Don't know if I should stay or switch

[JustintheDoctor]

So I'm a first semester nursing student, and I've had a clinical experience (yes they put us in the hospital clinical setting right away) that transformed my outlook; I want to definitely 100% go to medical school.
I've always wanted to be a doctor but my mom recommended I try out nursing school instead to see if I actually like healthcare, pts etc etc and I definitely can't see myself as a bedside nurse. I do see myself as the medical students who are walking around with residents on my med surg floor though.

So I'm stuck, I don't know if I should change my major to something easier or stick with nursing. If any of you know RNs, then you know the schooling is tough and could have a bad impact on GPA if you don't study 24/7.

My only logic for staying this major is: Good degree to have just in case anything down the road screws my shot at MD, clinical exposure and becoming a memeber of a health care team, which many trad premeds don't get to experience. I'm also financially invested(expensive textbooks, credits that are ONLY for the nursing degree etc)BUT the problem with these classes is it's going to be very hard to manage As(not impossible) and I might have to take an extra year to do med school prerequisites. Nursing school doesn't leave time for OChem, Bchem etc.

Can I get some opinions?

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[mwsapphire]

This is a tough decision. I would advise you to switch out and try a semester. A doctor is a much more fulfilling career , and if that's what you want to do, then why stay in nursing ? The odds of " screwing up your md" are waay lower than you becoming a nurse and working near doctors for the rest of your life, only wishing you could be one of them. My mom actually told me the opposite- that if I don't get into medical school, then I should stay far away from Doctors/Nurses/Hospitals/Clinics because it'll only kill me. You run the risk of the same thing happening to you. It's not too late.

Plenty of people "sell themselves short" by becoming nurses. ( Don't get me wrong , nurses are important, but some people become nurses because they think they aren't smart enough to become doctors, and that's dumb, but that's a whole other story.)

Do the switch! And if after two years your gpa is toooooo low ( like below a 3.4 or 3.3). You could switch back, and plenty of your credits could transfer over. ( I think intro bio classes can transfer as some pre nursing requirements, but don't quote me on that). You may wanna try out the first pre req ( Bio 1) while you are still a freshman ( and the pre nursing classes are more forgiving), and see if you can get at least a B. I encourage you to try it!!!!

 

[mwsapphire]

/double post/sorry/

 

[femmegoblue]

If you stick with nursing, a whole lot of your nursing science courses will not count as pre-med courses, and you'll like have to do post-bacc time or another year to fit all of those in (speaking to the financial point, this will cost a whole extra year of money). Also, nursing is an entirely different profession and model of care, so clinical experience as a nurse isn't exactly something you can use to show "why medical school?". You can still get a lot of clinical experience shadowing, working in a hospital or hospice, or doing clinical research while being pre-med that will set you up nicely. Plus, if you stay in nursing you'll have to explain "why medicine not nursing?", which could be hard because you'll essentially say "uh I don't want to be a nurse but this was easier because I was already in it". Make the switch while it's still early!

 

[DokterMom]

Make the switch. Nursing might be a difficult major in your school, but by and large, it's not perceived to be a difficult major by most Med School Ad Coms, so you'll have all of the downside with none of the respect.

Don't leave mid-semester, but the longer you stay, the more explaining you'll have to do when you do make the switch. Right now it's a quick and easy explanation. Down the road it'll be harder.

 

[mwsapphire]

*chanting* SWITCH. SWITCH.SWITCH.

 

[LacrosseFit]

Your first taste of your chosen profession should be something that inspires you to continue down that road. Sounds like the first taste of nursing school inspired you to choose a different path. Time to change paths.

 

[stickgirl390]

At my university, the nursing students take an entirely different chem/bio path that is not accepted by med school admissions. You may end up retaking more than just ochem and biochem if you stay the RN route.

 

[JustintheDoctor]

K

I don't get your reply, is there something wrong with that? She's around doctors 24/7 (she's a tech) and tells me how many of them complain about how they have zero time for family etc so she tried to get me out of that path

I've finally made it clear after a "mature" convo that I would rather have a good career than be a family man, it's not my thing.

It's the same way how it was hard for her to accept I'm an atheist and don't believe in her god.

