Help Assessing Options

[confusedsenior224532]

Hi everyone. I know there are several threads like these so I appreciate everyone who takes the time to read my life’s conundrum haha.

I will try to keep things brief and to the point. I am extremely thankful for any advice.


Context:
I am a current Accounting and Finance student at a state flagship university. I am a rising senior. My GPA to date is a 3.98 (all As and 1 B+). I have been active in various clubs and have held leadership positions.

I am having doubts about the entire direction in my life. My dad is a physician and he has always been neutral to me becoming a doctor. He never pushed it, if anything he told me to pursue business. I am currently in a very high paying accounting job. But I hate it. I can’t stand it. I feel like my contributions are not adding to anything worthwhile in life and I can’t stare down 30-40 years making money for corporations.

So this has lead me to apply to other jobs. While I am sure I would like other roles better, I really had to take a step back and wonder why I nevar examined medicine as a viable path.

I took AP Bio and AP Chem and received 5s on both exams. Science was my favorite subject growing up, and I’ve missed taking science classes. My parents wanted me to get a practical degree, so accounting and finance it was. But should I have been pursuing a higher goal? I don’t know.
I used to volunteer in a nursing home. I loved it. Helping others, compassion. If I could turn that into a career I would be extremely satisfied.


What would you do in my scenario?

Scenario 1) Apply for more jobs outside of accounting. Examine how I enjoy a finance job or investment job. Along the way shadow doctors during my senior year and do some volunteering to give myself exposure to clinical medicine (to remove my rose colored glasses of medicine)

If I decide I hate my full time job, I am extremely fortunate enough that I can move back home with my parents and use my college fund (I received a full ride to college) to do a DIY post bacc. Hopefully after two years I could apply to medical school.

Scenario 2) Take intro to biology or some other pre req along with my senior year courses to get a jump start on medicine. Still complete the major in Finance and Accounting. Complete the DIY Post bacc at home.

Scenario 3) Do a formal Post Bacc (more expensive)

I realize that many of these questions I need to answer myself. But I appreciate anyones advice and support. I would hate it if I never gave this a chance because I felt it was too late, and 10 years later I hate my career and always wondered “What if”

Thanks again!

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[chilly_md]

Scenario #1. It is important to see if you would even be interested in being around sick people and dealing with the daily things outside appointments that a physician has to do. There are many different careers you could have in healthcare, so keep that in mind as well.

 

[Osminog]

Have you shadowed some doctors? Tried volunteering in a hospital or hospice setting? Every career path comes with its own set of discontents. It’s important to learn about the downsides of a medical career before taking the dive.

 

[confusedsenior224532]

I also am a non-traditional student who went to medical school 6 years after graduating from college with a degree in the social sciences. I did a premed postbac program and am currently a first year resident physician. I've advised a number of people who are in similar situations. Obviously this is a personal decision, but you should know that you are in an excellent position to go to medical school! That is, if you decide this is the right path for you.

You should seriously consider doing a formal postbac program, but before jumping to doing a postbac program you need to decide if medicine is right for you. Here's a helpful article: Are premed post bacc* programs worth it? - PERSONAL PREMED. The best way to figure out if medicine is right is by actually getting your hands dirty with clinical volunteering and shadowing. You should aim to get 50-100 hours of shadowing, and substantial clinical volunteer work. Consider working in an Emergency Department as a volunteer or at a hospice.

These can easily be done while you have another job--whether that job is in finance or accounting or something entirely different is up to you. In addition to helping you make up your mind as to whether medicine is a good fit for you, these experiences will help you apply for a post-bac program. Working for a couple years actually makes you a better applicant for the top postbac programs because they prefer more mature applicants.

Formal postbac programs have higher rates of getting you accepted into medical school than DIY programs. The chances of getting in after going to a top program like Bryn Mawr or Scripps or Goucher are >97%. It's hard to beat that number.

That being said, you don't need to rush into this right now. You have time. Take a year or two or three to work and volunteer and mull over your options. The average medical school matriculant is 25-26 so no need to rush!

Here's a video for more details on what it takes to get into a career changer postbac program:

Thank you so much, this is so so helpful. I think the biggest takeaway for me was don’t rush. I’m freaking myself out thinking that I need to do a 100% pivot immediately, when in reality I can slowly transition over to medicine as my interest and clinical experience grows. Thank you!!!

 

[confusedsenior224532]

Have you shadowed some doctors? Tried volunteering in a hospital or hospice setting? Every career path comes with its own set of discontents. It’s important to learn about the downsides of a medical career before taking the dive.

I will shadow this upcoming senior year. I just reached out to a few doctors who said they would be happy to have me shadow. Thank you for the advice!