how old are you people?

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I'll be 22 when I start in the fall (I turn 23 in October). I've been taking a year off this year (best decision I ever made) partly because I thought starting med school at 21 would be too young and might detract from the excessive partying...
 
24 when i start in the fall...2 years off. best thing that could've happened to me.
 
69, what a great position to be in...
 
20 right now...I turn 21 in June a while after I start applying. When I start med school in fall 2004 I'll be 22.
 
Im 26 now and applying for 2004 entering class. I will be 28 during my first semester of med school. Good to know there are others around my age.
 
I'm 20 right now and I'll start med school this fall.

Although there was this guy at Wash U that I met who was 18 and M1 (but I think since November he has turned 19). That's pretty crazy though.
 
At the rate I'm going I will be entering med school a little while after I turn 20 and will be graduating when I'm 23. I am not in a combined program.

I am currently 16 years old and finishing up my "freshman year," which consisted of 1 semester. I will be making up the first semester over the next 2 summers, so my time spent in college will be 3 1/2 years. I will be applying when I'm 19, and I will be starting with the entering class of 2006.

The only thing that I'm worried about is not being accepted by everyone since I'll be so young. In college right now everyone thinks I'm 18-19 until I tell them how old I am, since I'm lucky enough to look older than the average 16 year old. I have no problem partying with everyone else since I have a phony ID, but I hope that in med school everyone is as accepting of younger students, since I notice that a lot of you guys are around 3-8 years older than me when I'll be entering.

Overall I think I have an advantage, though, since I'll be finishing my residency, which will most probably be 7 years long, when I'm 30.
 
21 and will hopefully be starting med school this fall (three waitlists, one school I'm waiting to hear from).
 
26 and damn excited to be getting on with it.
 
Originally posted by mh2002ny
Overall I think I have an advantage, though, since I'll be finishing my residency, which will most probably be 7 years long, when I'm 30.
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I'm just curious, an advantage in/for what?😕
 
Originally posted by pathdr2b
I'm just curious, an advantage in/for what?😕
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I think it's an advantage since I'll be finished with my training at an early age and will have more years to enjoy(family life, income, status) until the time I retire. I think of it this way: The sooner I get over with it the better. Then I can really start "practicing" as a board certified physician.

This is just my opinion. There are many other routes to take in order to get to your goal which I think all are just as good but this is the path that I prefer.
 
I guess I'm right at the average: I'm 22 now and will be turning 24 in the fall of my first year in med school. 🙂
 
I think we older folk might have a slight advantage when we get to the wards (sorry mh2002ny!), because we look a little more credible. I volunteer in an ICU and regularly get family members complaining about "wanting a doctor who isn't still in diapers." I heard one of the attendings (who is very young-looking) introduce herself to a family, saying, "Fear not--I am 40-years-old. I just look 20." :laugh:
 
Originally posted by VienneseWaltz
I think we older folk might have a slight advantage when we get to the wards (sorry mh2002ny!), because we look a little more credible. I volunteer in an ICU and regularly get family members complaining about "wanting a doctor who isn't still in diapers." I heard one of the attendings (who is very young-looking) introduce herself to a family, saying, "Fear not--I am 40-years-old. I just look 20." :laugh:
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I've noticed that patients are that way where I'm volunteering too. They seem to prefer attendings over residents and sometimes even older attendings over younger attendings. I can just imagine how on July 1st of my pgy-1 year, 4 days after my 24th birthday, I'll be telling someone that I'll be taking them into surgery:laugh: . To tell you the truth I'd be scared too if I was the patient:laugh: .
 
Though I'd put in my info., I turned 21 about 4 months ago, will be starting med. school in the Fall!
peace
 
Originally posted by VienneseWaltz
I think we older folk might have a slight advantage when we get to the wards (sorry mh2002ny!), because we look a little more credible. I volunteer in an ICU and regularly get family members complaining about "wanting a doctor who isn't still in diapers." I heard one of the attendings (who is very young-looking) introduce herself to a family, saying, "Fear not--I am 40-years-old. I just look 20." :laugh:
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haha, I am very scared of this myself. right now, i am 21 and will be graduating in may. i am taking a year off, and will just have turned 23 when i start med school. i am definitely looking forward to my year off from school! however, people still think i look about 17 right now (i'm a very petite girl, which doesn't help matters). i'm so worried that people are going to be wondering who is this KID impersonating a doctor?!?! but oh well, i'd rather look younger than older in the long run 🙂

-C
 
23...out of undergrad for a year....hopefully will start in the fall (waiting patiently)!
 
27....will be 29 when I (hopefully) start med school.
 
