Health Social Science PhD Postdoc Before Medical School | Advice Needed

[MDaspirant29]

Hi, SDN Pre-Med Forum:

I searched through the threads but only saw people with a Ph.D. in a science background asking about preparing for medical school. My Ph.D. is in social epidemiology. I am looking for advice on preparing for medical school for these couple of years before medical school. I am at an Ivy League school as a postdoc for the next 2-3 years. I need to take all of my pre-req classes and was just thinking about taking these at a four-year university over the years because it is cheaper than doing a one-year postbac. Although I realize that I could easily make 90k starting as a tenure track professor after my postdoc, I want to become a clinician and need advice on many things: talking to my postdoc mentors about my desire to become a clinician even though the mentorship is more research-focused (as this is the point of the Ph.D.), the most cost-effective way to take premed classes as I already have student debt, and advice on support self/possible during those 7-10 years doing medical school as someone with a PhD. My plan B is just to not go to medical school and become a tenure-track research professor at a R01, but I would love if it was possible to continue my continue medical research as a medical school student and get training that pays for medical school.

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[HouseJC]

Hello there! I'm a bit more junior than you (PhD candidate; graduating Spring 2021) and then hoping to matriculate into medical school in Summer 2021. I'm a bit confused as to your questions, which you might want to think about between now and then as you prepare for med school application down the road:
1. Why do you want to make a career change?
2. As for finding post-doc mentors, identify some clinician-scientists at your institution and ask for their advice. My PhD supervisor is MD/PhD and has given me some pointers in my application.
3. Along with your pre-med classes, you also will need to write/re-write the MCAT, which as a post-doc (given your grant duties, research and publication pressure, ALONG with pre-med classes) will make it challenging. I'm not trying to be a downer, but just some challenges I can foresee.
4. I don't think you can get training that pays for medical school (at least I'm not aware of such), unless you do MD/PhD (which may not make much sense, as you are already a post-doc). You can definitely do research as a medical student (something I also plan on doing, as I am coming in with a PhD), but the stipend/summer studentship pales in comparison with your medical school debt.
5. As for self-support, perhaps take out some loans, depend on your S/O, work part time job at a coffee house etc, but I don't think there are mechanisms available that will pay you sufficiently to do research in order to climb out of your med school debt.

Just my .02.

 

[MDaspirant29]

Hello there! I'm a bit more junior than you (PhD candidate; graduating Spring 2021) and then hoping to matriculate into medical school in Summer 2021. I'm a bit confused as to your questions, which you might want to think about between now and then as you prepare for med school application down the road:
1. Why do you want to make a career change?
2. As for finding post-doc mentors, identify some clinician-scientists at your institution and ask for their advice. My PhD supervisor is MD/PhD and has given me some pointers in my application.
3. Along with your pre-med classes, you also will need to write/re-write the MCAT, which as a post-doc (given your grant duties, research and publication pressure, ALONG with pre-med classes) will make it challenging. I'm not trying to be a downer, but just some challenges I can foresee.
4. I don't think you can get training that pays for medical school (at least I'm not aware of such), unless you do MD/PhD (which may not make much sense, as you are already a post-doc). You can definitely do research as a medical student (something I also plan on doing, as I am coming in with a PhD), but the stipend/summer studentship pales in comparison with your medical school debt.
5. As for self-support, perhaps take out some loans, depend on your S/O, work part time job at a coffee house etc, but I don't think there are mechanisms available that will pay you sufficiently to do research in order to climb out of your med school debt.

Just my .02.

1. I don't want to teach and I want to do become a clinician who diagnoses hematology/oncology patients.
2. Thanks I'm talking to some now.
3. I am thinking about doing pre-med classes after my postdoc as an alternative.
4. Yes, that is what I was thinking thanks.
5. I appreciate this perspective.