finish or bail?

[Vaseline]

context: I'm an MS1 midway through first year. med school certainly isn't fun. i'm doing very well in school. my early interests are in gas, hospitalist work, radiology/ IR.

i'm taking out full loans for school, and will graduate with around 300K in debt.

i think medicine is cool, and i think it provides a personal reward that few alternate fields offer. although i see myself struggling with the lifestyle, hours, and debt accompanied by the profession. the doom and gloom surrounding medicine and talk of doc salaries taking serious dips by the time i am looking for a job doesn't add to my enthusiasm, either.

to further my story, i'm also in process of interviewing for a med sales job. starting salary is around 65K per year with much higher earning potential.

if i get the job, do i bail? i obviously know this can only be answered by me, but if you were in my shoes, what would YOU do?

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[Poit]

65k is a solid salary to start. If you can see yourself happy with this job for the foreseeable future, and are getting disenchanted with medicine, I'd jump ship for calmer waters while it's still a financially reasonable option. I personally am not worried about debt in medicine. Even the lowest salaries in medicine are in the 150-160 range.

 

[kenjixshadow]

Salary is only 65K, too low, not worth it imo. It would need to be over 100K to convince me of thinking about quitting medicine (if I was in your position). I like number, let's put number. Keep this in mind, this is a rough estimate.
$70,000 x 20 years = $1,400,000 pretax (b/c I don't like 65k, this is considering that you have a bonus).
$200,000 x 13 yrs (20 - 7 of med school/residency) = $2,600,000 pretax - $400,000 (debt after interest accrued) = $2,200,000 (potential earning, can be even higher depend on how much you work)
So no, if I were in your shoes, I would not quit for that less. This is considering money only. You don't even know if you like the med sales job or you would quit it down the road. Grass is always greener on the other side.

 

[BorntobeDO?]

context: I'm an MS1 midway through first year. med school certainly isn't fun. i'm doing very well in school. my early interests are in gas, hospitalist work, radiology/ IR.

i'm taking out full loans for school, and will graduate with around 300K in debt.

i think medicine is cool, and i think it provides a personal reward that few alternate fields offer. although i see myself struggling with the lifestyle, hours, and debt accompanied by the profession. the doom and gloom surrounding medicine and talk of doc salaries taking serious dips by the time i am looking for a job doesn't add to my enthusiasm, either.

to further my story, i'm also in process of interviewing for a med sales job. starting salary is around 65K per year with much higher earning potential.

if i get the job, do i bail? i obviously know this can only be answered by me, but if you were in my shoes, what would YOU do?

Lol, are you my twin or something? We sound very similar even down to debt load and thinking about other career prospects. I took a leave this semester to get this all worked out. But I had one course that needed remediation so that's different (missed the cutoff in one component by less than a point, highly frustrating). If you can get a full refund, I might take a leave in your scenario too. If you cannot, I would stay and finish out the semester and decide during the summer. In my case the family life impact and debt are on my mind (don't want to be on hold for 7 years). Even still, I will probably be returning to medical school next year cause *surprise* I still want to be a doctor (well as long as my wife lets me, lol).

Few careers have better outlook than medicine tho. I mean a big drop for 'gas' would be down to 250k a year. You got to sell a lot of medical supplies to hit those kind of numbers. Plus physicians have good options for loan repayment.

Just for the record tho, if my prospects where only 65k to start with in a sales/commission line of work, I would be wary. Is that commission guaranteed? I find that 'averages' that people do in sales to be the least reliable indicators of ones success. I used to be in sales and you would hear the recruiters saying all kinds of things were 'average' and give examples of some hot girl (or sometimes guy) who was doing fantastic and say 'that could be YOU!' Yeah, it wasn't for most people, in fact, the averages the recruiters would quote were only for people who stayed on (i.e. people who had some ability for it). Many others didn't do well and were politely told that this wasn't for them.

So yeah, I think I would actually stay at least this semester in your scenario. Your doing well, your tuition is probably already gone, and the job your replacing medicine with doesn't sound anything close to the 'guaranteed' money a physician will make. Wait till the summer and you can even give that a job a try for a couple months and see if it is all the recruiter cracks it up to be. Med school sucks, but its pretty much a golden ticket, don't throw it away frivolously.