I'll be 26 in August when I start school, 30 when I graduate, and 35 by the time I finish a surgical residency. I'll have less years of earning potential than the traditional pre-med, but as others have said, I wouldn't have had it any other way! 😀
 
Just turned the dreaded 30. Hope to start med school when I'm 32! Sure hope I won't be the oldest, too.
 
Turning 23 in July. Been out of college for a year, and ready for some more school. Bring it, baby!
 
22...turning 23 in july...NU in the fall!!!!
 
34 - 35 entering next fall. My mind's still young - my body feels ooooooold. Especially after working 84 hours this week.

- Tae
 
maybe someone should turn this into a poll rather than lotsa posts
 
I'm 32 in April.

Don't worry so much about age. If you do what you love, it won't matter. One of the staff in my department is 75, retired, but he still sees patients one day per week. He retired to write more papers and wrap up research projects!
 
I'm 22 and starting med school in September. I've got a baby face. I just recently grew a scruffy goatee to hide it. My girlfriend, away in Louisville for a year long acting apprenticeship, yelled at me for that and not having a haircut since my last interview in early January. I figure its my last chance to be unkempt (and grow hair like Steve Nash) before I have to practice seeing and interviewing patients. So, I'll clean up, but then the baby face will be back!

Oh, what to do 😀

Cheers,

Tom
 
Turnin' 29 this summer. I'll be starting med school this fall, if I can ever get off one of these darn waitlists.

The only disadvantages I've encountered as an "older" applicant are (1) some interviewers have asked questions about my marital/reproductive plans (i.e. "You won't be finished with your residency until you're in your mid-to-late 30's, when are you going to get married and/or have kids?" ) and (2) a lower GPA than a lot of applicants because most colleges are giving slightly higher grades now than they did 8-10 years ago. And it makes a difference when the adcoms initially screen the AMCAS app and the secondaries.
 
Originally posted by DW
23, going on 24 in september. damn, i'm not making any money until i'm 30 :laugh:
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Don't worry--I'm 30 and still not making much money! :laugh:
 
Originally posted by manicmaven
26 and damn excited to be getting on with it.
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1977 rules!!
 
Originally posted by Moneyless
maybe someone should turn this into a poll rather than lotsa posts
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thats exactly what I was thinking, wheres Yogi when you need him.
 
Count me in as one of the "old" ones.

36 now, 37 when I'm MS I

Sigh. I remember when I was always the youngest one in my previous career......

Cheers to all, young and old🙂
 
33 now and applying for 2004! :clap:

I've already got the 12 year marriage and 3 kids, so if the interviewer asks about my reproductive plans I'll be lettin' 'em know the factory is closed! :laugh:

Theresa
 
26 right now, I turn 27 on the first day of class in the fall...

I can't think of a better birthday gift!!!😎
 
Originally posted by ShaylaFinn
The only disadvantages I've encountered as an "older" applicant are (1) some interviewers have asked questions about my marital/reproductive plans (i.e. "You won't be finished with your residency until you're in your mid-to-late 30's, when are you going to get married and/or have kids?" )
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This question is so illegal it's not funny😡 Perhaps what we should do is set up a list of responses for women interviewee's for these type of questions:

1) I haven't thought much about it, do you have a husband in mind for me?

2) I imagine I'll do the same thing as a male medical student would do.

3) Right now my primary focus is on matriculating into medical school.

4) Women in my family have always succesfully balanced educational, career, and personal pursuits so imagine I'll continue the trend.

5) I live my life one day at a time and handle life's challenges as they arrive.
 
I will be 24 when i start MD school. I was just wondering at wat is a person considered non-traditional student.
 
I'll be a 21 y.o. MS1 in the fall. However.... I'll be 28 when I graduate.... And that's cautiously optimistic... Damn MD/PhD 😀
 
I'm 21 and will be an M1 next fall
 
I'm also 21 and will be an MS-1 in the fall. Will be 22 in October.
 
I'll be turning 30 right before I begin medical school this fall.
 
Count me amongst the 'elderly' on the list....I'll be weighing in at a whopping 33 when classes start this fall. 'Bout time I started working on my career!!😛
 
26 turning 27 in August when I start Med School. I am old and that is bad. Young people don't let old people convince you that there are advantages to being older. Just remember Old = Sux. Worst part of it is that I didn't realize I was old until I applied to medical school. It crept up on me. I caught it like a cold. One night my throat was scratchy, I filled out AMCAS, and I woke up old in the morning. Started preparing for med school at age 24.7 (MCAT apps etc) will matriculate at age 27.0. Young people listen up (man that is exactly how old people talk), old people will tell you that age has benefits because you are wiser, you know more, and you are experienced. Well that is BS. The worst part about getting older is all the things you learn. There are so many things I wish I could unlearn or forget. There is some really heinous stuff happening out in the world and my biggest fear is that I am going to find out about even more of it. When you are young you see the world through rose colored glasses and when you are old you start to see the world through brown colored glasses, everything looks $hitty. I wish I could save you but there is no hope. You are destined to end up like me, old. Worse than that we are all going to end up dead. Oh I didn't think about it when I was young. I wish I could forget. I am sorry I told you.
 
