Can you take time off during medical school?

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cxz7893

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I am an accepted student ready to matriculate this year. But recently I've been thinking about deferring my entrance by a year and taking some time (6-7 months) to travel. I'm very torn by this decision - on the one hand, I am sure about my desire to pursue medicine, so why wait to start my career? A year is long enough that I might get antsy to start during the middle of and then have to wait.

On the other hand, I have always liked the idea of doing something like this while I still have the chance, before committing to this career path. In mind, med school and residency seems like a fast-moving train that sweeps you up and takes all of your focus and dedication (which is actually a positive thing). But I'm worried that in a few years I might regret not having taken this opportunity now, when I will no longer have the chance, with more responsibilities, more debt, older age/thinking about a family, etc. I know, of course, that I could always take a leave of absence or do research abroad for a year, but I'm not sure if that would leave me at a disadvantage for competitive residencies or anything else (no idea for what field I want to go into currently).

In order to help my decision, I'm trying to get a more realistic idea of the potential for time off during school and residency, later training, etc. without too much of a sacrifice to career.

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Grow up, you do not need to go backpacking through communist Europe to "find yourself." So many damn hippies in this generation. Rise and grind.
 
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Lol in all seriousness...if you can take a year off and want to do it, then do it!
 
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You should give up your spot. Hopefully someone who doesn't have anywhere near the means to travel gets it. They'll appreciate it much more and don't need to go on some pretentious hippy trip to justify themselves. You applied to medical school, handle it.
 
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Can you not travel for 1-2 months now? I know its not the same as 6-7 months, but it would save you all this and you'll come back to start school with this experience under your belt. You can learn a lot in 1-2 months.

Most programs will not let you defer only half the year when you start out. Most likely you'll have to defer the whole year or start, get through at least a semester (maybe a year) and then take a LOA. A lot of people I know have taken LOAs either after 2nd year or after 3rd, but its certainly possible to take one after 1st depending on the school's policies.
 
Grow up, you do not need to go backpacking through communist Europe to "find yourself." So many damn hippies in this generation. Rise and grind.
Ehhh I don't necessarily agree with this completely. Part of the reason I didn't apply to go to med school straight out of undergrad was because I wanted to gain some experience in life first. I knew I wasn't mature enough at 21 to start, but I also wanted to work and travel. While you may not need to travel to "find yourself" traveling does open you up as a person and you learn so much from actually talking to people from other countries and seeing what day to day life is like there. It'll also push you out of your comfort zone nearly everyday and makes you a more well rounded person socially. I honestly didn't want to take as much time off as I ended up having to, but having to reapply afforded me a lot of unique opportunities. Out of all the experiences I have had, traveling has been my most cherished. I made a ton of good friends, met my girlfriend who is actually a med student in England, saw a ton of cool ****, ate some amazing food and just enjoyed life. I am actually going to spend 6 weeks in England this summer doing research some more traveling as well. To me traveling isn't so much about finding yourself as it is about learning. I am far from a hippy, and far from someone who shies away from hard work, but if you have the opportunity to do something like that, do it. Even if you only go for a month or two before school starts, its worth it. I took one trip for a month on two weeks notice. I was lucky enough to get my acceptance letter 5 days before I took off. Also you're mistaken if you don't think traveling and being engulfed in other cultures won't help you in as a physician.
 
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Highly unlikely they'll approve your request to defer to travel
 
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Thank you all for the responses! I really appreciate it.

I want to clarify that I'm looking more for guidance from current med students regarding the opportunities for time off during school, i.e. summer after first year, during fourth year, etc. - any other ones I may not know about? I'm not really looking for advice as to whether or not to defer, I'm more just trying to gather opinions about the future for reference. (Thank you @hallowmann for the LOA advice.)

Also, I want to note that I do not feel entitled at all in my thoughts of potential deferment. I've worked part time my entire way through high school, college, and since then, and have saved up enough for travel of my own accord (not to mention worked hard enough to get into a good med school) that I feel my considerations for travel are as deserved as my desire to pursue medicine. Just saying. :)
 
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As @PJ meowerton said, it's very unlikely that a school would allow you to defer just so you can travel. That said, summer after first year and possibly during fourth year depending on residency interviews, away rotations, step 2 etc. are your best bets for travel time. You could also look into any global electives your school may offer during fourth year.
 
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Taking 1 year off is $250-500k+ in lost income. Not worth it. You will have more than enough time to travel during the summer after first year. Some of my 4th year classmates effectively had 20+ weeks of vacation time this year (vacation weeks+international electives+"research" electives).
 
