Deciding to get into medicine after freshman year

[bx123]

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I am currently an electrical engineering major and I am going into my sophmore year of school and have realized that I want to purse my passion for becoming a doctor. Is it too late to being to try and accomplish this as it seems most of my peers already have hundreds of hours volunteering/shadowing/ etc. What types of activities are necessary for applying to medical school? I plan on trying to just do things I find very interesting like shadowing different types of doctors and doing some research, but other than that is there anythign else I should be aware of?

Thanks

 

[I like meowmix]

Yo. I decided the same thing, didn't take a gap year, and am going to Northwestern. It's definitely possible.
(Although, I had already done much community service my freshman year, but I took all my prereqs between soph and junior year)

O ya in terms of advice. You need at least 1 clinical volunteering experience, 1 non-clinical, shadowing, leadership, research, something defining/unique, and a good gpa/mcat (this is very general)

 

[myscreename]

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[Ruhroh]

Is is too late to pursue medicine as an upcoming sophomore?

Good Lord I hate this website sometimes

 

[circulus vitios]

1 year gen chem, 1 year organic chem, 1 year physics (calc or non-calc based, it doesn't matter), 1 year introductory biology.

Some schools require additional classes like biochemistry, genetics, 12+ biology credits, 6+ humanities credits, statistics, 3 calculus credits, etc.

Average competitive stats are something like:

3.6+ GPA & 30+ MCAT (MD)
3.4+ GPA & 27+ MCAT (DO)
100+ hours clinical volunteering
50+ hours shadowing
50+ hours non-clinical volunteering
Research is optional, provided you don't apply to research-heavy schools
Leadership/teaching is optional, although it will help (tutoring, any type of employment, etc.)

Most schools require a minimum of 3 letters of recommendation. Typically 2 science and 1 non-science. DO schools 'strongly prefer' a letter of recommendation from a DO who you shadowed. Some schools have a variation on the typical letter of recommendation requirement: dean's letter, academic adviser letter, character reference letter, etc.

 

[iforget2]

Is is too late to pursue medicine as an upcoming sophomore?

Good Lord I hate this website sometimes

Haha yes this was a pretty funny question.

There are people who graduate from college, have jobs and kids, and STILL get into medical school in their 30's. You are perfectly fine. Just remember to be aggressive in your search for volunteer/ shadowing/ researching opportunities bc they can be competitive and also tough to find.

 

[iforget2]

1 year gen chem, 1 year organic chem, 1 year physics (calc or non-calc based, it doesn't matter), 1 year introductory biology.

Some schools require additional classes like biochemistry, genetics, 12+ biology credits, 6+ humanities credits, statistics, 3 calculus credits, etc.

Average competitive stats are something like:

3.6+ GPA & 30+ MCAT (MD)
3.4+ GPA & 27+ MCAT (DO)
100+ hours clinical volunteering
50+ hours shadowing
50+ hours non-clinical volunteering
Research is optional, provided you don't apply to research-heavy schools
Leadership/teaching is optional, although it will help (tutoring, any type of employment, etc.)

Most schools require a minimum of 3 letters of recommendation. Typically 2 science and 1 non-science. DO schools 'strongly prefer' a letter of recommendation from a DO who you shadowed. Some schools have a variation on the typical letter of recommendation requirement: dean's letter, academic adviser letter, character reference letter, etc.

When you say non-science, does this include a LOR from a physician?

 

[circulus vitios]

When you say non-science, does this include a LOR from a physician?

Usually it's a humanities professor, but some schools allow any type of a non-science letter.

 

[Caristra]

Please do not worry so much or let other pre-meds psyche you out. You do not have to take all your courses in the exact order that they do nor do the exact activities that they do. You need to have some reason for wanting to be a doctor - and some form of clinical experience is helpful for that, but there is no competition over who has more shadowing or volunteer hours.

Do activities that you like, that you can excel in and that will let you explore your interests and take leadership roles.

 

[Purple2012]

It's not too late.

I'm 23 and just startng. I've been going to a community college for a few years trying to figure out exactly what I want to do. Fall 12 will be my first semester on the pre med track and my 4th year. My previous majors didn't require math and science so I'm pretty much starting over. Next semester I'm just going to take it easy and not worry about starting to build ECs and just put most of my focus on school and adjusting to being a student, having labs, balancing work, and getting my medical problems under control. I figure when I transfer to a university, that's also a med school, they will have connections for me. I can't transfer untill 25 anyway, my parents refused to fill out a FAFSA. I dont live with them, Im not asking for a cent, even though they make 200k a year. I just want to be able to get aid, grants, scholarships.

I want to be a surgeon so I'm going to be middle aged by the time I finish my residency.

 

[jlayers2]

It's not too late.

I'm 23 and just startng. I've been going to a community college for a few years trying to figure out exactly what I want to do. Fall 12 will be my first semester on the pre med track and my 4th year. My previous majors didn't require math and science so I'm pretty much starting over. Next semester I'm just going to take it easy and not worry about starting to build ECs and just put most of my focus on school and adjusting to being a student, having labs, balancing work, and getting my medical problems under control. I figure when I transfer to a university, that's also a med school, they will have connections for me. I can't transfer untill 25 anyway, my parents refused to fill out a FAFSA. I dont live with them, Im not asking for a cent, even though they make 200k a year. I just want to be able to get aid, grants, scholarships.

I want to be a surgeon so I'm going to be middle aged by the time I finish my residency.

That's brutal you aren't getting any help from your parents but I'm sure being completely independent will also be nice.