 

[Brorthopedic]

Salary is only 65K, too low, not worth it imo. It would need to be over 100K to convince me of thinking about quitting medicine (if I was in your position). I like number, let's put number. Keep this in mind, this is a rough estimate.
$70,000 x 20 years = $1,400,000 pretax (b/c I don't like 65k, this is considering that you have a bonus).
$200,000 x 13 yrs (20 - 7 of med school/residency) = $2,600,000 pretax - $400,000 (debt after interest accrued) = $2,200,000 (potential earning, can be even higher depend on how much you work)
So no, if I were in your shoes, I would not quit for that less. This is considering money only. You don't even know if you like the med sales job or you would quit it down the road. Grass is always greener on the other side.

This is why you don't ask these types of questions on SDN, you get people thinking you're going to make the same base salary for 20 years

 

[BorntobeDO?]

Salary is only 65K, too low, not worth it imo. It would need to be over 100K to convince me of thinking about quitting medicine (if I was in your position). I like number, let's put number. Keep this in mind, this is a rough estimate.
$70,000 x 20 years = $1,400,000 pretax (b/c I don't like 65k, this is considering that you have a bonus).
$200,000 x 13 yrs (20 - 7 of med school/residency) = $2,600,000 pretax - $400,000 (debt after interest accrued) = $2,200,000 (potential earning, can be even higher depend on how much you work)
So no, if I were in your shoes, I would not quit for that less. This is considering money only. You don't even know if you like the med sales job or you would quit it down the road. Grass is always greener on the other side.

I agree with the thought process on this one as well. If my alternate career prospects were only 65k I wouldn't think it was worth it either. Even at close to 100k I am not sure that money wise its better. I could see the argument for lifestyle, but lifestyle tends to suffer when you don't have much money. And I don't think 65k is very much money in most parts of this country (Clarify: For a family its not much, perfectly fine for single person).

 

[tick_tock400]

OP (not that I understand what this abbreviation stands for), you seem to be doing really well in school, and the only way you're describing your med school experience is that it's not fun and you see your future potentially full of gloom because of potential changes in income/lifestyle that might be crappy.

I think everyone goes into medicine for different reasons, and for a number of students (like myself), a job like med sales (not that I really understand what that is either) would probably not satisfy us because we're hoping to get X, Y, and Z out of med school. I guess in terms of asking your question, you didn't really specify why you didn't like medical school or what this job in sales entailed, or why you even went into medicine.
As for me, I seem to be really disliking med school (and from a number of stats I'm reading, it seems like the majority of people struggle with stress/burn out/other forms of angst in med school), but as of yet I don't think I'd be satisfied with another career.

I also don't know why some physicians and med students are so worried about future decreases in income. I've heard many concerns, sure, but if demand is going up, and supply of physicians is going way down (as well as supply of all midlevel providers is going way down in proportion to demand), it seems like a simple economics scenario (in my head) that logistically physicians salaries really can't go too low.

The only "lower" spectrum of physician salaries I know are those that don't take call, really only work part time, have contract (s) with multiple persons so a lot of the money they make goes to the contractor, etc, but if you value work/life balance, you will make time for yourself. I think a lot of physicians complain about constant work, but they also might want a strong pay, or love their job (i.e. academic physicians who work tons, make relatively low), or feel as if they HAVE to put in a certain amount of work to be considered "equal" to their full-time peers. Also, for the record, I see a position like hospitalist (which I'm sure you might be able to be as a GI doc too), being full of tons of flexibility, potentially great pay (if you're private), and something that will have only better pay/working hours/independence as you progress in your career.

I don't want to push you one way or the other, but I would really recommend looking into these questions for yourself and asking yourself what's important. For me, I really wanted the hands on skills and ability to make a strong impact on peoples' lives which I thought I could do best with a MD. For you, the answer may be different.

Best regards and best of luck!

