dropouts

[stwei]

What are the options for medical school dropouts? Will they be blackmailed in their careers the rest of their lives?

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[Blade28]

Originally posted by stwei
What are the options for medical school dropouts? Will they be blackmailed in their careers the rest of their lives?

You mean blackballed?

By who? If they tried to re-enter med school later? Or you mean even if they went into a different field, like teaching or research?

 

[stwei]

precisely - anything academic like teaching or research

 

[Kalel]

If you do drop out, you will never be accepted to another med school in this country again. Your options in other fields will be the same, or in some cases (like drug rep, pharm companies), better though.

 

[8744]

Originally posted by stwei
What are the options for medical school dropouts? Will they be blackmailed in their careers the rest of their lives?

Don't drop out. Don't even contemplate it. Grit your teeth and do your four years even if you don't like it.

 

[dakotaman]

I'm in agreement with Panda Bear. Look at it like an obstacle course. If you started the race, finish it! You can do it!

 

[njbmd]

Originally posted by stwei
What are the options for medical school dropouts? Will they be blackmailed in their careers the rest of their lives?

Hi there,
If you withdraw from medical school in good standing, you can return to that school. Plenty of students will take a leave of absence because of circumstances that interfere with their academics. Take an LOA if you just need to sort some things out. While you lose the money for the class time that you have invested, you won't screw yourself academically.

If you are leaving because you hate your school specifically, stick it out until you have completed first and second year and then attempt a transfer after you have passed USMLE Step I. Most schools that accept transfers, will take them (under compelling circumstances) as third year starts.

If you totally find that medical school is not for you, then you are wise to withdraw as long as you are sure that this is what you want to do. I had a good friend in my first year class, that was doing well but decided that he didn't want to work that hard. He is now a very successful clinical psychologist with a Ph.D.

There are no penalties for withdrawing as long as you don't flunk out. If this happens, you will not be eligible to attend another medical school in this country.

njbmd

 

[8744]

Originally posted by njbmd
Hi there,
If you withdraw from medical school in good standing, you can return to that school. Plenty of students will take a leave of absence because of circumstances that interfere with their academics. Take an LOA if you just need to sort some things out. While you lose the money for the class time that you have invested, you won't screw yourself academically.

If you are leaving because you hate your school specifically, stick it out until you have completed first and second year and then attempt a transfer after you have passed USMLE Step I. Most schools that accept transfers, will take them (under compelling circumstances) as third year starts.

If you totally find that medical school is not for you, then you are wise to withdraw as long as you are sure that this is what you want to do. I had a good friend in my first year class, that was doing well but decided that he didn't want to work that hard. He is now a very successful clinical psychologist with a Ph.D.

There are no penalties for withdrawing as long as you don't flunk out. If this happens, you will not be eligible to attend another medical school in this country.

njbmd

You advice makes sense. On the other hand, I still think that even if you despise medical school you should stick it out. If you don't intend on doing a residency (because you will not enter the medical profession) then the only really hard year of medical school is third year. And not even all of third year because some rotations are a lot easier then others.

Additionally, as I have observed, third year is to some extent only as hard as you want to make it. I suppose if you have no ambition to learn you could easily "slime" your way through, doing just enough work to exist as a faceless non-entitiy in the minds of your residents and attendings who will probably pass you by default.

The difficulty of fourth year, they tell me, is completely dependent on your willingness to work. I want to do Emergency Medicine so I plan on working hard on my first four blocks before I submit applications. But if I had no desire to pursue medicine I could take a whole slew of non-demanding electives.

Additionally, it is not hard to "just pass" first and second year. First semeseter of first year was the only really hard stretch. (I mean relatively. Certainly I studied more in forst and second year then I did as an undergrad.)

My theory is that if you just grit your teeth and tough it out, you will have that "MD" to put behind your name which will do wonders for your career if you want to go into law, journalism, engineering, or practically any field where education is valued.

And you won't spend the rest of your life wondering if you are a quitter.

 

[ericdamiansean]

if you drop out and it's because of finance, but you really want to do medicine, then, there are other options in other countries
you can sort of work your way back into the US
nowdays, backdoor options are everywhere..partner schools etc

 

[madtowngirl]

Originally posted by Panda Bear
Don't drop out. Don't even contemplate it. Grit your teeth and do your four years even if you don't like it.

But what if you've realized that medicine is not what you really want to do, and if you do get through school you're just going to be miserable if you stick with medicine as a career? Isn't it better to get out early if you know its not for you, rather than waiting until later when you've invested so much that there's practically no turning back???

Not that I'm contemplating such a thing, but one of my classmates dropped out for that reason, and part of me had to respect the fact that she realized it and did something about it.

 

[StudentX]

Consider the medical profession, like an action potential, as an all-or-none venture. In my opinion, surviving and succeeding as a physician requires 1) genuine passion for the PROFESSION in spite of the enormous stresses you face, and 2) superb personal resources to help you manage those stresses. Those who lack both will inevitably drop out. Most will experience intense depression, and some, suicidal ideations. I know med students, interns, and physicians who are on their way out or have already dropped specifically for these reasons. My 40-something UCSF-trained preceptor is already burnt out and about to check out.

