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- Thread starter hamiltonnyc
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I would put a bigger emphasis on cost than prestige. A lot of the texas schools are cheap for out of state. I think they have trouble getting young, smart, driven people to go into medicine because of how well oil pays. Tulane is expensive but they are supposed to like non traditionals and put a bigger emphasis on MCAT than gpa. They are also supposed to have a good post bac program.
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2. Private schools slightly prefer elite undergrads. Trend in gpa is important but your starting gpa is ok.
3. You might be surprised how many aps like this we get in CA! The challenge is showing that you are moving toward medicine and not running away from something else.
4. ok...
5. It doesn't matter.
6. Almost twice as many CA applicants matriculate out of state as in. That includes very strong candidates.
3. You might be surprised how many aps like this we get in CA! The challenge is showing that you are moving toward medicine and not running away from something else.
4. ok...
5. It doesn't matter.
6. Almost twice as many CA applicants matriculate out of state as in. That includes very strong candidates.
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This sounds like a post I would have written 14 years ago when I started my own journey from software engineering for a career in medicine. It is a long haul for certain...
One thing I think I did right was to eschew the expensive private med schools for a more affordable state school. It was more friendly to non-trads and, although my loan amounts are about 1/2 of even most of my classmates (through frugal living and part-time software consulting for 2.5 years in med school), I will still be in my 50's before it is payed off at the current rate (although should be only 2-3 years from now in reality). In addition to texas schools, Mayo clinic is very cheap for medical school (but when I interviewed there it did not seem as friendly towards older students, but maybe it is not that way any more).
To answer at least one of your questions:
5) Not sure what would be better given your skill set. You've been in start-ups before so you know that it will probably be sexier software but with all the baggage that a start-up brings (remember - you'll need lots of time outside of work to study, to which death marches are not conducive towards). Most medical labs don't require much in terms of software engineering, although there is typically a support group/development group for EMR customizations. Maybe a little more boring but without the temporal uncertainty of a startup. Probably the most important thing is to find a gig that gives you the time you need to prepare for med school. Everything else is secondary.
Feel free to PM if you would like.
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One thing I think I did right was to eschew the expensive private med schools for a more affordable state school. It was more friendly to non-trads and, although my loan amounts are about 1/2 of even most of my classmates (through frugal living and part-time software consulting for 2.5 years in med school), I will still be in my 50's before it is payed off at the current rate (although should be only 2-3 years from now in reality). In addition to texas schools, Mayo clinic is very cheap for medical school (but when I interviewed there it did not seem as friendly towards older students, but maybe it is not that way any more).
To answer at least one of your questions:
5) Not sure what would be better given your skill set. You've been in start-ups before so you know that it will probably be sexier software but with all the baggage that a start-up brings (remember - you'll need lots of time outside of work to study, to which death marches are not conducive towards). Most medical labs don't require much in terms of software engineering, although there is typically a support group/development group for EMR customizations. Maybe a little more boring but without the temporal uncertainty of a startup. Probably the most important thing is to find a gig that gives you the time you need to prepare for med school. Everything else is secondary.
Feel free to PM if you would like.
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Hi. I'm you, but older, further down this road, and with a far worse starting GPA. Welcome.
First, make sure that medicine is exactly what you want. If you're looking for purpose and impact, there are lots of ways to do that. Like to solve problems? Stay in engineering or go into industrial design. Like to help people? Maybe consider social work. Like to touch lives? There's a critical shortage of STEM teachers in this country. Or do Code For America. I do volunteer dev work for Resistbot, for example, because I care about civic engagement. FYI everything you hate about Silicon Valley is in healthcare; there might even be new things you dislike that you never had to deal with as a SWE.
