I don't know if I still want to study medicine

[Possible dopout?]

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I'm 19 and currently a 2nd year med student, but from South Africa so we get into medicine straight after high school. For the past year I've been questioning to whether this is the right career choice for me or not. Now I don't find purpose in what I 'learn' from lectures, I'm not enjoying my modules and I feel obligated to study & work relatively hard because that is what med students are supposed to do. I don't have that desire I see in my fellow classmates, I feel like I'm just "there". I hate thinking about going to lectures everyday, I almost never do but I am passing, I'm doing well but only because I have to. I don't want to sacrifice 10-15 years of my life (to specialize is 4 years or so) and work irregular hours. I want a set 9-5/constant work frame. I want holidays to myself, be able to attend special occasions & spend time with my loved ones. I want to enjoy these years of my life and the rest of it.
I was that kid who never put much thought into what I would do for the rest of my life so when university applications opened I decided to apply for medicine because it seemed like the best option (I really enjoyed and did well in biology in high school so I assumed I'd enjoy medicine) and medicine is one of the most secured professions out there AND the pay is good (from what everybody tells me). Recently I've been reading a lot of other posts similar to my situation & I think I have finally realized and become fully aware to what I'm sacrificing in pursuing this career. I honestly don't like people, my reason for getting into medicine wasn't so I can help people; I was interested in how the body works, how and why things go wrong and how we fix these problems. I did do some job shadowing with surgeons and stuff when I was in high school and it seemed fun but all I did was watch, nobody gave me a breakdown to how & what they had to do to get to where they are & so it seemed like I could just work hard and get there too. I'm not entirely sure what else I would do if I decide to drop out, I'm thinking something in finance because it's always interested me as to how the economic sector works and how companies get to become so successful as they do and it's an area that wouldn't become obsolete any time soon.
I have spoken to my parents about how I feel, mid-year or so & they told me to give it time and see how it goes but I still feel the same. They want me to stay because they obviously want a good life for me but I'm just not happy. I don't know if I should just push through and find some happiness when I do start practicing. If I leave then it would be a crushing disappointment to my parents and my parents are concerned about what other people would assume about my dropping out because "who in their right minds drops out of med school?". I feel stuck in my situation based on what people would think of me, whether I'd succeed in finance & have the job security medicine has yet at the same time I realize its MY happiness at stake, the rest of MY life & I just don't know what to do.

Apologies for the length! Needed to provide as much info as I thought necessary! 🙂

 

[Dream_big]

well, for starters, how would you just dropout and start on your new path? Is it feasible to switch paths and go down the financial sector road?

 

[Lawpy]

I don't know if I should just push through and find some happiness when I do start practicing. If I leave then it would be a crushing disappointment to my parents and my parents are concerned about what other people would assume about my dropping out because "who in their right minds drops out of med school?". I feel stuck in my situation based on what people would think of me, whether I'd succeed in finance & have the job security medicine has yet at the same time I realize its MY happiness at stake, the rest of MY life & I just don't know what to do.

Some points:

1. SDN is largely based on US medical schools and medical education, so we aren't familiar/don't know about medicine in other countries. Regardless, I can try to work with the description you have provided.

2. From #1, I would guess dropping out of med school would prevent you from reapplying to medicine in South Africa. So dropping out can have pretty significant outcomes.

3. You need to assess whether you're suffering from burnout or whether you truly can't stand medicine. The former is temporary and manageable but the latter is serious. It seems like you're getting exhausted by preclinicals and feel that clinical years won't get better due to erratic hours. Have you contacted some doctors in specialties that do work in the 9-5 hours frame to see how they managed through weird hours in med school and residency? This may help.

4. Do you know how finance careers work and the requirements involved to secure good jobs? If not, you may need to check it out. Finance sector is generally sensitive to market trends, and economic downturn can lead to major job losses (even in economically safe areas). Medicine, which has good job security due to essential social demand (society wants doctors), is usually shielded from economic impacts.

My opinion? I would stick with medicine and contact the school's help support to manage the burnout and negativity. Other careers have their own problems that can lead to similar dissatisfying sentiments, but in medicine, you have the opportunity to use expansive medical knowledge you worked hard to learn and master to help take care of others in need, effectively providing a vital function to society.

 

[Mad Jack]

Hard to say, as I'm not familiar with South Africa's medical system, not what opportunities would be available in finance there. Don't do something you'll hate for the rest of your life though, that's one thing I can say with certainty.

