can I even hope to pay that off in a reasonable amount of time? Or is this just a terrible idea?

Would love some feedback from you guys. I do honestly think I would enjoy being a doctor as much as I did in undergrad, just as I would enjoy lawyering if I can ever get a job. I'm going to continue to try to put my law degree to use for the time being, but if another six to twelve months pass with no job, I'm seriously thinking about trying med school again.

As far as just getting in, you would get into a DO somewhere, MD most likely. The GPA is really low and the MCAT is really high, you would definitely have a lot of explaining to do during interviews. Do I think it makes sense for you to try medical? No. I would say your debt would be closer to $400k after schooling, and then on top of that you would be doing residency for at least a few years at $40k maybe. So it would be about 7 years before you make a physician's salary if you started right now. Tack on interest for that much in loans and you'd never see retirement.

 

[Escape_Goat]

I came here to make a joke about how you'll need a physician's salary to pay off that law degree when you can't find a job as a lawyer, but you beat me to the punch in your first paragraph.

 

[Instatewaiter]

I will preface this by saying my wife is a lawyer who has now worked in 3 states thanks to us moving for residency and fellowship. It is so common for people to stumble into law. A lot of people don't have a direction after school say, "well I don't really know what to do with myself, how about law school?" They then go through law school only to realize they hate lawyering.

Unlike law school, med school, residency and fellowship take much more commitment. It has to because of the length of time it takes to even get to attending level and the constantly changing compensation and malpractice issues. To think you could go through 11 years of training just so that some patient can acuse you of malpractice and you can lose your house and livelihood. People rarely just happen upon med school. Furthermore, unlike many lawschools, a stellar MCAT/LSAT score doesn't overcome a **** GPA. I can vouch for that.

1) Commitment: My wife was astounded by the hours we work. It is a long, long road and I assure you med school is a but a hiccup in that road. Residency and fellowship are far worse. Your time is never your own. You will miss friends' weddings and important events. This year will be the first Thanksgiving I will spend with my family in 3 years.
If you were really interested in becoming a doctor, you wouldn't have bailed to become a lawyer and you wouldn't have piddled around with some minor ECs when you were interested. Add to the fact that you're considering this only because you can't find a job and I'm going to be honest, it doesn't sound like you're in this for the right reason (which is obviously money and bitches... duh). But to be serious, it is a long road, especially with your GPA, and if you are not really committed, it will chew you up and spit you out. You'll be equally unhappy and in more debt.


2) GPA- your GPA blows. Mine did too and it has become more competitive since I applied like 50 years ago. You wont get into any med school, MD or DO, with that GPA. You will need to do some grade remediation which can be two fold: either take Undergrad courses to boost that GPA or do a special masters program. The latter is what I did. They have become expensive and take at least a year of time... just to then have the possiblity to get into medical school. If you mess up in the SMP, the chance for you getting into medical school then become much more remote.

3) Money, you have 150 K in debt. You will probably have to spend another 30-50K to get in (UG courses vs SMP, applicaitons, secondaries, flying to interviews). Med school will then cost at least $150 K (mine was 200K and I was instate, hence the name) if you are instate. If you go DO, expect that to be $250-350K. Do you really want to be somewhere around $320- 550 thousand dollars in debt. Just to be rosy, you will acrue interest on your debt the moment you step out of medical school and are a resident but wont make the bank to pay it off... so you'll be adding even more debt each year you are in training.

So don't waste your time. Expand your job search and get a job as a lawyer. Unless you are really committed (which it doesnt sound like you are), going to medical school is a dumb idea.

 

[4401]

I graduated with a law degree this year and passed my state's bar exam.

For what it's worth, I was recently accepted to medical school with a semi-similar background: prestigious undergrad, horrible GPA, strong MCAT scores, law degree. Worse than you, I dropped out of an SMP nearly a dozen years ago.

So yes, it can be done -- but only if you truly want it, and only if it's genuinely your life's passion (rather than by process of elimination). Medicine should NEVER be a fall-back plan!

 

[candbgirl]

And you bumped a 2 year old thread. But it would be interesting to find out what happened to @SuperSix.

 

[W19]

You should look into PA school! It's only a 2-year program with the potential to make six figure salary easily, and most importantly less debt.