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@Chemdude is right, taking a year off isn't necessarily the most financially sound decision and you will absolutely have more opportunities to travel! It may be worth checking out the global health options at your school to see if they offer any summer programs that will allow you to travel between first and second year. Additionally, there are vacations and time off that you'll have scattered throughout your four years. If you're very serious about wanting to spend a lot of time traveling I would consider arranging your fourth year to maximize the time you have off (it's definitely possible) and spend a few months abroad. There will also be opportunities to travel as a resident despite what people may say. A lot of my friends who recently matched have trips built into their residency programs during intern year and another friend who recently completed his intern year is taking about 6 weeks off to go backpacking around SE Asia. Basically you should feel comforted that there are many, many options for traveling and right now you may just be panicking a little bit since getting into medical school can elicit all sorts of crazy emotions especially when you think about how the future will play out. Regardless, it's not necessary to do anything drastic so think about/look into your options for traveling and take advantage of the time off you have and you'll be fine :)

Side note: I went to Europe the summer before I started medical school and was also able to travel to South America during spring break and this was first year alone so if you're worried about traveling earlier rather than later there will definitely be opportunities. You'll be fine.
 
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Thank you all for the responses! I really appreciate it.

I want to clarify that I'm looking more for guidance from current med students regarding the opportunities for time off during school, i.e. summer after first year, during fourth year, etc. - any other ones I may not know about? I'm not really looking for advice as to whether or not to defer, I'm more just trying to gather opinions about the future for reference. (Thank you @hallowmann for the LOA advice.)

Also, I want to note that I do not feel entitled at all in my thoughts of potential deferment. I've worked part time my entire way through high school, college, and since then, and have saved up enough for travel of my own accord (not to mention worked hard enough to get into a good med school) that I feel my considerations for travel are as deserved as my desire to pursue medicine. Just saying. :)

I can respect that you don't see it as entitled and I understand where you're coming from, but I wouldn't count on medical schools agreeing with you. They're more likely to see it as "this person applied to medical school but must not be serious about it if they don't want to start after all."

Leaves of absence are typically granted for things like family emergencies, health issues and sometimes research/grant opportunities, but generally not unstructured travel.

You should have free time to travel this summer and the summer between your first and second year. Fourth year depends on your school.
 
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I can respect that you don't see it as entitled and I understand where you're coming from, but I wouldn't count on medical schools agreeing with you. They're more likely to see it as "this person applied to medical school but must not be serious about it if they don't want to start after all."

Leaves of absence are typically granted for things like family emergencies, health issues and sometimes research/grant opportunities, but generally not unstructured travel.

You should have free time to travel this summer and the summer between your first and second year. Fourth year depends on your school.

This is generally true. A caveat is that I know of people that have taken LOAs from top 20 MD schools with little more than a claim that they want to develop an app/startup. Depending on the school, it might not take much to convince them of giving you an LOA if you're in good standing.
 
you'll have a solid 2 months at the end of M4 to travel. you also might need to take a year for other, legitimate reasons, such as publishing derm case reports in between m3 and m4 because you realize (and, given your OP, this is quite likely), that you do not pack the requisite equipment to serve in a real specialty like general surgery and you need to buff your app, in which case you can take a few months to begin an extraordinarily long longitudinal, n=1 study on melanoma risk factors
 
Taking 1 year off is $250-500k+ in lost income...
Meh, if OP is not ready to commit to the medical field whole hog, he will become disenchanted, maybe drop out. Then we are talking about $150k in tuition debt he will lose, not income. Don't go until you are ready because once you are in, it's a never ending journey.

FWIW you can't live your life counting your future income and focusing on what you might forego. Things happen at their own pace and rushing into certain situations really might just mean you'll burn out a year earlier or get that heart attack that much quicker.
 
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Grow up, you do not need to go backpacking through communist Europe to "find yourself." So many damn hippies in this generation. Rise and grind.

Have you ever outsided before bro? Although I will agree, why the **** go to Europe? Get your hands a little dirty and do real backpacking in the US. We have millions of miles of the most beautiful trails in the universe.
 
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Yes, you will likely have time to travel but it depends on your individual curriculum. At a minimum you will likely get at least a couple of months off during fourth year to travel. You may also be able to swing a week or two during your step 1 studying (along with the concurrent sacrifice in study time). I had a few classmates that went on a literal globetrotting tour for six weeks toward the end of fourth year. Many people did all kinds of traveling during fourth year.

I suppose you could also just peace out while school is actually in session, but that's probably not the best idea.

I would agree that putting time off to "find yourself, bro - gimmie that bong" probably isn't a wise decision. But you do whatever it is you feel is necessary. I think asking for a deferral for what is essentially a year of personal time is a really poor move, though. You should've waited to apply until after you completed this grand adventure. When you applied, you implicitly told schools that you intend to matriculate the following fall. Deferrals are used more exceptional circumstances, not ordinary "let's travel the world" trips. I'm not one to get on the "THAT'S MY SPOT, GIVE IT UP!" bandwagon, but I think in this case the right thing to do would be to withdraw and reapply. Really, the right move would be to just matriculate and make time to travel during school.

With respect to residency, you will get vacation time but depending on the field the practical matter of actually using that vacation time is highly variable. I'm in a "chill" specialty, for example, and we aren't allowed to take more than a week off at a time unless there specific circumstances that require it.
 