 

[JustintheDoctor]

This is a tough decision. I would advise you to switch out and try a semester. A doctor is a much more fulfilling career , and if that's what you want to do, then why stay in nursing ? The odds of " screwing up your md" are waay lower than you becoming a nurse and working near doctors for the rest of your life, only wishing you could be one of them. My mom actually told me the opposite- that if I don't get into medical school, then I should stay far away from Doctors/Nurses/Hospitals/Clinics because it'll only kill me. You run the risk of the same thing happening to you. It's not too late.

Plenty of people "sell themselves short" by becoming nurses. ( Don't get me wrong , nurses are important, but some people become nurses because they think they aren't smart enough to become doctors, and that's dumb, but that's a whole other story.)

Do the switch! And if after two years your gpa is toooooo low ( like below a 3.4 or 3.3). You could switch back, and plenty of your credits could transfer over. ( I think intro bio classes can transfer as some pre nursing requirements, but don't quote me on that). You may wanna try out the first pre req ( Bio 1) while you are still a freshman ( and the pre nursing classes are more forgiving), and see if you can get at least a B. I encourage you to try it!!!!

Well I'm a sophomore, I've done 30 credits.
I've done psych, philosophy, anatomy 1 & 2, and others. I'm also doing pharm and med surg now.

Thanks for the advice though guys, after this semester I think I'll definitely make the switch, I just have to talk to an advisor and set up a plan to catch up and stuff. Still have to figure out what major to switch to lol

 

[Weirdy]

I've always wanted to be a doctor but my mom recommended I try out nursing school instead to see if I actually like healthcare, pts etc etc and I definitely can't see myself as a bedside nurse. I do see myself as the medical students who are walking around with residents on my med surg floor though.

So I'm stuck, I don't know if I should change my major to something easier or stick with nursing. If any of you know RNs, then you know the schooling is tough and could have a bad impact on GPA if you don't study 24/7.
the problem with these classes is it's going to be very hard to manage As(not impossible) and I might have to take an extra year to do med school prerequisites. Nursing school doesn't leave time for OChem, Bchem etc.

Can I get some opinions?

You understand some of the courses in your pre-med track will require the same time commitment at the same/higher level of difficulty right?
And the intensity is completely amped up a notch after you get in?

 

[Atom612]

So I'm a first semester nursing student, and I've had a clinical experience (yes they put us in the hospital clinical setting right away) that transformed my outlook; I want to definitely 100% go to medical school.
I've always wanted to be a doctor but my mom recommended I try out nursing school instead to see if I actually like healthcare, pts etc etc and I definitely can't see myself as a bedside nurse. I do see myself as the medical students who are walking around with residents on my med surg floor though.

So I'm stuck, I don't know if I should change my major to something easier or stick with nursing. If any of you know RNs, then you know the schooling is tough and could have a bad impact on GPA if you don't study 24/7.

My only logic for staying this major is: Good degree to have just in case anything down the road screws my shot at MD, clinical exposure and becoming a memeber of a health care team, which many trad premeds don't get to experience. I'm also financially invested(expensive textbooks, credits that are ONLY for the nursing degree etc)BUT the problem with these classes is it's going to be very hard to manage As(not impossible) and I might have to take an extra year to do med school prerequisites. Nursing school doesn't leave time for OChem, Bchem etc.

Can I get some opinions?

Have you spent any time actually shadowing physicians at all, or is your desire to switch based entirely off of seeing the med students and residents walking around the hospital?

 

[Weirdy]

Have you spent any time actually shadowing physicians at all, or is your desire to switch based entirely off of seeing the med students and residents walking around the hospital?

This is what I'm trying to figure out from OP.

I won't discourage OP to go med as long as they really know what its going to take day in day out.
Figuring out what you want for yourself instead of what your parents want for you is very good.
Jumping head first into the allure that is interns walking around with their residents without seeing every great and dirty aspect of medicine is a bit dangerous.

 

[JustintheDoctor]

You understand some of the courses in your pre-med track will require the same time commitment at the same/higher level of difficulty right?
And the intensity is completely amped up a notch after you get in?

That's not my problem, my problem is I feel like i'm wasting effort now towards nothing. Obviously while in medical school it would be towards a career that i want. Do you get what i mean or no?

