Taking the plunge...

[jschu121]

I'm curious about others' experiences going into medicine after working or other full time ventures. I applied and got into med school right after college but declined the offer I was burned out. A close friend was diagnosed with depression and the whole experience left me emotionally and mentally exhausted. I took a job as a chemist and really like what I do, but I'm thinking about medicine again. It would be more of a challenge than the traditional route I'm sure, but I'm curious if any one thinks they're better prepared after work and life experiences.

I've developed a better work ethic and schedule than when in school and I'm less distracted. I think I'm more mature (relatively) and can concentrate better on things. I've never been one to cram or study inefficiently (book open while texting, checking facebook, etc.). Am I delusional to think I can tackle med school like 50-60 hour per week job (at least the first two years)?

I should note I consider medicine a job. I'm not called to any profession, but I am willing to work hard for things. I like reasoning and problem solving, and medicine is a steady career.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts and experiences.

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[mspeedwagon]

Given your background, you'll be fine in medical school. Though, I'd ask myself why medicine in your case. There are other jobs out there (and some of them pay more with a lot less school).

You can do it. I'd only ask myself if you really do want to do it.

I'm curious about others' experiences going into medicine after working or other full time ventures. I applied and got into med school right after college but declined the offer I was burned out. A close friend was diagnosed with depression and the whole experience left me emotionally and mentally exhausted. I took a job as a chemist and really like what I do, but I'm thinking about medicine again. It would be more of a challenge than the traditional route I'm sure, but I'm curious if any one thinks they're better prepared after work and life experiences.

I've developed a better work ethic and schedule than when in school and I'm less distracted. I think I'm more mature (relatively) and can concentrate better on things. I've never been one to cram or study inefficiently (book open while texting, checking facebook, etc.). Am I delusional to think I can tackle med school like 50-60 hour per week job (at least the first two years)?

I should note I consider medicine a job. I'm not called to any profession, but I am willing to work hard for things. I like reasoning and problem solving, and medicine is a steady career.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts and experiences.

 

[jschu121]

I think you hit it on the head, mspeedwagon. This is the fundamental question I'm grappling with and I'm hoping (perhaps in vain) that asking other questions will help with the critical one. Did you happen to ask a similar question at some point? There's an extra barrier to pursuing med school as a nontraditional student, given the significant life changes that accompany the decision. Did you notice that?

I like the science behind medicine and think I would enjoy learning the subject matter. I like problem solving and the process of diagnosis (on cars and mechanical devices at least). One of my shadowing experiences was with a surgicenter anesthesiologist. He had a sweet gig - 6-3, stimulating, fast paced, low stress. This may have misconstrued my view of medicine, but this seemed awesome.

I know I may have the wrong motivations for medicine, but these motivations would certainly fit most other jobs.

 

[mspeedwagon]

I think, to some extent, all of us non-trads ask the question, "why should I give up what I am now doing to pursue medicine." My factors were different from yours. After I graduated college, I knew I wanted to pursue health care in some capacity. I had two limitations however (a GPA lower than my peers [3.54 overall, 3.4 science]) and the fact that I didn't have a green card or US citizenship (most medical schools don't accept international students, and even those that do, do not give them loans, so I had no way to pay for school). Long story short, I decided to work at a hospital and currently I run and monitor clinical trials at a biotech firm (which gives you exposure to health care, and after the first few years is relatively high paying).

Pursuing medicine is hard. Pursuing medicine without a calling or strong desire is harder. Many people like the idea of the job, but more than a few friends of mine have said if they were to do it all over again they'd do something else. I love working with kids and can't wait to be the doctor helping children (I've never seen myself doing anything else and would do it for free (if someone paid for medical school for me)). Given this, I'll be leaving a 100k a year salary for medicine (hopefully).

I don't know if that really answered your question. Probably not. I think the gist of my post is I came to the conclusion that medicine is for my for X,Y and Z reasons. You need to outline those reasons for yourself. If it's solely the science the interests you, I'd work in biotech (high pay, a chance to apply science, better hours etc.). If you want more beyond that, than outline your reasons for medicine before you take the plunge.

I think you hit it on the head, mspeedwagon. This is the fundamental question I'm grappling with and I'm hoping (perhaps in vain) that asking other questions will help with the critical one. Did you happen to ask a similar question at some point? There's an extra barrier to pursuing med school as a nontraditional student, given the significant life changes that accompany the decision. Did you notice that?

I like the science behind medicine and think I would enjoy learning the subject matter. I like problem solving and the process of diagnosis (on cars and mechanical devices at least). One of my shadowing experiences was with a surgicenter anesthesiologist. He had a sweet gig - 6-3, stimulating, fast paced, low stress. This may have misconstrued my view of medicine, but this seemed awesome.

I know I may have the wrong motivations for medicine, but these motivations would certainly fit most other jobs.

 

[vanslix]

For me, the time in between definitely helped prepare me to become a better doc so I wouldn't worry about that much. But if you're not feeling a strong pull to become a doc, I'd rethink it. The training is long and requires many sacrifices. You give up a lot financially during that time period. There are other careers that can provide a good living with a lot less sacrifice. I don't think your motivation is wrong, per se. I don't believe that good doctors have to have some selfless notion of trying to save the world. It's a career like any other except what the training demands of you. It just may leave you concluding that the sacrifices aren't worth it if there's not some other deep seated desire to become a doctor.

 

[jschu121]

Thanks for your input vanslix. I'm glad to hear that time off before med school can be helpful. It seems I have to take a good personal inventory on this one.