About me: 33, just finished my 2nd year at UC Berkeley Ext and am gearing up for September MCAT and applying next cycle. I worked as a SWE at Microsoft for 3 years and then Google for another 6 before quitting last summer. I spent a lot of time in reflection, therapy, and shadowing to understand my motivations because becoming a doctor comes at such a tremendous opportunity cost. Especially for people like us. 2 years postbacc + 1 year applying + 4 years med school = 7 years of lost income + debt. That's easily $1M, and Silicon Valley is a young man's game so there's not really any going back after a certain point. All this to say... read everything and talk to everyone before you fully commit to this. Clinical volunteering, shadowing, and interviewing every healthcare professional (and every older engineer that seems happy) should be your #1 priority right now.
Your timeline is more or less what you should expect. I think spreading out your MCAT studying over an entire year at a very superficial level (average person probably spends more than 5 hrs/week on social media alone) is a bad idea. You will retain nothing. I've never heard of a volunteer EMT gig that let you do 1-4 hrs/week. I've also never had an engineering job that capped itself at 40 hrs/week; if you're salaried you will work longer hours or you'll take a lot of flak from management. There's a reason I left my cushy job with all its perks and that's because it's not sustainable. Some food for thought.
Also, if you're planning to still work despite my warning, then consider moving to a state that actually gives preference to its residents. That's not California. Your GPA is more than fine and assuming you maintain the same in your postbacc and do decent on the MCAT you'll get in somewhere; still it's nice to know that your state med school will help you out. Check out MSAR to see which states these are.
Lastly, no one is going to care too much what you did as an engineer. Carle (the new engineering med school in IL) probably will, but to most everyone else it'll just be a nice talking point. The best thing about your engineering past is that you actually have real-world experience to draw from during MMIs and other interview formats when you get asked about awkward work scenarios, dealing with ****ty clients/coworkers, etc. but that's not unique to engineering that just comes with age/life. Oh, and also the money. You most likely have more $ than the typical premed or even nontrad, and that's a very important thing as you don't need to add financial insecurity to all the stress you're about to put yourself through.
If you get a chance, dig up @DrMidlife 's posts. She was a SWE and PM at Microsoft (among other places) for awhile before switching to medicine like a decade ago. Lots of wisdom in those posts. Good luck.
First, make sure that medicine is exactly what you want. If you're looking for purpose and impact, there are lots of ways to do that. Like to solve problems? Stay in engineering or go into industrial design. Like to help people? Maybe consider social work. Like to touch lives? There's a critical shortage of STEM teachers in this country. Or do Code For America. I do volunteer dev work for Resistbot, for example, because I care about civic engagement. FYI everything you hate about Silicon Valley is in healthcare; there might even be new things you dislike that you never had to deal with as a SWE.
About me: 33, just finished my 2nd year at UC Berkeley Ext and am gearing up for September MCAT and applying next cycle. I worked as a SWE at Microsoft for 3 years and then Google for another 6 before quitting last summer. I spent a lot of time in reflection, therapy, and shadowing to understand my motivations because becoming a doctor comes at such a tremendous opportunity cost. Especially for people like us. 2 years postbacc + 1 year applying + 4 years med school = 7 years of lost income + debt. That's easily $1M, and Silicon Valley is a young man's game so there's not really any going back after a certain point. All this to say... read everything and talk to everyone before you fully commit to this. Clinical volunteering, shadowing, and interviewing every healthcare professional (and every older engineer that seems happy) should be your #1 priority right now.
Your timeline is more or less what you should expect. I think spreading out your MCAT studying over an entire year at a very superficial level (average person probably spends more than 5 hrs/week on social media alone) is a bad idea. You will retain nothing. I've never heard of a volunteer EMT gig that let you do 1-4 hrs/week. I've also never had an engineering job that capped itself at 40 hrs/week; if you're salaried you will work longer hours or you'll take a lot of flak from management. There's a reason I left my cushy job with all its perks and that's because it's not sustainable. Some food for thought.
Also, if you're planning to still work despite my warning, then consider moving to a state that actually gives preference to its residents. That's not California. Your GPA is more than fine and assuming you maintain the same in your postbacc and do decent on the MCAT you'll get in somewhere; still it's nice to know that your state med school will help you out. Check out MSAR to see which states these are.