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I am an accepted student ready to matriculate this year. But recently I've been thinking about deferring my entrance by a year and taking some time (6-7 months) to travel. I'm very torn by this decision - on the one hand, I am sure about my desire to pursue medicine, so why wait to start my career? A year is long enough that I might get antsy to start during the middle of and then have to wait.

On the other hand, I have always liked the idea of doing something like this while I still have the chance, before committing to this career path. In mind, med school and residency seems like a fast-moving train that sweeps you up and takes all of your focus and dedication (which is actually a positive thing). But I'm worried that in a few years I might regret not having taken this opportunity now, when I will no longer have the chance, with more responsibilities, more debt, older age/thinking about a family, etc. I know, of course, that I could always take a leave of absence or do research abroad for a year, but I'm not sure if that would leave me at a disadvantage for competitive residencies or anything else (no idea for what field I want to go into currently).

In order to help my decision, I'm trying to get a more realistic idea of the potential for time off during school and residency, later training, etc. without too much of a sacrifice to career.
I had a close friend of mine request a deferral from her school to go travel for the year (She lived in Australia and New Zealand the whole time and had a blast). Besides the fun she had, she was able to more or less find herself in terms of making that final maturation before starting medical school (and it was for the better she left as a carefree person and came back ready to make the plunge and get serious). I think others on this forum have good points but honestly it should be what you feel is right for you.

Many argue it is a waste of time to take a research year in the middle of studies, or pursue a JD in the middle of medical school, etc. Everyone has an opinion on a matter. Do what is right. I know the "income loss" is vast but to remedy that work an extra year or become a specialist instead of PC and then you more than make up for it. I find it a little shortsighted to be hyperfocused on income loss over a lifetime. Good luck and hoping the best for you!
 
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Have you ever outsided before bro? Although I will agree, why the **** go to Europe? Get your hands a little dirty and do real backpacking in the US. We have millions of miles of the most beautiful trails in the universe.

It's like they always say, the grass is always greener on the other side of the Atlantic
 
I think you'll have pockets of time where you'll be able to travel even if you don't defer. For starters, if you want to do nothing between your first and second year, you can!

You can also take step 1 early (I took mine a month before 3rd year started) and knock out some travel then.

During third year? Not much time. But fourth year? At my school, at least, I could get up to three months off just because my school allowed it in addition to doing an online elective, an independent study (total 8 weeks), and a longitudinal elective that was essentially 80 hours of work in underserved communities (4 more weeks). In total, 6 months off or on an elective that did not require my participation in person.

So you'll definitely have time to travel. Just use your time wisely!


Large dogs
 
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Thank you all for your responses and opinions. some were more helpful than others (lol), but all were definitely appreciated. Truly - thank you for your time.

(Thank you especially to the insights of @prettylittlebird, @Law2Doc and @general987)
 
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You should give up your spot. Hopefully someone who doesn't have anywhere near the means to travel gets it. They'll appreciate it much more and don't need to go on some pretentious hippy trip to justify themselves. You applied to medical school, handle it.
I find this very rude. The OP is asking a genuine question, if you can't be nice about it, don't be rude too. I don't think he/she needs to give up their spot for someone else, he/she deserved it that's why got the spot.
 
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Go travel summer of MS1. If you wanted to take a year off, you should have done it and applied after it. Chances are slim to be able to take a year off during school and to get granted a deferment to travel. Have fun asking your dean about that.
 
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You should give up your spot. Hopefully someone who doesn't have anywhere near the means to travel gets it. They'll appreciate it much more and don't need to go on some pretentious hippy trip to justify themselves. You applied to medical school, handle it.

hahaha yesss...

GET REKKTTTTT!
 
Meh, your post does come off a bit entitled, tbh. Working part time (lol @ part time) doesn't mean you are owed a deferral year so you can travel around the world carefree while the medical school patiently waits for you to come claim your spot. I worked full time all through college and more than full time since then, but I know that now it's time to face the music and get my butt back in school.

That all said, I've also always wanted to travel internationally for a few months and now is the first time I can afford to do it. Unfortunately, med school calls. Fortunately, I've worked out with my dean how to fit in travel time while a medical student. I'll be spending about 3.5 weeks in Southeast Asia over Christmas break and then spending my summer after m1 in Eastern Europe. That's almost 3 months of travel time. I'm a bit ahead on the research front so I don't feel like this is an unreasonable amount to travel. I think you can fit it in pretty easily if it's important to you.
 
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Med school isn't like college - you can't take a semester of at a time, at least not in the first two years where the curriculum is pretty much set (at least at most schools). I suppose taking time off third year depends on your school. I have known people who took time off third year for research, finish second degrees, etc then use the "free" months fourth year to finish core clerkships.

You can take time off between years and people do, primarily to do research. I'd be careful about doing this to travel. If you interviewed for residency where I am at and the travel was not associated with research or a humanitarian mission trip, I am quite certain you would not be ranked. However, if you med school will allow you to defer matriculation for a year, then that is a viable option.
 
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