Originally posted by lotanna
a friend of mine in NY doing the combined prog will be done with med schl at 23, and hopes to be done with cardiology residency by 27 🙄

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Not to be a stickler for details, but you can't become a cardiologist in 4 years after med school. It requires a 3 year internal medicine residency, plus a 3-4 year fellowship in cardiology. (Some of the more prestigous programs require 4 years for fellowship) If you want to do interventional cardiology (angioplasties, stent placements, etc) or electrophysiology (inserting pacemakers), add on another 1-2 years of training. So your friend is looking at a minimum of six years and a maximum of 9 years of post graduate training to become a cardiologist. I really wish it was only 4 years long, but it's not.

As for me, I'm 22, and abt 2 months away from finishing my first year in med school. Only another 10 years till I can call myself a cardiologist. 🙄 All those who say taking 4-5 years off before med school was great, what's your reasoning? Knowing how many years post graduate medical training lasts, I never really considered delaying matriculation.
 
I'm 22 and will be when med school starts in the fall.
 
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Quote:
26 turning 27 in August when I start Med School. I am old and that is bad. Young people don't let old people convince you that there are advantages to being older. Just remember Old = Sux. Worst part of it is that I didn't realize I was old until I applied to medical school. It crept up on me. I caught it like a cold. One night my throat was scratchy, I filled out AMCAS, and I woke up old in the morning. Started preparing for med school at age 24.7 (MCAT apps etc) will matriculate at age 27.0. Young people listen up (man that is exactly how old people talk), old people will tell you that age has benefits because you are wiser, you know more, and you are experienced. Well that is BS. The worst part about getting older is all the things you learn. There are so many things I wish I could unlearn or forget. There is some really heinous stuff happening out in the world and my biggest fear is that I am going to find out about even more of it. When you are young you see the world through rose colored glasses and when you are old you start to see the world through brown colored glasses, everything looks $hitty. I wish I could save you but there is no hope. You are destined to end up like me, old. Worse than that we are all going to end up dead. Oh I didn't think about it when I was young. I wish I could forget. I am sorry I told you.
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Ouch. Pass the Prozac and please keep Wack away from sharp object for the next 72 hours!

Wack, all kidding aside, your post has me concerned. There are times in all of our lives when we feel like this. If you are feeling this way on a regular basis, it might be good to share this with someone. If you are joking, then stop scaring me, you should be old enough to know better! =)

I am in my late twenties. I find that age has made me more understanding and humbled me in many ways. I have less pride. I am more likely now to ask for help or admit that I am totally lost. When I talk to people now, I see them first and then their disease as secondary. I feel more comfortable now when people start crying because I have shed more tears myself. As you get older, you loose loved ones or you yourself might get sick. Those experiences change you. You replace empathy with sympathy. I guess in many ways I feel smaller, but now I feel like a smaller part of a fantastic whole instead of a hot shot standing all alone in life?s line of fire.
On the other hand, I feel more competent then I did in my early twenties. I have risen to more challenges academic and otherwise. I have had more chances to lead others and more fully understand the power that one individual can have and the responsibility that goes with it. I have been through nights when I though the world was ending but have witnessed the sun the next morning in spite of it all.
I wish I could be 22 with understanding I have gained in the last few years, but there is no way I would go back and start medical school at that age without it. I think there are many younger students out there that are more mature then I am today. I can not comment on their path. I can only be thankful my path has lead be here today.
 
Originally posted by MD2b06
All those who say taking 4-5 years off before med school was great, what's your reasoning?
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Although I will have taken more that 4-5 years off between undergard and medical school(more like 10 years), I think it's great because a lot of people, "get a life" i.e, marriage, kids, seeing the world, ect.

I have a very close friend that is in the last 2 years of an MD/PhD program whom spent her entire 20's in some sort of academic training. Even thought I'm 36 and by the time she gets my age she'll be done with her training, I've never envied her for one minute for going straight through. She'll be in her mid-30's thinking about issues that don't concern me like finding a husband and infertility.

This brings to me a good point. Women that wait until they are in their late 20's to go to medical school potentially put themselves in a "difficult" social situation. Unfortunately, when they finish school they'll deal with residency directors asking them about their fertility plans and if they're unmarried, I'm sure they'll be thinking about when or if they'll get married or have children having put these things off years earlier. I hope that some of the young ladies on SDN are at least considering some of these issues because they are real.

Finally, there's obviously nothing wrong with pursuing professional goals just don't forget about your personal ones as well.
 
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