Lastly, no one is going to care too much what you did as an engineer. Carle (the new engineering med school in IL) probably will, but to most everyone else it'll just be a nice talking point. The best thing about your engineering past is that you actually have real-world experience to draw from during MMIs and other interview formats when you get asked about awkward work scenarios, dealing with ****ty clients/coworkers, etc. but that's not unique to engineering that just comes with age/life. Oh, and also the money. You most likely have more $ than the typical premed or even nontrad, and that's a very important thing as you don't need to add financial insecurity to all the stress you're about to put yourself through.
If you get a chance, dig up @DrMidlife 's posts. She was a SWE and PM at Microsoft (among other places) for awhile before switching to medicine like a decade ago. Lots of wisdom in those posts. Good luck.
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Welcome to the forum!
Your story is kinda mine. I am a 32 y/o M0 former silicon valley techie.
1. You're welcome!
2. "Top 5" with quarters? Go Card 😛 - I think folks like to downplay the importance of one's undergrad institution, but I feel like my Top 5 on quarters gave me a good boost. Keep your postbac GPA strong and you'll be fine. Crush the MCAT and they won't think twice about your GPA. I mean, like, really give it a good go. I took off work and did nothing but study for it for 7 weeks, and I think that made all the difference in my application.
3. I think many schools like non-trads. You kind of stand out just by being one. But, I agree with folks above: you need to tell a really good story about why medicine, making sure why you're running *to* medicine rather than *away from* something else. I think envisioning a career combining your compsci / cs background in medicine would be a compelling narrative. I want to do this with my own tech schools, and schools I applied to last cycle seemed keen on it.
4. My take on this? Don't be a hero. With a strong UG already, I don't think going to Harvard is going to add much to your profile as an applicant. I would instead prioritize where you know you can do well (supportive, non-competitive environment, great teachers with clear expectations, good support system wherever you decide to move, etc) over something fancy. Maybe that's Harvard! I don't know much about the program. But maybe it's at a different DIY institution. I did mine at Berkeley Extension because it's what worked best with my schedule, and I found all the aforementioned characteristics there.
5. I dunno, what's better for you and your interests? Or the story you're trying to tell? I worked as a developer at a health care startup because I was more interested in building products than I was doing hardcore research (and because I felt better qualified as a non-trad engineer as well (bootcamp represent!)). Come interview season, my interviewers were all very interested in the work, and my application pitched me as someone interested in tech & business & medicine, not a hardcore compsci bio guy. I think it helped that the product we built was for providers, not for researchers, giving most of my interviewers more to connect with.
6. My GPA and MCAT were lower than your goals, and I'm headed to UCSF for my MD, so this N of 1 says yes. (LizzyM ~70.5). But I would encourage you not get too hung up on a "top ten" medical school. Going to any medical school is an incredible accomplishment. My friend's father, the head of a department at our Top 5 on the quarter system, said his entire department is full of people from every which medical school. It's not a club for the elite, because medical schools graduate folks with the same knowledge, and if you want to get involved in research, you certainly can anywhere you go. He was comforting me as I was just getting started on the application cycle, assuring me an MD from anywhere opens pretty much any door, so long as you're willing to work hard and meet folks.
Schools that like nontrads include Michigan and Mayo. UNC liked me even though I'm not in-state. Check out Carle at U of I. Everyone they accepted this year went for free. It's a program for engineers who want to become doctors.
If you are super set on Columbia and don't care where you live / how much it costs, you could look into their formal postbac. I think they have a strong linkage to their own program.
Another thought: if you move out of state for your postbac, you'll be in-state wherever you end up. California is the worst state to be in-state for, so it might not be a bad idea to move! I had fantasies about doing my postbac in Montana (cheap, great cost of living, wonderful quality of life, except for being gay in Montana kinda sucks), and then applying via the linkage program to Washington schools, but my life was too much in the Bay. Just something to consider if your heart is set on an in-state California school (though you only mentioned UCLA and UCSF, both very friendly to out of staters).
Good luck! Feel free to respond or PM me with other questions.
Your story is kinda mine. I am a 32 y/o M0 former silicon valley techie.