So from my experience, one cannot hope to merely "stick it out" in medicine, as no such "medium" level of dedication and survival capacity viable in medicine exists. Those who think they can "just do the job they don't really like and come home and live life", as is truly the case with many other jobs, are very mistaken. For medicine is no mere job. It indeed lives up to its cliches as a "calling", "way of life" and "career demanding passion and dedication of its practitioner."

For the sake of those who are having serious doubts, spoken or unspoken, about their ability to survive the brutality of this profession, consider the following as cardinal signs of trouble for you:

That you are pushing yourself to stay in PRIMARILY because of one or more of the following reasons:

1) you don't want to waste the time/energy/money you've spent to get this far
2) you hope this will all pay off somehow in the end
3) you fear disappointing someone, and this might be yourself
4) you think you have no choice but to stay in medicine.

Any of the above will indicate that you are not passionate enough for medicine, aka not in it for the right motivation, and/or you are not fit to survive its intense demands....all of which will lead inevitably to a spiral of depression, burnout, and dropping out.

So, to those who are contemplating "sticking it out", think twice.

-X

 

[8744]

Originally posted by StudentX
Consider the medical profession, like an action potential, as an all-or-none venture. In my opinion, surviving and succeeding as a physician requires 1) genuine passion for the PROFESSION in spite of the enormous stresses you face, and 2) superb personal resources to help you manage those stresses. Those who lack both will inevitably drop out. Most will experience intense depression, and some, suicidal ideations. I know med students, interns, and physicians who are on their way out or have already dropped specifically for these reasons. My 40-something UCSF-trained preceptor is already burnt out and about to check out.

So from my experience, one cannot hope to merely "stick it out" in medicine, as no such "medium" level of dedication and survival capacity viable in medicine exists. Those who think they can "just do the job they don't really like and come home and live life", as is truly the case with many other jobs, are very mistaken. For medicine is no mere job. It indeed lives up to its cliches as a "calling", "way of life" and "career demanding passion and dedication of its practitioner."

For the sake of those who are having serious doubts, spoken or unspoken, about their ability to survive the brutality of this profession, consider the following as cardinal signs of trouble for you:

That you are pushing yourself to stay in PRIMARILY because of one or more of the following reasons:

1) you don't want to waste the time/energy/money you've spent to get this far
2) you hope this will all pay off somehow in the end
3) you fear disappointing someone, and this might be yourself
4) you think you have no choice but to stay in medicine.

Any of the above will indicate that you are not passionate enough for medicine, aka not in it for the right motivation, and/or you are not fit to survive its intense demands....all of which will lead inevitably to a spiral of depression, burnout, and dropping out.

So, to those who are contemplating "sticking it out", think twice.

-X

I agree with you to a large extent. But we're only advising the OP to grit his teeth and finish medical school. We are not advising him to enter into residency training if he hates it. Third year is the only really hard year to take if you don't like medicine. First and second is just (mostly) class work and fourth is as hard as you want to make it.

An MD degree, even wthout using it, is prestigious enough to open other doors in other professons.

 

[dakotaman]

Many other professions are demanding and brutal. Medicine isn't alone in that respect.

Those who have graduated...of course if you hate medicine you probably need to leave the profession! After four years of school and residency, you probably know what it's all about and whether you like it or not.

I'd advise STUDENTS who realize they are unsure about medicine to do what Panda Bear says and grit your teeth until school is done with. Then do something else if you wish. Perhaps you'll realize during third year that you, in fact, love medicine and just hate the basic science years! The first two years are essentially just super-college years, so it's not very reflective of what a physician really does.

Keep it all in perspective and balance and look at the long term. Medical school is the opportunity of a lifetime. Few people get the privilege. Enjoy the suffering!

 

[NonTradMed]

Everyone here has given good advice.

I guess my only advice to the OP is that.....medical school is difficult to get in, once you are in, you should think *really* hard about leaving.

I strongly suggest taking a leave of absence and then coming back to it. This way, you know for sure you want to leave.

Others have said an MD after your name will open doors to you in other profession....I believe that is correct to a certain extent. I think if you went into other fields in the biological sciences (research, pharm, bio/chem phd ect), having an MD will help. But in tech and finance fields....well, I'm not sure if the MD will do anything but raise eyebrows......it might show others that you are intelligent and focused in your work, but as for getting a job in these nonscience fields, I am unsure the benefits does not outweigh the time, money and stress of continuing medical school.

If you are almost done with med school, stick it out...what's one more year? But if you are just starting out, take a leave and see.....just make sure it's not a rash decision.

 

[Mr Reddly]

At my 'tech' company, I knew of 2 MDs in 1 section.
of course the name of the company started with the word 'med' and ended with the word 'tronic'.