PS: I can totally relate to day dreaming about other careers in med school 😛

 

[WGSgrad]

This is why you don't ask these types of questions on SDN, you get people thinking you're going to make the same base salary for 20 years

From reading kenixshadow's post, I didn't assume they assumed the OP would be making the same amount for 20 years. I think they uses the starting salaries for convenience because any increase in the lower paying job (raises, bonuses, etc.) could also be produced in the higher paying job assuming the OP was willing to work just as hard (partnership in a private practice, etc.). I think it was really about the ease of quick numbers.

 

[emergentmd]

context: I'm an MS1 midway through first year. med school certainly isn't fun. i'm doing very well in school. my early interests are in gas, hospitalist work, radiology/ IR.

i'm taking out full loans for school, and will graduate with around 300K in debt.

i think medicine is cool, and i think it provides a personal reward that few alternate fields offer. although i see myself struggling with the lifestyle, hours, and debt accompanied by the profession. the doom and gloom surrounding medicine and talk of doc salaries taking serious dips by the time i am looking for a job doesn't add to my enthusiasm, either.

to further my story, i'm also in process of interviewing for a med sales job. starting salary is around 65K per year with much higher earning potential.

if i get the job, do i bail? i obviously know this can only be answered by me, but if you were in my shoes, what would YOU do?

When I was in College, I majored in Computer engineering and in my 3rd yr, I was offered an internship paying 40k/yr. 25 yrs ago, that was BIG money and I am sure I would have came out making close to 100k/yr.

I still switched to med school. From ONLY a money standpoint, there are no better profession to make a guaranteed top 1-2% income from a probability standpoint.

Graduate from Med school essentially guarantees you 200K and you essentially will always have a job.

From a probability standpoint, out of 100 people, I would put doctors against any other profession for income.

If you throw in other issues, it just gets down to a personal decision.

 

[PL198]

Salary is only 65K, too low, not worth it imo. It would need to be over 100K to convince me of thinking about quitting medicine (if I was in your position). I like number, let's put number. Keep this in mind, this is a rough estimate.
$70,000 x 20 years = $1,400,000 pretax (b/c I don't like 65k, this is considering that you have a bonus).
$200,000 x 13 yrs (20 - 7 of med school/residency) = $2,600,000 pretax - $400,000 (debt after interest accrued) = $2,200,000 (potential earning, can be even higher depend on how much you work)
So no, if I were in your shoes, I would not quit for that less. This is considering money only. You don't even know if you like the med sales job or you would quit it down the road. Grass is always greener on the other side.

brah you gotta learn what present value means. plus you have to factor in the effort of med school and residency

 

[Vaseline]

Salary is only 65K, too low, not worth it imo. It would need to be over 100K to convince me of thinking about quitting medicine (if I was in your position). I like number, let's put number. Keep this in mind, this is a rough estimate.
$70,000 x 20 years = $1,400,000 pretax (b/c I don't like 65k, this is considering that you have a bonus).
$200,000 x 13 yrs (20 - 7 of med school/residency) = $2,600,000 pretax - $400,000 (debt after interest accrued) = $2,200,000 (potential earning, can be even higher depend on how much you work)
So no, if I were in your shoes, I would not quit for that less. This is considering money only. You don't even know if you like the med sales job or you would quit it down the road. Grass is always greener on the other side.

my friend has been with company for two years. started at same position. he makes over 100k. his superiors are in the 250K range

 

[kenjixshadow]

x

 

[Vaseline]

Do you "think" that you know you will like the job? I mean sure, go ahead and leave, but if you hate it and end up leaving the company. It doesn't do you any good PLUS you lost a career where you can make 200k at the baseline. I have a friend who easily make over 150k annually. If I started with him, I would be sitting with a half million portfolio right now. Caveat is he absolutely detest his job and he can't wait to be FI (financial independent) so he can retire early or move on into the next career.

i "think" that i will like it, but no way to know for certain, much like being an MS1 in the field of medicine. i understand med's job security and income potential are unparalleled, but i'm not sure it's worth being unhappy for the next ~ decade to get there.

appreciate all the responses! thankfully i have a while to think this over.

i will be 56K in the whole after this year, tho

 

[DokterMom]

If you think you'd prefer being a salesperson (selling to and being generally perceived as less capable than people who are now your peers) to being a doctor, then sure, throw away that 'golden ticket' you've worked so hard for.