1. You're welcome!
2. "Top 5" with quarters? Go Card 😛 - I think folks like to downplay the importance of one's undergrad institution, but I feel like my Top 5 on quarters gave me a good boost. Keep your postbac GPA strong and you'll be fine. Crush the MCAT and they won't think twice about your GPA. I mean, like, really give it a good go. I took off work and did nothing but study for it for 7 weeks, and I think that made all the difference in my application.
3. I think many schools like non-trads. You kind of stand out just by being one. But, I agree with folks above: you need to tell a really good story about why medicine, making sure why you're running *to* medicine rather than *away from* something else. I think envisioning a career combining your compsci / cs background in medicine would be a compelling narrative. I want to do this with my own tech schools, and schools I applied to last cycle seemed keen on it.
4. My take on this? Don't be a hero. With a strong UG already, I don't think going to Harvard is going to add much to your profile as an applicant. I would instead prioritize where you know you can do well (supportive, non-competitive environment, great teachers with clear expectations, good support system wherever you decide to move, etc) over something fancy. Maybe that's Harvard! I don't know much about the program. But maybe it's at a different DIY institution. I did mine at Berkeley Extension because it's what worked best with my schedule, and I found all the aforementioned characteristics there.
5. I dunno, what's better for you and your interests? Or the story you're trying to tell? I worked as a developer at a health care startup because I was more interested in building products than I was doing hardcore research (and because I felt better qualified as a non-trad engineer as well (bootcamp represent!)). Come interview season, my interviewers were all very interested in the work, and my application pitched me as someone interested in tech & business & medicine, not a hardcore compsci bio guy. I think it helped that the product we built was for providers, not for researchers, giving most of my interviewers more to connect with.
6. My GPA and MCAT were lower than your goals, and I'm headed to UCSF for my MD, so this N of 1 says yes. (LizzyM ~70.5). But I would encourage you not get too hung up on a "top ten" medical school. Going to any medical school is an incredible accomplishment. My friend's father, the head of a department at our Top 5 on the quarter system, said his entire department is full of people from every which medical school. It's not a club for the elite, because medical schools graduate folks with the same knowledge, and if you want to get involved in research, you certainly can anywhere you go. He was comforting me as I was just getting started on the application cycle, assuring me an MD from anywhere opens pretty much any door, so long as you're willing to work hard and meet folks.
Schools that like nontrads include Michigan and Mayo. UNC liked me even though I'm not in-state. Check out Carle at U of I. Everyone they accepted this year went for free. It's a program for engineers who want to become doctors.
If you are super set on Columbia and don't care where you live / how much it costs, you could look into their formal postbac. I think they have a strong linkage to their own program.
Another thought: if you move out of state for your postbac, you'll be in-state wherever you end up. California is the worst state to be in-state for, so it might not be a bad idea to move! I had fantasies about doing my postbac in Montana (cheap, great cost of living, wonderful quality of life, except for being gay in Montana kinda sucks), and then applying via the linkage program to Washington schools, but my life was too much in the Bay. Just something to consider if your heart is set on an in-state California school (though you only mentioned UCLA and UCSF, both very friendly to out of staters).
Good luck! Feel free to respond or PM me with other questions.
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Your work experience is already a good substitute for medical research. Clinical experience is your deficit.
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Ohh more from me later cuz I'm about to go scuba diving (yay free summer!) but I realized I said "tech schools" and not "tech skills" above.
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Meh you're still quite anonymous. And I personally don't care all that much myself. But I still have almost 0 idea who you are.
Yeah, going to Stanford does not make one a shoe-in *~*~*at all*~*~*. But if you're going head to head with another student with similar everything, I think it helps to have gone to a fancy school. Rankings, elitism, etc. It's unfortunate, but it's alive and well.
If there's a student who seems fine on paper (GPA and MCAT in range, solid ECs, volunteering, etc), my bet is there's a red flag they are not aware of. Perhaps a personal statement that doesn't convince, or has an elitist tone. Or perhaps one of the letters of recommendation expressed some concern about the candidate?
