1/2 md--> ?

[MSforMS]

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This is the best forum I could think of to post this in, so thanks in advance for your tolerance 🙂

I completed the first two years of an MD plus 2 third year rotations before withdrawing due to significant new-onset health/disability reasons (in good academic standing, middle of the bell curve plus a few honors). I am currently in a well-ranked law school, and close to finishing up (by the way, it is *definitely* a zillion times easier than med school, don't let law student whiners tell you otherwise!). I hope at this point to aim for academia, specifically teaching science and the law at the undergrad or grad level. However, I have a big fat 'long story' sitting in the middle of my resume between college and law school, and would sincerely like to put some sort of closure on it.

I really love science, which is why I am focusing my legal studies in that direction, and frankly, I miss it because I'm a big ol' nerd. Also, it would really help to have a post-grad degree in some sort of scientific discipline to justify my academia career path, and it would also solve the constant confidentiality problems with why I (seemingly randomly) dropped out of med school, as it just 'isn't done'.

My former med school (domestic, allopathic, nothing special) doesn't have any sort of general biosciences master's degree to bestow upon me for my $100k and years of hard work, only specific subject area MS/PHD programs that don't accept transfer credit. But, I have come across things that look like the first year or two of an MD, just called an M.S. (i.e. the Tufts MS in Biomedical Sciences program).

Does anyone know of any research (or even semi-clinical) program that would allow me to transfer the two years of basic sciences, and come out with a degree without essentially starting again (or having to do a substantial amount of clinical rotations--if this was an option for me medically, i would've finished my last 1.5 yrs and gotten my MD originally). Anything about the Tufts program accepting transfer credits? (I can't find anything on it on their admissions website, unsurprisingly!).

Thanks again guys for any thoughts or ideas

edit: p.s. In case its pertinent--I have a couple of summers of typical med student clinical research, and a few publications out of that (1st/2nd author), but no bench research since college.

 

[PfNO22]

withdrawing due to significant new-onset health/disability reasons (in good academic standing, middle of the bell curve plus a few honors)

Have you spoken with the school's disability services program? Did the Dean of Student Life have anything to say? It seems like in your case, which is special, you could start to work your way up the chain of school administrators.

 

[MSforMS]

Have you spoken with the school's disability services program? Did the Dean of Student Life have anything to say? It seems like in your case, which is special, you could start to work your way up the chain of school administrators.

Yup, this all went down in 2009. There actually wasn't a 'disability services program' of any sort, and the various Deans were, how do i put it, very empathetic but extremely unhelpful. When I finally threw in the towel, the Dean actually emailed back "As much as this saddens me, I'm actually glad to hear it because I don't think we could have accommodated your needs".... This was not surprising because the school fell down on the job at pretty much every turn during my 3rd year, including not informing attendings ahead of time so i had to have 'that' conversation in the middle of an emergency c-section for example. For context, this school was sued by an achondroplastic dwarf a few decades ago for refusing to let him be an ortho resident--he is now (elsewhere) a pioneer in long bone lengthening surgeries in little people, but still very vocally bitter about the experience. Most people don't realize how disability-unfriendly their medical school is until they find out the hard way....most 'examples' of disabled MDs are people with an 'easily managed' disability like paraplegia, or docs who got sick *after* they started practicing.

So, the short answer is that my med school is not going to throw me a bone on this one. Hence the idea of transfer credit to a research-based program that won't cause administrators to experience fear-induced detrusor instability at the thought of having to deal with a gimp student in a clinical setting 😉

 

[StIGMA]

I have not heard of any such credit transfers. Did your medical classes count as regular credit hours like they would in other programs, did non-MD students take the classes (MS, PhD students)? If so that would help argue in your favor. Other post-baccalaureate programs may offer master's degrees (like Tufts).

I have a question, if you do not mind answering it. Why do you want an MS? Would this help you establish yourself in a science-related law field? Is it just because you want proof that you did that work? If this doesnt work out for you, I don't see it hindering your career in law, because an MS as degree initials provides no useful information to someone reading your name/application, as the degree requirements for an MS vary extraordinarily. (There are plenty of recent BS graduates I would trust on science topics far more than most MS degree holders.) The fact that you have completed the pre-clinical years of medical school and have a research background should speak for themselves without a degree, right?

