Firefighter/Paramedic to MD?

[bross]

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I am currently 26 years old and a Firefighter/Paramedic for a very busy Urban System. Funny thing is... I dropped out of Business school because I wanted to be a Firefighter....... and the only reason I took an EMT class is because I wanted to be a Firefighter.... but then I realized I really liked EMS, so I wanted to be a Paramedic, and so forth I am now a Firefighter/Paramedic...... but then I realized just how much I loved the human body and medicine, so forth on wanting to become a Physician....

The only problem is I am 26 years old now and it would take approx 3 more years to finish a pre-med degree. Is this too old to become apply to med school and become a physician?

 

[allantois]

I have met some incredibly knowledgeable paramedics who are often asked to give presentations to medical students. And no you are not too old at all, I've seen medical students in their 30s, 40s, and even 50s years of age!

 

[bross]

Thank you sir, that added a lot of confidence in my decision!

 

[Ace-Co-A]

Thank you sir, that added a lot of confidence in my decision!

Indeed. 26 is certainly not too old. A physician I met while in undergrad was a paramedic before applying to medical school. Good doctor.

Good luck.

 

[Mt Kilimanjaro]

There are many people who start med school in their late 20s. The EMS route seems especially common among EM docs but that's obviously not the only option. I know several who are former medics.

 

[blackkrim]

During my volunteering, I met a resident who was in her late forties and only gone to medical school after a career as a geologist. You are not too old and you'd probably make a great doctor.

 

[lmn]

You're just about/above the average age of med students and this includes all the ~21 year old fresh from undergrad, depending on the school you choose, you'll likely be a bit older than most students, but it isn't a huge gap.

 

[Wasted Energy]

Also, depending on how far you got with your business degree, you may not want to get a "pre-med degree," as you put it. It may be quicker to finish the business degree and just tack on the prerequisites. Or it might not, just something to think about.

 

[ShinyDome19]

I was an EMT-I and a researcher prior to staring medical school and started when I was 29. I will finish my residency when I am 36. I was not the oldest in my class either, and this was an allopathic school, if you look at some of the DO schools, I've heard of people starting in their 40's.

You'll be fine.

 

[sazerac]

I was a firefighter / EMT-B. I went to paramedic school at a community college and kind of got distracted and two years later instead of a paramedic degree, I had an acceptance to medical school. I started paramedic school at age 40.

Come check us out in the non-traditional forum!

 

[lumpyspaceprincess14]

You're definitely nowhere near being too old for medical school. Like another poster mentioned it might be a better idea to just finish your business degree than to go for another degree all together. Good luck.

 

[Comeonhavefun]

IDK!!! Some medical schools will reject you on the basis of indecisive professional and 10 years since start of college bachelor's. Also if it is faster getting a BS in Business while just getting medical school requirements do that. I imagine that would be much faster since you already got prerequisites for business school.

Assuming by business school you mean 4 years and not going for a MBA. Either way just get the prerequisites for medical school and if you have to finish your bachelor's degree in business. Prerequisites are only 23 to 32 credits for a lot of schools if you finished the requirements you should have finished. You should have English, mathematics, humanities, social, and behavioral sciences requirement finished.Which you should get done in 1.5 to 2.5 years with a BS in Business. I see Biochemistry, Biology (2 semesters), Organic Chem, and Physics (2 semesters) as the only requirements that would be missing. Won't get you into Harvard or Yale,but at your age I doubt you care about that.

 

[Pre-MedMedic]

I am currently 26 years old and a Firefighter/Paramedic for a very busy Urban System. Funny thing is... I dropped out of Business school because I wanted to be a Firefighter....... and the only reason I took an EMT class is because I wanted to be a Firefighter.... but then I realized I really liked EMS, so I wanted to be a Paramedic, and so forth I am now a Firefighter/Paramedic...... but then I realized just how much I loved the human body and medicine, so forth on wanting to become a Physician....

The only problem is I am 26 years old now and it would take approx 3 more years to finish a pre-med degree. Is this too old to become apply to med school and become a physician?[/QUOTE

Are you still pursing or at least considering the MD or PA route? I too had a similar experience, I am 26 now and just finishing my degree. After 5 years as a firefighter/paramedic I left the FD to purse my degree. Prior to becoming a firefighter I had no interest in medicine. I actually dreaded the thought of the medicine all together. Once I started EMT school I was hooked, I had messed up 100%, I missed my calling in medicine. I stayed with the FD because the money was good and the 911 experience was unprecedented. I graduated spring 2015 from The University of North Texas with a Bachelors of Applied Arts and Sciences. UNT accepted all of my previously earned college credit from fire academy, EMT and Paramedic and combined them into a degree known as a Bachelors of Applied Arts and Sciences.
The University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio officers an online baccalaureate degree in for paramedics. It's just 52 hours a BS of Emergency Health Services. The classes required are Pharmacology for example, rather than a traditional liberal arts classes which focuses on humanities, mathematics, language, etc. UT's EHS degree is a targeted degree rather than "university studies."