Cool, makes sense! Just make sure you get A's wherever you decide. I think this is paramount. Maybe Harvard's a really hard place to do that?
I agree, this sounds like a great thing to do. I would encourage you to do stuff you're actually interested in too though, because often adcoms can sniff "I did this to check the box" from a mile away. Doesn't sound like that's the case here at all, I'm just sayin'.
Yup you're definitely in-range. If you do well on the MCAT you can apply anywhere.
LOL I'm in-state for UCSF and it's still gonna cost me over $300k (in loans). SF & LA are so expensive. And yep, it's the year prior. It actually depends school by school, but it's more on the technicalities of what "previous year" means than anything else. If you leave CA for your 2 year plan before applying, you will not be considered in-state in CA any longer.
I think there are exceptions that don't apply to your situation since they're more for traditional students (e.g. an IL resident moves to CA for college, applies senior year of college and is considered in-state in IL. In this scenario there might be some odd two-state thing going on, but I think they'd be considered IL)
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With regards to the MCAT, I don't think 5 hours per week is sufficient, particularly in the two months leading up to the exam. I also worked full-time throughout my DIY post-bacc, but I was fortunate enough to be able to reduce my hours to part-time for the last two months before the exam's administration. FWIW, I was scoring around 518 on practice exams leading up to the actual MCAT and on the real thing got a 515 (and that was in 2017 so that was a 94th percentile score at the time, while you're shooting for a 96th percentile score on the current exam).
Regular coursework is -- for most people -- not the right kind of studying for the MCAT. It's just not efficient enough and neglects the focus that dedicated study of the exam itself provides. I think if you're a diligent student and really learn your material, you can obviously do fine on the MCAT. But from the sound of your post, you want to do a lot better than merely "fine." If your goal is a top program, and that's what you really prioritize, then you need to elevate the MCAT in your priority list to the exclusion of your job.
If I were you, I'd do a thorough reevaluation of my position at the end of Fall 2020 and take a practice MCAT to see where you stand. If you're just knocking it out of the ballpark on timed tests, then, sure, you can keep a reduced MCAT preparation schedule (though I still think 5 hrs/week is crazy low), but more than likely you'll realize you need more focused preparation to properly train. MCAT content is a little arbitrary, so even good students can struggle with addressing all that any individual exam can present. And at the 90th percentile up, you need every point you can get!
Regular coursework is -- for most people -- not the right kind of studying for the MCAT. It's just not efficient enough and neglects the focus that dedicated study of the exam itself provides. I think if you're a diligent student and really learn your material, you can obviously do fine on the MCAT. But from the sound of your post, you want to do a lot better than merely "fine." If your goal is a top program, and that's what you really prioritize, then you need to elevate the MCAT in your priority list to the exclusion of your job.
If I were you, I'd do a thorough reevaluation of my position at the end of Fall 2020 and take a practice MCAT to see where you stand. If you're just knocking it out of the ballpark on timed tests, then, sure, you can keep a reduced MCAT preparation schedule (though I still think 5 hrs/week is crazy low), but more than likely you'll realize you need more focused preparation to properly train. MCAT content is a little arbitrary, so even good students can struggle with addressing all that any individual exam can present. And at the 90th percentile up, you need every point you can get!
Hey just wanted to offer support because I have a very similar story. I'm currently a software engineer for a healthcare startup. I think we are not as rare as you think (you mentioned that you didn't think there were many going software to medical school) I think its more common than you think. Many of us were good students that wanted to pursue medicine but picked the easier(shorter) path. Like you said, its definitely not for the money since senior dev is 100k+ outside of the bay, and even more in bay area. I really enjoy my job but can't help but feel like this just wasn't what I was meant to do.
A side note, theres a med school in Illinois (Carle School of Med)that really likes those with engineering/tech backgrounds so look into them.
Anyways good luck!
A side note, theres a med school in Illinois (Carle School of Med)that really likes those with engineering/tech backgrounds so look into them.
Anyways good luck!
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Im going to go against the grain here.