 

[JustintheDoctor]

Have you spent any time actually shadowing physicians at all, or is your desire to switch based entirely off of seeing the med students and residents walking around the hospital?

Shadowed a radiologist(intervention) he's good friends with my mom so he told me he'd write a letter of rec if needed and let me shadow as much as i want.

 

[JustintheDoctor]

oh to add to that post, I'm trying to shadow a vascular surgeon next, i'm just having trouble making time for it. I have exams every week for the next month. I'll probably have to wait for the summer

 

[Weirdy]

That's not my problem, my problem is I feel like i'm wasting effort now towards nothing. Obviously while in medical school it would be towards a career that i want. Do you get what i mean or no?

I understand now.

My only concern was that you were underestimating the amount of time, effort, and energy it will take to get you there. That's all.

If you've done all the research, shadowed thoroughly, and believe 100% you want to give MD a shot, go for it and ignore what your parents are saying. They care about you but it is your job, your career. Not theirs.

 

[JustintheDoctor]

I understand now.

My only concern was that you were underestimating the amount of time, effort, and energy it will take to get you there. That's all.

If you've done all the research, shadowed thoroughly, and believe 100% you want to give MD a shot, go for it and ignore what your parents are saying. They care about you but it is your job, your career. Not theirs.

Thank you dude.
I definitely understand the hard work, hours spent studying and writing reports, on call, emotional stress etc.
I felt like nursing would only hinder my shot of becoming a doctor that's why i made the post. Trust me though, i'm definitely not ignorant, i've heard the stories of 16 hour study sessions on weekends, and being treated like crap during intership etc. It's just, I honestly can't see myself giving nursing diagnoses for the rest of my life and helping to change the sheets of a bed. But I can see myself struggling to solve a dx for a patient, and finally solving it(if you do). I can see myself loving the crazy schedule(I'm a "workaholic")

 

[mwsapphire]

Thank you dude.
I definitely understand the hard work, hours spent studying and writing reports, on call, emotional stress etc.
I felt like nursing would only hinder my shot of becoming a doctor that's why i made the post. Trust me though, i'm definitely not ignorant, i've heard the stories of 16 hour study sessions on weekends, and being treated like crap during intership etc. It's just, I honestly can't see myself giving nursing diagnoses for the rest of my life and helping to change the sheets of a bed. But I can see myself struggling to solve a dx for a patient, and finally solving it(if you do). I can see myself loving the crazy schedule(I'm a "workaholic")

Nurses also work plenty of hours and also have tough lives, so the " family man thing" being significantly easier for a nurse rather than a doc is just not true.

 

[Weirdy]

Nurses also work plenty of hours and also have tough lives, so the " family man thing" being significantly easier for a nurse rather than a doc is just not true.

Debatable.

 

[aalamruad]

Nurses also work plenty of hours and also have tough lives, so the " family man thing" being significantly easier for a nurse rather than a doc is just not true.

Nurses average 36-40 hours per week, doctors average 60 not including call. Doctors work more, and it's not close

 

[mwsapphire]

Nurses average 36-40 hours per week, doctors average 60 not including call. Doctors work more, and it's not close

Okay then. but still, OP shouldn't be wanting to be a doc. and be a nurse and be near doctor's for the rest of his life.

 

[FCMike11]

So I'm a first semester nursing student, and I've had a clinical experience (yes they put us in the hospital clinical setting right away) that transformed my outlook; I want to definitely 100% go to medical school.
I've always wanted to be a doctor but my mom recommended I try out nursing school instead to see if I actually like healthcare, pts etc etc and I definitely can't see myself as a bedside nurse. I do see myself as the medical students who are walking around with residents on my med surg floor though.

So I'm stuck, I don't know if I should change my major to something easier or stick with nursing. If any of you know RNs, then you know the schooling is tough and could have a bad impact on GPA if you don't study 24/7.

My only logic for staying this major is: Good degree to have just in case anything down the road screws my shot at MD, clinical exposure and becoming a memeber of a health care team, which many trad premeds don't get to experience. I'm also financially invested(expensive textbooks, credits that are ONLY for the nursing degree etc)BUT the problem with these classes is it's going to be very hard to manage As(not impossible) and I might have to take an extra year to do med school prerequisites. Nursing school doesn't leave time for OChem, Bchem etc.

Can I get some opinions?

