Do I need to commit for get out?

[12345a]

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hey guys,

I'm a pre-dent and about once every month or so I meander on over to the Pre-med forum and think about switching. Today was that day. I was hoping you guys could tell me if it's too late for me to think about medicine and if I need to commit. Here's a little background:

3rd year CC transfer into UC Berkeley
Psychology Major
3.8 GPA
I'm going to stay an extra semester (and apply 1 year later than I would have) because I need to finish orgo, phys, bio and biochem
I'm taking the MCAT/DAT the summer before applying
I plan on doing research this upcoming summer

So do I need to commit to one or the other now, or can I hold off, shadow an MD, see if I like the profession, and choose when I take the MCAT/DAT?



please be gentle.....

 

[Mesokun]

Not trying to bash you or anything, but didn't you develop your interest in pre-med or pre-dent from clinical experiences or volunteering? Aren't medical physicians and dentists supposed to do very different things? If you have no experiences I definitely don't think you should commit and then find out later that you're going down the wrong path.

But, the douchebag part of me says: just stick with pre-dent so I don't have to compete with you...please....

 

[NotSur]

hey guys,

I'm a pre-dent and about once every month or so I meander on over to the Pre-med forum and think about switching. Today was that day. I was hoping you guys could tell me if it's too late for me to think about medicine and if I need to commit. Here's a little background:

3rd year CC transfer into UC Berkeley
Psychology Major
3.8 GPA
I'm going to stay an extra semester (and apply 1 year later than I would have) because I need to finish orgo, phys, bio and biochem
I'm taking the MCAT/DAT the summer before applying
I plan on doing research this upcoming summer

So do I need to commit to one or the other now, or can I hold off, shadow an MD, see if I like the profession, and choose when I take the MCAT/DAT?



please be gentle.....

it's never too late. plenty of people decide after graduating. might as well start shadowing though if you know it peaks your interest.

 

[schrizto]

So if you end up applying to medical school is shadowing an MD going to be your only clinical experience? If so, that might not work too well.

 

[12345a]

Not trying to bash you or anything, but didn't you develop your interest in pre-med or pre-dent from clinical experiences or volunteering? Aren't medical physicians and dentists supposed to do very different things? If you have no experiences I definitely don't think you should commit and then find out later that you're going down the wrong path.

But, the douchebag part of me says: just stick with pre-dent so I don't have to compete with you...please....

haha...no I haven't had any experience in medicine, just dentistry. The thing is that I'm not sure about medicine and I really want to investigate the career but I'm not sure if it's too late because I'm a junior. I really don't have the time or money for a post bac program...

 

[schrizto]

I really don't have the time or money for a post bac program...

Why would you need a postbacc program? Postbaccs are for people who haven't taken the necessary prereqs or need to boost their GPAs.

 

[12345a]

So if you end up applying to medical school is shadowing an MD going to be your only clinical experience? If so, that might not work too well.

I plan on doing research this summer regardless of pre-med/dent.
I have 1 summer of 2 volunteer positions and another of a dental internship.


I highly doubt EC's are the 'make or break' factor....pre-med might be more rigorous than pre-dent but a high GPA/Test Score will counter any lack of EC's...and getting those grades/scores is where my attention is right now

 

[meerkatmd]

I plan on doing research this summer regardless of pre-med/dent.
I have 1 summer of 2 volunteer positions and another of a dental internship.


I highly doubt EC's are the 'make or brake' factor....pre-med might be more rigorous than pre-dent but a high GPA/Test Score will counter any lack of EC's...and getting those grades/scores is where my attention is right now

while EC's aren't the "make" factor, not having them can definitely be a "break" factor.

 

[tartrate]

I highly doubt EC's are the 'make or break' factor....pre-med might be more rigorous than pre-dent but a high GPA/Test Score will counter any lack of EC's...and getting those grades/scores is where my attention is right now

I think this is where you are wrong. If you go on believing this, then your life will be miserable when application time actually does roll around for you. ECs actually often are the make or break factor.

I would say if you can maintain that GPA and score well on the MCAT, you have a good shot IF you start getting your hands messy in ECs right NOW. I have a friend who scored a 44 on the MCAT (and very high GPA), but actually got rejected by several schools. What did they say? They asked about his late transition into the pre-med path, and about his lack of ECs demonstrating his interest in medicine (he was an engineering major to start with, and did not take interest in medical school until his 3rd/4th year).

Chances are, your MCAT scores will not be as high, and neither will your GPA. So better get busy mister 😀.

 

[aggie08]

I highly doubt EC's are the 'make or break' factor....pre-med might be more rigorous than pre-dent but a high GPA/Test Score will counter any lack of EC's...and getting those grades/scores is where my attention is right now

Sorry, you're wrong. Not having ECs WILL break you.


Now, on to your real question, is it too late? No. However, it may require you taking a year off to actually get some significant clinical experience and figure out if medicine is for you. You don't have to do a post-bacc, get a job in the health-care industry and figure out what it is you're passionate about - medicine or dentistry.

What is driving you to switch? If you're not passionate about medicine, you're not going to make it through school (same for dentistry, I'm sure).

I'm under the strong belief that you don't have to be "called" to medicine, but you have to like learning about the body and enjoy interacting with people to be able to get through all of this with your sanity.

So before you "pick one," decide why you like or dislike both. If you're really teetering between them, SHADOW A DOCTOR. You have no clue what medicine is like if you've never had any clinical experience. You also will NOT get accepted with no clinical experience.