1. Be sure you want medicine. Medicine can be just as soulless as a programming gig.
I would shadow a few physicians and get a good idea, it looks great from the outside , but the day to day is what you should look at.
2. Medicine will impact your relationships, family starting etc. It is difficult to have everything due to the demands of training. take this into consideration when making the leap.
3. Go to a post bac that is either linked to medical school or has a history of placing a majority of their students. Harvard sounds great on paper but buyer beware considering it might be difficult making straight A's there and it may not give you an added bump at the end of the day.
4. I would personally move to a state which has many medical schools that offer IS advantage or where the bar is lower compared to others states to get in. You want to set yourself up to matriculate incase your performance is mediocre on the mcat or post bac.
5. You are probably forgoing 1-2 million dollars+ in lost income making this transition and delaying retirement, and sacrificing hobbies and free time that many people take for granted. Make sure you are ok with that .
I cannot stress enough the importance of knowing what you are getting into see the underbelly and if you still want to move forward good luck. I am sure you are a good test taker and capable of getting it, its just that nothing is certaain in this process and there are many examples of people not getting in with steller records or requiring multiple applicaiton cycles, if you do decide you should maximize your chances by implementing some of the points I made above.
1. Be sure you want medicine. Medicine can be just as soulless as a programming gig.
I would shadow a few physicians and get a good idea, it looks great from the outside , but the day to day is what you should look at.
2. Medicine will impact your relationships, family starting etc. It is difficult to have everything due to the demands of training. take this into consideration when making the leap.
3. Go to a post bac that is either linked to medical school or has a history of placing a majority of their students. Harvard sounds great on paper but buyer beware considering it might be difficult making straight A's there and it may not give you an added bump at the end of the day.
4. I would personally move to a state which has many medical schools that offer IS advantage or where the bar is lower compared to others states to get in. You want to set yourself up to matriculate incase your performance is mediocre on the mcat or post bac.
5. You are probably forgoing 1-2 million dollars+ in lost income making this transition and delaying retirement, and sacrificing hobbies and free time that many people take for granted. Make sure you are ok with that .
I cannot stress enough the importance of knowing what you are getting into see the underbelly and if you still want to move forward good luck. I am sure you are a good test taker and capable of getting it, its just that nothing is certaain in this process and there are many examples of people not getting in with steller records or requiring multiple applicaiton cycles, if you do decide you should maximize your chances by implementing some of the points I made above.
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As a former software engineer who just finished internal medicine residency, I agree with this somewhat. At the end of the day, medicine has its frustrations just like any other job (insurance, paperwork, politics, there are many things you have to do even though you don't want to, etc.). But I disagree that it is "just as soulless as a programming gig." The amount of interpersonal interaction in medicine is significantly higher compared to software engineering; the relationships with patients can be much more gratifying than anything in software; and it's very satisfying to make the right diagnosis and see patients get better (though also very humbling to miss diagnoses, as I did time and again in residency, and to learn that for many of our sickest patients, sometimes the only thing to do is focus on maximizing comfort and ensuring a good death).
I agree, though, that it's important to try to understand the downsides of being a doctor as much as possible. It's great that you went to Stanford, because there are a lot of Stanford alumni in the Boston area who are doctors. I'd recommend using the Stanford alumni website (and your personal network) to meet as many of them as you can for informational interviews (i.e., buy them coffee/lunch and talk to them) about what they like and don't like about their jobs. Try to do this for as wide a range of specialties and practice settings (academic vs. community) as possible, because there is wide variation across specialties/practice settings in factors like hours, pay, patient interaction, intellectual vs. procedural work, etc. And try to shadow widely as well.
Finally, I also agree that there may be a financial downside to going into medicine which is important to (a) calculate for yourself and (b) understand that, even if there is no downside or the amount of downside is acceptable to you, it may be difficult/stressful in a few years to see that your CS undergrad classmates are selling their startups, buying expensive houses, having kids, etc. while you are laboring away in med school, drawing down on savings and building up a sizable debt burden. This was one the unexpectedly hard parts of going to med school for me, though it has definitely got better after med school.