But do consider that a career in sales is about personality and persistence, not intelligence or ability, and that all the money in the world won't give you the same type of satisfaction you could get saving lives. Sure, there's less debt. But there's also a District Sales Manager (or whatever they call them) breathing down you neck if you fail to make your sales quotas or are late with your sales reports. There's dubious, unproven, overpriced or even dangerous products you're expected to peddle in addition to the solid ones. There are tushes to kiss and apples to polish, and everywhere giving the kinds of respect you could be receiving instead...

They couldn't pay me enough to do that! (And 65K is nowhere near enough for you to seriously consider.)

 

[Pinkertinkle]

do you want to cure people or sell trinkets?

 

[futuremdforme]

Business jobs are come and go, you can be fired with no notice. It is much harder to get a job as you get older (ageism!) and your salary is likely to plateau. Of all the jobs to bail on medicine for, this would not be it for me...

 

[doc05]

context: I'm an MS1 midway through first year. med school certainly isn't fun. i'm doing very well in school. my early interests are in gas, hospitalist work, radiology/ IR.

i'm taking out full loans for school, and will graduate with around 300K in debt.

i think medicine is cool, and i think it provides a personal reward that few alternate fields offer. although i see myself struggling with the lifestyle, hours, and debt accompanied by the profession. the doom and gloom surrounding medicine and talk of doc salaries taking serious dips by the time i am looking for a job doesn't add to my enthusiasm, either.

to further my story, i'm also in process of interviewing for a med sales job. starting salary is around 65K per year with much higher earning potential.

if i get the job, do i bail? i obviously know this can only be answered by me, but if you were in my shoes, what would YOU do?

all of the above responses are terrible. since I consistently provide good advice, here we go again....

1. decide whether you want to be a physician.
2. take it from there.
3. salary isn't all that important. ignore all the above calculations, because nobody really needs the 200k or more per year that a physician earns.
4. best of luck.

 

[Vaseline]

all of the above responses are terrible. since I consistently provide good advice, here we go again....

1. decide whether you want to be a physician.
2. take it from there.
3. salary isn't all that important. ignore all the above calculations, because nobody really needs the 200k or more per year that a physician earns.
4. best of luck.

1. i would definitely rather be a physician than a salesman.

 

[futuremdforme]

1. i would definitely rather be a physician than a salesman.

sounds like you made your decision?

 

[Vaseline]

sounds like you made your decision?

was talked down from the ledge by my advisor, a few friends, family, boyfriend. i do think it is too risky. i'm also seriously geographically biased, and i think i'll have more options to be where i want with medicine versus a precarious sales position. medicine is cool and awesome (although very difficult path). sales job would be just a job. it's tough to find that delicate balance of good job with good money with good lifestyle that makes you happy. i think med provides more of this - certainly not all - than sales job would. plus, sales job obviously entails a lot of interactions with docs. i think every time i see an MD, i'd be like "damn, that should be me."

 

[Dr Tony T. Chopper]

How is job security for med sales in general? Are you confident that you have the personality to rake in that sweet commission?

context: I'm an MS1 midway through first year. med school certainly isn't fun. i'm doing very well in school. my early interests are in gas, hospitalist work, radiology/ IR.

i'm taking out full loans for school, and will graduate with around 300K in debt.

i think medicine is cool, and i think it provides a personal reward that few alternate fields offer. although i see myself struggling with the lifestyle, hours, and debt accompanied by the profession. the doom and gloom surrounding medicine and talk of doc salaries taking serious dips by the time i am looking for a job doesn't add to my enthusiasm, either.

to further my story, i'm also in process of interviewing for a med sales job. starting salary is around 65K per year with much higher earning potential.

if i get the job, do i bail? i obviously know this can only be answered by me, but if you were in my shoes, what would YOU do?

 

[TBV]

This is why you don't ask these types of questions on SDN, you get people thinking you're going to make the same base salary for 20 years

The real question is which profession will see more increases in pay over those twenty years. If they are both equivalent, the numbers exercise works.