 

[MSforMS]

I have not heard of any such credit transfers. Did your medical classes count as regular credit hours like they would in other programs, did non-MD students take the classes (MS, PhD students)? If so that would help argue in your favor.

I have a question, if you do not mind answering it. Why do you want an MS? Would this help you establish yourself in a science-related law field? Is it just because you want proof that you did that work? If this doesnt work out for you, I don't see it hindering your career in law, because an MS as degree initials provides no useful information to someone reading your name/application, as the degree requirements for an MS vary extraordinarily. (There are plenty of recent BS graduates I would trust on science topics far more than most MS degree holders.) The fact that you have completed the pre-clinical years of medical school, if it does help you find a niche in law, should speak for themselves without a degree, right?

Thanks for your response Stigma.

1) yes, the phd kids showed up in things like neuro, histo, etc. so this does support the argument. unfortunately, we were also graded on a glorified pass/fail system (top 10% got honors, top 5% high honors, bottom 5% fail or marginal), which makes it hard for stuff to transfer.

2) in terms of my 'career in law', i'm not going to have one--that's the issue...i need to be in straight academia for the same reasons i couldn't physically handle clinical rotations--lawyer hours at firms are similar to residency. so, the academia i would be in would be the general undergraduate level, and they don't usually hire JDs to teach undergrads (although a JD is technically a doctorate). teaching at the law school level basically requires that you went to harvard or yale law, since its such a well paid (160k) and easy job, plus being a lawyer generally sucks and anyone with smarts wants into academia.

but regardless of any of that, the issue is that i don't *want* to *have* to discuss my time in medical school, as it is the _constant_ 'oooo what's wrong with you? can't you go back?' discussion.....it gets old, very very very old.... completing such substantial course work without getting a degree means i can't identify anything scientific about my background without getting into this whole mess (my undergrad degree in neuroscience is actually a BA from a psychology dept due to the set up of my mainly liberal arts ivy league alma mater).

 

[PfNO22]

So, the short answer is that my med school is not going to throw me a bone on this one. Hence the idea of transfer credit to a research-based program that won't cause administrators to experience fear-induced detrusor instability at the thought of having to deal with a gimp student in a clinical setting 😉

You should file a complaint with the Office for Civil Rights of the US Department of Education!

Does the school have an Ombudsman? Basically, there will be an advocate for you on campus, maybe a former professor, something.

Additionally, degree programs at a different institution will have a minimum requirement for credit hours taken in residence, that is on the campus with them. So, that means some more work on top of the credit transfer. I don't think there will be a one for one program, especially for a program that you didn't pay tuition to.

 

[MSforMS]

You should file a complaint with the Office for Civil Rights of the US Department of Education!

Does the school have an Ombudsman? Basically, there will be an advocate for you on campus, maybe a former professor, something.

as I said, all of this happened in 2008/09, so water under the bridge. Also, I can tell you as an almost-lawyer that case law regarding what a school _doesn't_ have to do to accommodate a student under the ADA is *most* well developed in the context of medical schools. basically, unless they *want* to help you out, they don't really have to. this whole discussion/conversation is exactly what I am trying to avoid by having something else on my resume than my 'long story'--one doesn't drop out of medical school lightly, and the situation is what it is for reasons related to the specifics of disability law, and this is all stuff that was gone through at the time....each new person who hears about it has this reflexive response based on feelings of unfairness to rehash all of this with me and its irritating in the workplace for obvious reasons.

Additionally, degree programs at a different institution will have a minimum requirement for credit hours taken in residence, that is on the campus with them. So, that means some more work on top of the credit transfer. I don't think there will be a one for one program, especially for a program that you didn't pay tuition to.

I don't at all expect to just send a transcript to another school and get a diploma back--I'm looking for a school that will accept *some* transfer credit, which would allow me to complete a research degree without *completely starting again*. At minimum, I'd have to do the proseminars and a thesis. No school will grant you a degree for work entirely done at another institution--all schools have 'residency' requirements that mandate a certain number of credit hours/semester done at that school to get a degree there.