Is it an associates program or bachelors? This is important because we are talking years of difference amd the opportunity to have a solid career if you don't follow through (many do not follow through).

This is a tough decision. I would advise you to switch out and try a semester. A doctor is a much more fulfilling career , and if that's what you want to do, then why stay in nursing ? The odds of " screwing up your md" are waay lower than you becoming a nurse and working near doctors for the rest of your life, only wishing you could be one of them. My mom actually told me the opposite- that if I don't get into medical school, then I should stay far away from Doctors/Nurses/Hospitals/Clinics because it'll only kill me. You run the risk of the same thing happening to you. It's not too late.

Plenty of people "sell themselves short" by becoming nurses. ( Don't get me wrong , nurses are important, but some people become nurses because they think they aren't smart enough to become doctors, and that's dumb, but that's a whole other story.)

Do the switch! And if after two years your gpa is toooooo low ( like below a 3.4 or 3.3). You could switch back, and plenty of your credits could transfer over. ( I think intro bio classes can transfer as some pre nursing requirements, but don't quote me on that). You may wanna try out the first pre req ( Bio 1) while you are still a freshman ( and the pre nursing classes are more forgiving), and see if you can get at least a B. I encourage you to try it!!!!

I'm sorry, this "fulfilling career" statement you are making here is incredibly ignorant. Fulfilling is personal and can me being a nurse, doctor, or stay at home parent. My wife is a nursery nurse and would /hate/ being a doctor and absolutely loves her job.

Edit: wording
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[Weirdy]

Is it an associates program or bachelors? This is important because we are talking years of difference amd the opportunity to have a solid career if you don't follow through (many do not follow through).

I'm sorry, this "fulfilling career" statement you are making here is incredibly ignorant. Fulfilling is personal and be being a nurse,doctor, or stay at home parent. My wife is a nursery nurse and would /hate/ being a doctor and absolutely loves her job.

Sent from my Nexus 6P using SDN mobile

Sapphire is only a sophomore in college right now.

Hopefully with more time she/he will mature and speak with less certainty on matters they have not experienced yet.

 

[aalamruad]

Okay then. but still, OP shouldn't be wanting to be a doc. and be a nurse and be near doctor's for the rest of his life.

 

[FCMike11]

Thank you dude.
I definitely understand the hard work, hours spent studying and writing reports, on call, emotional stress etc.
I felt like nursing would only hinder my shot of becoming a doctor that's why i made the post. Trust me though, i'm definitely not ignorant, i've heard the stories of 16 hour study sessions on weekends, and being treated like crap during intership etc. It's just, I honestly can't see myself giving nursing diagnoses for the rest of my life and helping to change the sheets of a bed. But I can see myself struggling to solve a dx for a patient, and finally solving it(if you do). I can see myself loving the crazy schedule(I'm a "workaholic")

Good advice from Weirdy, can't add to that.

I should have prefaced my post by saying I am a nurse who always wanted to be a doctor (accepted) but got my associates instead. My path is unorthodox and it sounds like you have the opportunity (keep your GPA in spectacular shape) to get things in line, if you really want it.

For me (~ 7 years of nursing), it has been incredibly rewarding all of the things patients have taught me and the nuances I've learned of healthcare. I'll never forget how important respect is and people need to know you respect their place in the team. That is how you have solid lines of communication and patients get excellent care.

Working as a nurse has helped me mature and given me an insight into what scares families and patients and what you can actually do to help (so far beyond curing any diseases). I am incredibly grateful for this.

I'll stop with this quote from Paul's book that i think exemplifies this.

"A physician's duty is not to stave off death or return patients to their old lives, but to take into our arms a patient and family whose lives have disintegrated and work until they can stand back up and face, and make sense of, their own existence."

-Paul Kalanithi

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[mwsapphire]

That would only make them feel more and more bad that they couldn't be a doctor. My mom was actually telling me the only sound advice I've heard from her all year-that if you want something really bad, if you can't have, just exposing yourself to it constantly will only make you feel worse.

 

[Weirdy]

That would only make them feel more and more bad that they couldn't be a doctor. My mom was actually telling me the only sound advice I've heard from her all year-that if you want something really bad, if you can't have, just exposing yourself to it constantly will only make you feel worse.