 

[Brorthopedic]

The real question is which profession will see more increases in pay over those twenty years. If they are both equivalent, the numbers exercise works.

They don't. Sales has one of the most variable salaries in the job market.

 

[Vaseline]

all of the above responses are terrible. since I consistently provide good advice, here we go again....

1. decide whether you want to be a physician.
2. take it from there.
3. salary isn't all that important. ignore all the above calculations, because nobody really needs the 200k or more per year that a physician earns.
4. best of luck.

3. yes, i do need that 200K. i'll graduate around 300K in debt. and i want a family. so, yea, that 200K is pretty essential

 

[Wailea]

What makes you think that you won't dislike the hustle needed for a sales job? Med sales seem high pressure, high expectations, long travel, etc. If you love medicine, continue. You were given the opportunity because they believe that you'll be a great doc. And med school doesn't represent the other 30 years that you'll be practicing. I've had my doubts, but I'm sticking through. And 3rd year is much better than 1st year when I was literally in tears.

 

[Jinxapotato]

When I think about med sales I think about Will Smith in Pursuit of Happiness (yes that is totally inaccurate but still..), and no I don't want to sleep in the public bathroom...so....

 

[kmp0410]

Everybody I know who does Med sales is a big tool. N=1

Your not unique with this worry about money and debt. Almost all of us are taking out loans for everything. I could go further but it's been said.

Also, your not alone in not loving every second of med school. It's work, you will have a love/hate relationship with it. This is very simple, decide if you want to be a doctor.

 

[Shjanzey]

Everybody I know who does Med sales is a big tool. N=1

Your not unique with this worry about money and debt. Almost all of us are taking out loans for everything. I could go further but it's been said.

Also, your not alone in not loving every second of med school. It's work, you will have a love/hate relationship with it. This is very simple, decide if you want to be a doctor.

You may have an issue with the power in your research but I'd still read your findings.

 

[Vaseline]

Everybody I know who does Med sales is a big tool. N=1

Your not unique with this worry about money and debt. Almost all of us are taking out loans for everything. I could go further but it's been said.

Also, your not alone in not loving every second of med school. It's work, you will have a love/hate relationship with it. This is very simple, decide if you want to be a doctor.

n=2 ... i know the type, believe me.

 

[Giovanotto]

n=2 ... i know the type, believe me.

n=3, here.

 

[Vaseline]

Salary is only 65K, too low, not worth it imo. It would need to be over 100K to convince me of thinking about quitting medicine (if I was in your position). I like number, let's put number. Keep this in mind, this is a rough estimate.
$70,000 x 20 years = $1,400,000 pretax (b/c I don't like 65k, this is considering that you have a bonus).
$200,000 x 13 yrs (20 - 7 of med school/residency) = $2,600,000 pretax - $400,000 (debt after interest accrued) = $2,200,000 (potential earning, can be even higher depend on how much you work)
So no, if I were in your shoes, I would not quit for that less. This is considering money only. You don't even know if you like the med sales job or you would quit it down the road. Grass is always greener on the other side.

but, just no. starting salary would be close to 65K. next promotion (which in n=1 case came in less than a calendar year was 90K). this route would be much more lucrative than physician route. his superiors are in salary range of doctor, and they don't have 300K in loans to pay off.

 

[Vaseline]

starting offer figure was bumped up. sounds like i could be making the salary of about of pediatrician in the next 3-5 years, and no 300K in debt to pay off. lifestyle would be a million times better too. with all of the doom and gloom, a new democratic president, the mid-level encroachment, and advice from several docs whom i am close with, i think i will be bailing before the storm to come. my run with medicine has ended. best of luck to all!

 

[DokterMom]

Probably for the best if this is all it took to derail your life's plan...

 

[Vaseline]

Probably for the best if this is all it took to derail your life's plan...

life plan is to be happy. debilitating debt, putting life on hold for ~10 years (prime years of early twenties, too), and working in a climate where govt/ hiring hospitals/ health management groups devalue your degree and are actively trying to replace your labor with cheaper options does not align with goal of being happy in the professional realm. and the hours and lifestyle of doctors certainly doesn't do much to promote happiness in the personal realm either.