 

[Possible dopout?]

well, for starters, how would you just dropout and start on your new path? Is it feasible to switch paths and go down the financial sector road?

It would be a matter of going to management and sorting out the logistics. My parents are funding my tuition so I don't have any student loads (therefore debt) and I can still apply to get into the Economics faculty

 

[Lawpy]

It would be a matter of going to management and sorting out the logistics. My parents are funding my tuition so I don't have any student loads (therefore debt) and I can still apply to get into the Economics faculty

? is your alternative career to become an economics or finance professor? That's different from working directly in finance (e.g. say consulting, working in investment banking etc.)

 

[Possible dopout?]

Some points:

1. SDN is largely based on US medical schools and medical education, so we aren't familiar/don't know about medicine in other countries. Regardless, I can try to work with the description you have provided.

2. From #1, I would guess dropping out of med school would prevent you from reapplying to medicine in South Africa. So dropping out can have pretty significant outcomes.

3. You need to assess whether you're suffering from burnout or whether you truly can't stand medicine. The former is temporary and manageable but the latter is serious. It seems like you're getting exhausted by preclinicals and feel that clinical years won't get better due to erratic hours. Have you contacted some doctors in specialties that do work in the 9-5 hours frame to see how they managed through weird hours in med school and residency? This may help.

4. Do you know how finance careers work and the requirements involved to secure good jobs? If not, you may need to check it out. Finance sector is generally sensitive to market trends, and economic downturn can lead to major job losses (even in economically safe areas). Medicine, which has good job security due to essential social demand (society wants doctors), is usually shielded from economic impacts.

My opinion? I would stick with medicine and contact the school's help support to manage the burnout and negativity. Other careers have their own problems that can lead to similar dissatisfying sentiments, but in medicine, you have the opportunity to use expansive medical knowledge you worked hard to learn and master to help take care of others in need, effectively providing a vital function to society.

It's almost similar, just no pre-med. We start clinical rotations in 3rd year. We have 2 years compulsory internship (like UK housmanship) after the 6 year course followed by another year of compulsory community service.
Yeah, I do understand the consequences should I drop out however I feel like a part of me doesn't mind having medicine scrapped. Yeah I have spoken to a few and they told me they didn't enjoy internship and that's why they had to find specialties that allowed rigid working hours. I've been reading up and researching the different facets within the finance sector & alot of them have caught my attention. And that's my concern; the certainty that medicine offers and finance doesn't. Thanks! I will give this some thought 🙂

 

[Possible dopout?]

Hard to say, as I'm not familiar with South Africa's medical system, not what opportunities would be available in finance there. Don't do something you'll hate for the rest of your life though, that's one thing I can say with certainty.

I also don't plan on living and working forever in this country, with the way this country is headed no sensible person would stay. It's an extremely tough decision heading into the unknown

 

[Possible dopout?]

? is your alternative career to become an economics or finance professor? That's different from working directly in finance (e.g. say consulting, working in investment banking etc.)

Oh no nothing in academia. I want to work directly in finance like investment banking or financial analyst and the likes.

 

[Lawpy]

It's almost similar, just no pre-med. We start clinical rotations in 3rd year. We have 2 years compulsory internship (like UK housmanship) after the 6 year course followed by another year of compulsory community service.
Yeah, I do understand the consequences should I drop out however I feel like a part of me doesn't mind having medicine scrapped. Yeah I have spoken to a few and they told me they didn't enjoy internship and that's why they had to find specialties that allowed rigid working hours. I've been reading up and researching the different facets within the finance sector & alot of them have caught my attention. And that's my concern; the certainty that medicine offers and finance doesn't. Thanks! I will give this some thought 🙂

My main concern is, at least from what I've been reading, the current political/economic situation in South Africa isn't stable (e.g. there's been regular protests going on against the government due to economic hardships and political corruption), so I just felt that the finance/economic careers may be acutely impacted. Of course, I don't know much and am only relying on your post and my readings on the matter so I can be completely wrong on this.

Here in the US, burnout in medical school and internship/residency is real, and you can find many additional posts in MD/general residency forums where people were saying the same things as you are. It's totally understandable, which is why seeking support from your school help resources is so important. And yeah, it's reasonable why the doctors you spoke to didn't like their intern years much, due to insane work demands + stress + studying.

