On the Fence.

[Goosey]

Hello everyone.

I'm on the fence right now about two possible things I want to do in my life. I'm 17 years old, going to be a Senior in High School this August. Unlike most students who are unsure about what they want in their future, I have to know what I want to do by September. I have two dreams to contemplate about.

That is to be a Psychiatrist, or an Armor Officer in the Army (or Marines) The thing is, if I go the Army route I really want to attend a military college. If I go to a military college on an Army or Marine ROTC scholarship it will be hard to switch out for a pre-med route. The same goes for starting at a regular college as a pre-med and trying to switch over to the military route.

There is the idea of being an Army Doctor. I havn't looked into it much, mainly because if I'm going to sacrifice many freedoms and serve my country I'd rather be working with armored vehicles than patients. That answer right there shows what interests me more, but the idea of being able to lead a civilian life as a psychiatrist is what puts me back on the fence between the two.

My question to you is, any thoughts on my situation? How did you figure out that medicine was right for you? How can I find out if its right for me? Anyone here thought about being an Officer in the Army? Really, I'm just on the fence and am looking for any information that might help me decide.

Thank you for taking the time to read my post.

Goosey.

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[AryaStark]

You're 17. You're going to change your mind at least 10 times about who you are, what's important, and what you want to be. If you aren't sure going into the army is right for you, then don't. It's a commitment that you really cannot get out of. However, you might decide psychiatry isn't for you and will be able to do anything you want- including going back to the idea of being in the army. If you are so torn, perhaps going into such a fully committed field isn't right just yet.

Hello everyone.

I'm on the fence right now about two possible things I want to do in my life. I'm 17 years old, going to be a Senior in High School this August. Unlike most students who are unsure about what they want in their future, I have to know what I want to do by September. I have two dreams to contemplate about.

That is to be a Psychiatrist, or an Armor Officer in the Army (or Marines) The thing is, if I go the Army route I really want to attend a military college. If I go to a military college on an Army or Marine ROTC scholarship it will be hard to switch out for a pre-med route. The same goes for starting at a regular college as a pre-med and trying to switch over to the military route.

There is the idea of being an Army Doctor. I havn't looked into it much, mainly because if I'm going to sacrifice many freedoms and serve my country I'd rather be working with armored vehicles than patients. That answer right there shows what interests me more, but the idea of being able to lead a civilian life as a psychiatrist is what puts me back on the fence between the two.

My question to you is, any thoughts on my situation? How did you figure out that medicine was right for you? How can I find out if its right for me? Anyone here thought about being an Officer in the Army? Really, I'm just on the fence and am looking for any information that might help me decide.

Thank you for taking the time to read my post.

Goosey.

 

[Goosey]

You're 17. You're going to change your mind at least 10 times about who you are, what's important, and what you want to be. If you aren't sure going into the army is right for you, then don't. It's a commitment that you really cannot get out of. However, you might decide psychiatry isn't for you and will be able to do anything you want- including going back to the idea of being in the army. If you are so torn, perhaps going into such a fully committed field isn't right just yet.

I agree completely with that. Unless I go through some profound experience that makes me realize a career in the armed forces (whether armor or anything else) is right for me then I'm going to default to not doing ROTC.

EDIT: Or I could default to the crazy route. Army ROTC at a regular 4 year college, major in Psychology with whatever Pre-Med classes I will be taking.

 

[AryaStark]

Another career to keep in mind (I am biased because this is the route I am going) is to become a psychologist instead of a psychiatrist. Psychiatrists mostly prescribe medication and can do some research and teaching, whereas psychologists do therapy, do research, or teach. As a psychiatrist you have to go through medical school and do your residency in psychiatry. In undergrad you usually are a Bio or chem major. As a psychologist, you typically are a psychology major and go for a PhD. This typically is a lot shorter than the med school, and the army is ALWAYS looking for psychologists, and tend to have loan forgiveness. They have work out in the field, at training, and VA hospitals are very hot right now. Also, with a PhD you get tuition remission ( you don't pay to go) and a stipend (a payment for being a TA or an RA). So, that is a way you could actually do both. Feel free to PM me about this if you want more info, I am going to be attending a PhD program in the fall, so I know all about clinical psych. Also, although you don't get paid as much as a psychologist as you do as a psychiatrist, you also don't have the huge student loans as a psychiatrist does.
Here are the VA hospital type jobs you could get as a psychologist with the salaries listed. You can put in where you want to work, but this is all US jobs.

http://jobsearch.usajobs.opm.gov/Search.aspx?fn=4274&lid=316&sort=rv%2C-dtex&jbf574=VA*&vw=d&re=3&FedEmp=N&FedPub=Y&caller=basic.aspx&ss=0&pg=1

I agree completely with that. Unless I go through some profound experience that makes me realize a career in the armed forces (whether armor or anything else) is right for me then I'm going to default to not doing ROTC.

 

[NickNaylor]

If you decide you want to be a military physician, the military offers scholarships to fully fund your medical education with the requirement that you serve four years after you graduate. I don't claim to be an expert on the subject, but if you're interested you might want to check out the Military Medicine forum.