 

[TBV]

life plan is to be happy. debilitating debt, putting life on hold for ~10 years (prime years of early twenties, too), and working in a climate where govt/ hiring hospitals/ health management groups devalue your degree and are actively trying to replace your labor with cheaper options does not align with goal of being happy in the professional realm. and the hours and lifestyle of doctors certainly doesn't do much to promote happiness in the personal realm either.

Knee jerk response to this is wow this guy is throwing away a golden opportunity to become a physician. After stepping back and looking at it, it looks like a pretty sweet deal as long as you working around physicians all day doesn't eat away at your soul and make you question what could have been. Good luck, man.

 

[badasshairday]

If you are going to quit, quit now before you are eyeballs deep in debt.

 

[Perrotfish]

but, just no. starting salary would be close to 65K. next promotion (which in n=1 case came in less than a calendar year was 90K). this route would be much more lucrative than physician route. his superiors are in salary range of doctor, and they don't have 300K in loans to pay off.

This is... um... optimistic. Having had several intelligent friends wade into the labor market all I will say is that there is a reason why the average white collar worker has a salary of about 50K and works well over 40 hours/week. There is a good chance this won't work at all. Or that it will work for a bit, but then you'll find your salary moving in the wrong and your job security evaporating in 5 years. You only seem to be planning for the scenario where sales is an easy 40 hours/week and you get rapidly promoted to a job where you make a six figure salary. You are comparing a best case scenario for sales to a worst case scenario for medicine

Remember that they're salesmen, and right now they are selling you on a job. They are offering you the best possible picture of what life could be, peppered with non-committal words. You can make as much as a doctor, you might get promoted in less than a year. Act now, this offer won't last. This might work out, but it seems like you're trading a sure thing for a possibility.

 

[ChillDawg]

life plan is to be happy. debilitating debt, putting life on hold for ~10 years (prime years of early twenties, too)

Why do I keep seeing these kinds of comments crop up? Do people think 'life' is going out regularly, watching Netflix on Sundays, and getting to take a vacation every year? Sure, that sounds nice, but is that really the way to live a meaningful life?

How about all the life you'll be missing out on in med school, residency, and practice? The huge wealth of infinitely precious knowledge, valuable skillsets, unique interactions, incredible personal growth, and intense yet purpose-filled days of actually doing something significant seem irreplaceable to me.

Sure, I'm romanticizing, and I understand that other people have priorities, but its hard to fathom someone actually choosing to go through life's journey as a salesman rather than as a physician.

 

[DokterMom]

Why do I keep seeing these kinds of comments crop up? Do people think 'life' is going out regularly, watching Netflix on Sundays, and getting to take a vacation every year? Sure, that sounds nice, but is that really the way to live a meaningful life?

How about all the life you'll be missing out on in med school, residency, and practice? The huge wealth of infinitely precious knowledge, valuable skillsets, unique interactions, incredible personal growth, and intense yet purpose-filled days of actually doing something significant seem irreplaceable to me.

Sure, I'm romanticizing, and I understand that other people have priorities, but its hard to fathom someone actually choosing to go through life's journey as a salesman rather than as a physician.

This! So much this. You don't LOSE the years you spend in medical school and residency. Sure you work incredibly hard. But if you're planning to make big bucks in sales, you need to work incredibly hard there too. Same with law, consulting, investment banking, pro sports and performing arts. If you want to make the big bucks, you've got to work really, really hard to make it happen. In those professions, IF you work really really hard and have some talent, you MIGHT make a really good income - or perhaps not. As a physician, both the hard work and big bucks are certain.

If OP is willing to toss all that aside so easily, let him/her go.

 

[dattele2]

I really want to believe this a troll post - but seeing that it's not, sales is super stressful as well, meanwhile med. school obv. is but life as a doc will not be to that degree.