 

[schrizto]

I have a friend who scored a 44 on the MCAT (and very high GPA), but actually got rejected by several schools. What did they say? They asked about his late transition into the pre-med path, and about his lack of ECs demonstrating his interest in medicine (he was an engineering major to start with, and did not take interest in medical school until his 3rd/4th year).

A 44? A FORTY-FOUR?

 

[12345a]

duly noted tart & aggie

And I plan shadow a doctor this summer

Regarding EC's, I have a few research opportunities this summer but most of them involve environmental science. Will it weaken my application if my research is not related to the medical field?

Regarding clinical experience, as a pre-dent I never came across anyone who used the term to describe their EC's, what exactly does clinical experience entail?


but let me note, it's not that I have no relevant EC's and work experience. I worked my first and second year of college, I had a summer internship (however dental it might be 😉) at UCSF, and several volunteer positions. The way I see it, what is left for me to do (in terms of EC's) is to shadow a physician and get involved in research. Am I incorrect in assuming that this in addition to the research I did as a pre-dent will suffice?

 

[tartrate]

A 44? A FORTY-FOUR?

Yes, and he took the LSAT for whatever reason shortly after, scoring in the 99th percentile. 😉

duly noted tart & aggie

And I plan shadow a doctor this summer

Regarding EC's, I have a few research opportunities this summer but most of them involve environmental science. Will it weaken my application if my research is not related to the medical field?

Regarding clinical experience, as a pre-dent I never came across anyone who used the term to describe their EC's, what exactly does clinical experience entail?


but let me note, it's not that I have no relevant EC's and work experience. I worked my first and second year of college, I had a summer internship (however dental it might be 😉) at UCSF, and several volunteer positions. The way I see it, what is left for me to do (in terms of EC's) is to shadow a physician and get involved in research. Am I incorrect in assuming that this in addition to the research I did as a pre-dent will suffice?

Shadowing+research is definitely a good start. My advise is do as much as you can practically do. Doing research in anything is fine, and even better if you can show long term commitment. Clinical experience is not limited to shadowing; you should try to find opportunities that will give you a chance to interact with patients directly (e.g. volunteering at a free clinic or hospital). For more detailed information, you can search the older posts; there is plenty of useful advise abound.

 

[schrizto]

Yes, and he took the LSAT for whatever reason shortly after, scoring in the 99th percentile. 😉

reminds me of bobby jindal.

 

[12345a]

Shadowing+research is definitely a good start. My advise is do as much as you can practically do. Doing research in anything is fine, and even better if you can show long term commitment. Clinical experience is not limited to shadowing; you should try to find opportunities that will give you a chance to interact with patients directly (e.g. volunteering at a free clinic or hospital). For more detailed information, you can search the older posts; there is plenty of useful advise abound.

thanks

As for the long term commitment, i plan on dedicating one summer to research with several medical related volunteering events. Do most applicants do research year round or, like dentistry, is one summer of research common?

 

[LizzyM]

As an adcom, I wouldn't care when you made the switch as long as you have an informed, mature reason for choosing one over the other. The smell associated with an infected tooth is not a good reason to choose medicine (no lie, someone gave that as a reason for choosing medicine over dentistry).

 

[12345a]

The smell associated with an infected tooth is not a good reason to choose medicine (no lie, someone gave that as a reason for choosing medicine over dentistry).

lol

 

[CoolWhipp]

I plan on doing research this summer regardless of pre-med/dent.
I have 1 summer of 2 volunteer positions and another of a dental internship.


I highly doubt EC's are the 'make or break' factor....pre-med might be more rigorous than pre-dent but a high GPA/Test Score will counter any lack of EC's...and getting those grades/scores is where my attention is right now

Wrong.

 

[c5212]

Not trying to bash you or anything, but didn't you develop your interest in pre-med or pre-dent from clinical experiences or volunteering? Aren't medical physicians and dentists supposed to do very different things? If you have no experiences I definitely don't think you should commit and then find out later that you're going down the wrong path.

But, the douchebag part of me says: just stick with pre-dent so I don't have to compete with you...please....

wouldn't that be nice, to all pre-pharm/dent/opto/podi/underwater basket weaver

 

[mvenus929]

I highly doubt EC's are the 'make or break' factor....pre-med might be more rigorous than pre-dent but a high GPA/Test Score will counter any lack of EC's...and getting those grades/scores is where my attention is right now

Ha ha ha ha ha....

I applied two years ago, with minimal clinical experience, and high GPA (like 3.98 or something) and a high MCAT (top 90 percentile). I got rejected from every single school I applied to, and they weren't all top 20 schools.

Regarding clinical experience, as a pre-dent I never came across anyone who used the term to describe their EC's, what exactly does clinical experience entail?


but let me note, it's not that I have no relevant EC's and work experience. I worked my first and second year of college, I had a summer internship (however dental it might be 😉) at UCSF, and several volunteer positions. The way I see it, what is left for me to do (in terms of EC's) is to shadow a physician and get involved in research. Am I incorrect in assuming that this in addition to the research I did as a pre-dent will suffice?

You don't need research to get into medical school. Just saying. It's certainly a popular choice, but as one of my medical student interviewers said 'if you don't do research, you don't have to explain what you learned from your research. All I really learned is that I don't want to look at petri dishes all day'. Any ECs you do will be more meaningful if you can actually talk about them with passion, not just that you did them out of some sort of obligation.

Clinical experience, as LizzyM puts it, is smelling patients. You need to be able to see what a doctor does. You can certainly do that through shadowing, but you can do it in other ways as well, such as through a job, or volunteering in a free clinic, etc.

 

[12345a]

got it...thanks all