advice

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taydoctor

15 year old wannabe MD
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I am 14 years old, and I have my sights set on becoming a doctor. I am thinking about becoming a Cardiologist, Orthopaedic surgeon, or a ER doctor, I am open to any other fields as well. I was wondering if anybody has any positive advice for my path to becoming a Doctor. It would be greatly appreciated.
 
taydoctor said:
I am 14 years old, and I have my sights set on becoming a doctor. I am thinking about becoming a Cardiologist, Orthopaedic surgeon, or a ER doctor, I am open to any other fields as well. I was wondering if anybody has any positive advice for my path to becoming a Doctor. It would be greatly appreciated.

Step 1: Finish high school.
Step 2: Go to college.
Step 3: Maintain a high GPA in college.

The other details will work themselves out as time goes by.
 
And keep an open mind. Your dreams may change. Nothing wrong with having a goal and working for it at a young age . . . but understand that nothing is set in stone. That's not a function of youth . . . just a function of being human.
 
The previous replies are both good advice, but I would also suggest perhaps volunteering at your local hospital. I did this in high school and I believe it is a reasonable way to become more familiar with what medicine actually is, as opposed to popularized interpretations as seen on TV. You may find that it is not for you, or you may find that it is everything you had hoped it would be. Either way you will be simultaneously educating yourself on your proposed career path, as well as possibly doing some good for the hospital and community.
 
Volunteering is a great start. The other thing you'll need to add is shadowing-essentially follow a doctor around so you can see what it's really like. If you're able to spend the next three years doing those things on a regular basis, AND maintain a perfect or near-perfect high school GPA, AND after all of this you still want to be a doctor, then a few colleges offer joint BS/MD programs. Typically, admission is very competitive, but if admitted, you complete only two years of undergraduate coursework and immediately enter medical school. Usually you only have to meet minimum requirements during your undergraduate years. These programs are only for very hard workers who've had a lot of experience with hospitals/doctors in high school, and the very large disadvantage is that in college, you don't get to choose any of your courses. You'll never be able to study music, or literature, or politics-it'll be all science all the time, and on graduation day, you risk being a medical idiot savant with no friends, no social skills, and no experience with life outside of medicine. (That last part is just my opinion.)
Good luck with the volunteering!
 
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