 

[Vaseline]

This! So much this. You don't LOSE the years you spend in medical school and residency. Sure you work incredibly hard. But if you're planning to make big bucks in sales, you need to work incredibly hard there too. Same with law, consulting, investment banking, pro sports and performing arts. If you want to make the big bucks, you've got to work really, really hard to make it happen. In those professions, IF you work really really hard and have some talent, you MIGHT make a really good income - or perhaps not. As a physician, both the hard work and big bucks are certain.

If OP is willing to toss all that aside so easily, let him/her go.

it's not even about BIG BUCKS. big bucks as a doc? after taxes and with loans, those big bucks aren't very big

 

[DokterMom]

it's not even about BIG BUCKS. big bucks as a doc? after taxes and with loans, those big bucks aren't very big

Oh that's right. I'd forgotten that salespeople's incomes aren't taxed.

 

[Vaseline]

Oh that's right. I'd forgotten that salespeople's incomes aren't taxed.

it's a different situation.

a. successful salesperson taxed in high income bracket. yes, that hurts take home income

b. regular doctor taxed in same high income bracket. yes, that hurts take home income. oh, and yes, i do still owe the govt 300K. that really hurts.

 

[LeftyLadyDoc]

So, I'm trying to get into med school currently so my two cents is more like half a penny... However, isn't it typical to hate M1 & M2? M3 and M4s seem much happier with clinical rotations and optimistic about their future, while most of the M1 and M2s I've talked to seem to hate life. The depression rate during med school is something like 20%, so I feel like your thoughts are pretty common. Again, I'm not in med school yet, so I could be blowing hot air right now.

I also know several people in med sales who are in their 50s working 60+ hours per week/a lot of travel away from home/and their job makes them pay for their own benefits. Yes, they have an awesome salary, but they don't appear to be any less stressed than the doctors I've worked with (I work in an academic setting).

I'm sure you'll figure it out!

 

[Anicetus]

Feel the Bern guys!!

 

[Perrotfish]

So, I'm trying to get into med school currently so my two cents is more like half a penny... However, isn't it typical to hate M1 & M2? M3 and M4s seem much happier with clinical rotations and optimistic about their future, while most of the M1 and M2s I've talked to seem to hate life. The depression rate during med school is something like 20%, so I feel like your thoughts are pretty common. Again, I'm not in med school yet, so I could be blowing hot air right now.

Different people are unhappy at different points in training. Some people hate preclinicals and perk up in clinicals. Some people enjoy preclinicals but hate Ms3. Some people like residency and some people really despise it. I have yet to meet a person who liked Intern year (other than a TY, which doesn't count) but other than that I'm not sure you can count on liking or hating any point in your training.

 

[ZPakEffect]

Why do I keep seeing these kinds of comments crop up? Do people think 'life' is going out regularly, watching Netflix on Sundays, and getting to take a vacation every year? Sure, that sounds nice, but is that really the way to live a meaningful life?

How about all the life you'll be missing out on in med school, residency, and practice? The huge wealth of infinitely precious knowledge, valuable skillsets, unique interactions, incredible personal growth, and intense yet purpose-filled days of actually doing something significant seem irreplaceable to me.

Sure, I'm romanticizing, and I understand that other people have priorities, but its hard to fathom someone actually choosing to go through life's journey as a salesman rather than as a physician.

“The happy life is thought to be one of excellence; now an excellent life requires exertion, and does not consist in amusement. If Eudaimonia, or happiness, is activity in accordance with excellence, it is reasonable that it should be in accordance with the highest excellence; and this will be that of the best thing in us.”

― Aristotle, The Nicomachean Ethics

 

[CTU Surgeon]

If you're so worried about debt. What do you have against using the military to finance your medical education?

 

[Oo Cipher oO]

If you're so worried about debt. What do you have against using the military to finance your medical education?

OP already mentioned that he/she is very geographically biased so it would be ill advised to join an organization that will move you anywhere in the world to fit their needs. Add in that anyone joining the military for purely or even mostly financial incentives is going to have a bad time.

 

[futuredoc71]

I'm struggling with the same siutation right now but have not started medical school yet. Got accepted but thinking of taking antoher job and waiting 2 years to apply for PA school so I can save $ and not have debt. I really want a family and a balanced lifestyle