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What great advice - Good job SDN!
I just want to throw in one more pitch for Texas, specifically Austin or possibly Houston. There are great tech and medical opportunities here (more tech in Austin, more med in Houston, but plenty of each in both) and the medical school options - particularly for IS residents - are incredible. Plus it's a really great place for former Californians with lots of us to go around. And Tex-Mex beats Cali-Mex hands down ;-)
I just want to throw in one more pitch for Texas, specifically Austin or possibly Houston. There are great tech and medical opportunities here (more tech in Austin, more med in Houston, but plenty of each in both) and the medical school options - particularly for IS residents - are incredible. Plus it's a really great place for former Californians with lots of us to go around. And Tex-Mex beats Cali-Mex hands down ;-)
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Linkage postbacs do not lock you into that school, rather some of the generous ones offer a seat if you reach a certain performance level or guarantee an interview which is nice. It is a difficult process and maybe you end up performing worse than you expected. Thats why having the linkage offsets some of that risk. But I would definitely inquire about percent of students who matriculate within a year of graduation or some other statistic that gives you a good idea of the support etc. If you are gunning for t-20 med school places like Postbaccalaureate Premedical Program | Bryn Mawr College come to mind that deliver that. Because you could end up with post bac credits but still not be in a great place for applying to medical school.
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I agree that it is not all soulless but people can fall into situations or institutions where it definitely feels like it, but I have seen people become jaded and treat it as such. And fields like rads, path, may limit patient interaction.
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I have a friend at Baylor who loved it and have family in Houston, it'd be an honor if I could go there for med school. And I personally liked Austin; it had a hipster flair and I met the nicest people. Will definitely look at those schools when the time comes, thanks!
However, for med and health tech no area seems to rival Boston (except maybe Silicon Valley, but I'd argue it's too heavy on the tech and not enough on the medicine).
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- Non-Student
The time to look at Texas would need to be now though so you could qualify as an In State resident. To qualify, you need to work in the state and/or own property there (cheap!) for a year before applying. The In State bit is important because 90% of spots go to IS residents (~75% for Baylor) and tuition is around $18,000/year.
Of course, Boston is pretty cool and Harvard is Harvard --
That's how I found out about it, the podcast.
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- Jun 13, 2018
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It's probably not too late for you the same way it's not too late for software engineers to go to medicine.
Would love to see the converse transition and compare notes. You say if only you knew better, and you might know now that medicine isn't for you, but you don't really know if software is for you until you've tried. I always wonder if it's not a grass is greener on the other side, and the only way to figure that is asking people who've tried both.
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- Attending Physician
Currently, Im 28 yo second year psychiatry resident, its too late. I only have 2 more years in terms of being an attending. Im not saying I don't like medicine. I acutally enjoy psychiatry. But earning a good living would have been easier if I went to sofware engineering and with less debt. Im just saying if I was in college as a freshman, I would have picked software engineering if I could go back.
For IT job, wait until you get closer to 50's (or even 40's in the Valley) you could be the first one to get kicked out of door (outsourced or replaced by young grads). As for physicians, 50's is the golden time when you can relax, more valuable, work part-time (still good pay), not worry about layoff (even with layoff, no problem to find new job or open your own practice), and last until 70's... The real problem with IT job is - no need for education, no license... anyone who got some experience can do your job. Physicians have their golden time when getting older while IT/Wall-street jobs have their golden time when they're young/market-rising.
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- Oct 3, 2014
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- Attending Physician
I did software engineering, put that on hiatus for medicine, and now do both as an attending, albeit I am not building large scale production systems anymore and my software stuff is mostly workflow optimization type stuff (and small scale research into machine learning, computer vision, etc). But with my domain expertise and street creds (both in medicine and software), the problems I am trying to solve with software are way more interesting than I would have been working on had I stayed just in software. Also, as one poster pointed out above, age discrimination is alive and well in the software field. While it may look nice on the outside, to quote the founder of BeOS (RIP), software engineering is a lot like sausage making -- you don't really want to know how its really made.