Then that is a question of self-growth.

Lamenting what could/should/would have been isn't growing. You have to be able to come to grips with your capabilities.

Your mom is correct in the sense that people who should have given MD/DO a shot but didn't try to compensate in other ways: attitudes/power trips/higher degree in their field.

 

[FCMike11]

That would only make them feel more and more bad that they couldn't be a doctor. My mom was actually telling me the only sound advice I've heard from her all year-that if you want something really bad, if you can't have, just exposing yourself to it constantly will only make you feel worse.

Sound advice....kidding me. You can't make a blanket statement like that. If I couldn't get into medical school, do you think I'd quit nursing? Would I suddenly lose my drive to be in healthcare and help people?

You should /really/ stop.



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[mwsapphire]

Sound advice....kidding me. You can't make a blanket statement like that. If I couldn't get into medical school, do you think I'd quit nursing? Would I suddenly lose my drive to be in healthcare and help people?

You should /really/ stop.



Sent from my Nexus 6P using SDN mobile

Hey, I was just giving my personal opinion on what I feel the OP should consider. Please relax.

 

[VictorAlpha]

to the OP; I would switch if you have a passion for something else. I do think that nursing experience would translate really well for a medical school interview because it has so much with patient care. It's not crazy to sit in the interview and explain that you knew you wanted to push yourself with more responsibility and authority. It's not a bash on nursing either.... doctors without nurses is a concept that makes no sense. Nurses are indispensable and provide life saving care; there is no question whatsoever about that.

 

[precisiongraphic]

So I'm a first semester nursing student, and I've had a clinical experience (yes they put us in the hospital clinical setting right away) that transformed my outlook; I want to definitely 100% go to medical school.
I've always wanted to be a doctor but my mom recommended I try out nursing school instead to see if I actually like healthcare, pts etc etc and I definitely can't see myself as a bedside nurse. I do see myself as the medical students who are walking around with residents on my med surg floor though.

So I'm stuck, I don't know if I should change my major to something easier or stick with nursing. If any of you know RNs, then you know the schooling is tough and could have a bad impact on GPA if you don't study 24/7.

My only logic for staying this major is: Good degree to have just in case anything down the road screws my shot at MD, clinical exposure and becoming a memeber of a health care team, which many trad premeds don't get to experience. I'm also financially invested(expensive textbooks, credits that are ONLY for the nursing degree etc)BUT the problem with these classes is it's going to be very hard to manage As(not impossible) and I might have to take an extra year to do med school prerequisites. Nursing school doesn't leave time for OChem, Bchem etc.

Can I get some opinions?

I think if you have doubts about the RN path, taking a break would be good until you are sure. If you were in your last semester of nursing school, that would be different. What adcoms here have said is that wanting to switch to medical school right after graduating from nursing school isn't optimal as it implies the inability to make up one's mind.

I suggest that you finish the current semester and then take a break, shadow, talk to Doctors nurses etc without preconceived notions. Watching interns and residents is not a good reason to switch, in my opinion, but that doesn't mean the MD route is not for you.

If you decided later to go to nursing school instead of medical school, you could go to one of the 12-15 month accelerated BSN programs after college graduation.

 

[flightnurse2MD]

So I'm a first semester nursing student, and I've had a clinical experience (yes they put us in the hospital clinical setting right away) that transformed my outlook; I want to definitely 100% go to medical school.
I've always wanted to be a doctor but my mom recommended I try out nursing school instead to see if I actually like healthcare, pts etc etc and I definitely can't see myself as a bedside nurse. I do see myself as the medical students who are walking around with residents on my med surg floor though.

So I'm stuck, I don't know if I should change my major to something easier or stick with nursing. If any of you know RNs, then you know the schooling is tough and could have a bad impact on GPA if you don't study 24/7.

My only logic for staying this major is: Good degree to have just in case anything down the road screws my shot at MD, clinical exposure and becoming a memeber of a health care team, which many trad premeds don't get to experience. I'm also financially invested(expensive textbooks, credits that are ONLY for the nursing degree etc)BUT the problem with these classes is it's going to be very hard to manage As(not impossible) and I might have to take an extra year to do med school prerequisites. Nursing school doesn't leave time for OChem, Bchem etc.

Can I get some opinions?