I personally think of these years as a necessary short-term investment to enjoy long-term rewards of being a successful doctor who can manage their own schedule and garner strong respect from colleagues, patients, and society. And I bet you can still pursue economics/finance even more successfully on the side as a doctor in the end (but I don't know how that works in South Africa).

Oh no nothing in academia. I want to work directly in finance like investment banking or financial analyst and the likes.

Unfortunately, while investment banking, financial analyst and similar jobs make a lot of money doing really useful stuff, at least in the US, these jobs involve long hours and are very stressful. And they don't have good job security and require connections/networking to be successful in a highly competitive environment.

I learned something talking to physicians here on the forums (and in real life): professional careers can be stressful and involve long hours, so the problems you're seeing in medicine now are probably there in other careers like finance and law. The difference here however is in medicine, you can use the knowledge and hard work you put to really make a significant social impact by taking care of people and improving health outcomes.

 

[Mad Jack]

I also don't plan on living and working forever in this country, with the way this country is headed no sensible person would stay. It's an extremely tough decision heading into the unknown

It will likely be easier for you to transition elsewhere in finance than medicine- medical education is notoriously difficult to carry across country lines. Even the US, which used to be a haven for foreign grads, is quickly closing its doors due to a massive increase in domestic enrollment. Finance usually isn't like that- the skills are highly mobile, and international experience can help you more than hurt you. Don't expect to be some millionaire financier though, as such jobs are tough to land.

 

[Possible dopout?]

My main concern is, at least from what I've been reading, the current political/economic situation in South Africa isn't stable (e.g. there's been regular protests going on against the government due to economic hardships and political corruption), so I just felt that the finance/economic careers may be acutely impacted. Of course, I don't know much and am only relying on your post and my readings on the matter so I can be completely wrong on this.

Here in the US, burnout in medical school and internship/residency is real, and you can find many additional posts in MD/general residency forums where people were saying the same things as you are. It's totally understandable, which is why seeking support from your school help resources is so important. And yeah, it's reasonable why the doctors you spoke to didn't like their intern years much, due to insane work demands + stress + studying.

I personally think of these years as a necessary short-term investment to enjoy long-term rewards of being a successful doctor who can manage their own schedule and garner strong respect from colleagues, patients, and society. And I bet you can still pursue economics/finance even more successfully on the side as a doctor in the end (but I don't know how that works in South Africa).



Unfortunately, while investment banking, financial analyst and similar jobs make a lot of money doing really useful stuff, at least in the US, these jobs involve long hours and are very stressful. And they don't have good job security and require connections/networking to be successful in a highly competitive environment.

I learned something talking to physicians here on the forums (and in real life): professional careers can be stressful and involve long hours, so the problems you're seeing in medicine now are probably there in other careers like finance and law. The difference here however is in medicine, you can use the knowledge and hard work you put to really make a significant social impact by taking care of people and improving health outcomes.

Yeah, we aren't doing too well on the economic front & that's also another reason I'm hesitant. I'll give the student adviser a shot and see if things change. I guess I just need to consider these options to greater lengths. Thanks so much, really needed an outsiders take! 🙂

 

[Possible dopout?]

It will likely be easier for you to transition elsewhere in finance than medicine- medical education is notoriously difficult to carry across country lines. Even the US, which used to be a haven for foreign grads, is quickly closing its doors due to a massive increase in domestic enrollment. Finance usually isn't like that- the skills are highly mobile, and international experience can help you more than hurt you. Don't expect to be some millionaire financier though, as such jobs are tough to land.

Yeah, and I do really want to work abroad so I also do need to consider that difficulty. I'd like to think I'm realistic in what finance can offer me and I know it requires hard work to climb that ladder so that's okay. Thanks for your opinion 🙂 Much appreciated

 

[Lawpy]

Yeah, we aren't doing too well on the economic front & that's also another reason I'm hesitant. I'll give the student adviser a shot and see if things change. I guess I just need to consider these options to greater lengths. Thanks so much, really needed an outsiders take! 🙂

Glad we can help. Let us know if you need any additional help/assistance/support etc. We'll be here 😀

 

[Possible dopout?]

Glad we can help. Let us know if you need any additional help/assistance/support etc. We'll be here 😀

Thanks 🙂 I'll remember that

 

[Turkishking]

Join the military.