I have almost no idea what I'm doing.

[Barnacles0291]

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I have very little idea about what I'm doing. That statement could not possibly be more apt.

My whole family is comprised of tradespeople, high school graduates, or lower. Not one has ever gone to college, and especially not University. I'm first generation. As well, I am 21 and I graduated high school but didn't get academic-level courses OR get respectable grades for entry so I am re-taking various courses with an organization called Independent Learning Center (I'm in Ontario, Canada)

To pay homage to Hogan's Heroes, "I know nozzink!". I don't know where I should go, what I should do, what I need to be reading up on, what I should be learning, or what the requirements are for a career in medicine. All I know is I love science (though I need to re-take those courses as well), and I find myself reading about thinks involving the universe, about people, biology (to a lesser extent), things like that. More so, I have ADHD and depression which I've recently conquered, and I feel I was incredibly lucky that I'm as cognitive as I am. My grandmother has Alzheimer's Disease, and was one of the most severe cases (as well as rapidly progressing) her psychiatrist had ever seen. I want to study the brain.

I've thought about Psychiatry because of the apparent need in Canada for psychiatrists, as well as the complexity of the work and the relevance it has had in my life. I am also flirting with the idea of something involving neuroscience, or possibly even just being a general practitioner.

I really don't know who to talk to about this because I'm essentially on my own when it comes to university/med school. I'll be talking to my physician when I go in to renew a prescription, but I doubt she'd let me shadow her unfortunately. As well, she graduated years ago from the University of Toronto, so I'm sure things have changed quite a bit.

Any help would be great, because the terminology was even confusing to me. Until a few weeks ago I honestly didn't even know what the difference between a bachelor's degree and a master's degree was.

Sorry if this is in the wrong place. Thanks in advance.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

I have very little idea about what I'm doing. That statement could not possibly be more apt.

My whole family is comprised of tradespeople, high school graduates, or lower. Not one has ever gone to college, and especially not University. I'm first generation. As well, I am 21 and I graduated high school but didn't get academic-level courses OR get respectable grades for entry so I am re-taking various courses with an organization called Independent Learning Center (I'm in Ontario, Canada)

I don't know exactly how Canada works, but why don't you just go to a community college and transfer to a 4 year college? Or is this on a US phenomena?

To pay homage to Hogan's Heroes, "I know nozzink!". I don't know where I should go, what I should do, what I need to be reading up on, what I should be learning, or what the requirements are for a career in medicine. All I know is I love science (though I need to re-take those courses as well), and I find myself reading about thinks involving the universe, about people, biology (to a lesser extent), things like that. More so, I have ADHD and depression which I've recently conquered, and I feel I was incredibly lucky that I'm as cognitive as I am. My grandmother has Alzheimer's Disease, and was one of the most severe cases (as well as rapidly progressing) her psychiatrist had ever seen. I want to study the brain.

Ok, you've got a drive. Go to college, take your prereqs, finish a bachelors degree, take a mcat, and apply.

I've thought about Psychiatry because of the apparent need in Canada for psychiatrists, as well as the complexity of the work and the relevance it has had in my life. I am also flirting with the idea of something involving neuroscience, or possibly even just being a general practitioner.

Let's decide these things when you're in med school.

I really don't know who to talk to about this because I'm essentially on my own when it comes to university/med school. I'll be talking to my physician when I go in to renew a prescription, but I doubt she'd let me shadow her unfortunately. As well, she graduated years ago from the University of Toronto, so I'm sure things have changed quite a bit.

Shadowing is important, but at this point it's early. You should worry more about starting college.

Any help would be great, because the terminology was even confusing to me. Until a few weeks ago I honestly didn't even know what the difference between a bachelor's degree and a master's degree was.

What particular terminology are you talking about?

Sorry if this is in the wrong place. Thanks in advance.

While this site does have resources for Canadians, it might be more useful to go to Premed101, which is the Canadian version of this site.

 

[TarHeelEMT]

Good luck and congratulations on being in a position to go to college and consider a field in medicine. Unfortunately, I don't know too much about how the Canadian education system works, but I do know that your next step will be to start college and do as well as you can.

The nice thing is, once you get to college, nobody cares how you did in high school. It's a totally fresh start, and that sounds like something you'll be able to take advantage of.

Don't worry too much about medical school or career choices yet. Just do well once you get to college, and you'll have plenty of folks to help you learn the process as you go.

Good luck!

 

[dichloromethane]

Terminology hmm

MCAT = medical school standardized exam
DAT = dental school standardized exam
PCAT = pharmacy school standardized exam
OAT = optometry school standardized exam

LoR = letter of recommendations(you'll need plenty of these)
orthoped = orthopeadics not to be confused with orthodontics
GP = general practitioner
CNA = certified nurse assistant
gunners = the top 10% of medical school applicants. In medical school, they study so hard their brains melt out their ears. These people usually value their education above all else. People make fun of gunners because they aren't very well-rounded. They just study a lot-but these days they're the jack of all trades come application time. 500 volunteer hours, 100 shadowing hours, research published, 5 LoR, 3.89 GPA, 39 MCAT etc.

SDN = student doctor network


I think that about does it for "terminology"

 

[ucsfstudents]

I agree that the next step is to go to college where you should be surrounding by other students pursuing medicine. It's a long road, but the way to get there is one step at a time.

 

[futuresurgeon00]

Okay...so I'm Canadian as well (also from Ontario, Canada)....so I do know what you are talking about....If you want to go into psych...it's better to go into a university, as colleges here are for people who want to start work right away, or want to go into an apprenticeship, or into a trade.

Actually, Canada doesn't need that many psychs. I've done a lot of research on this, and more psychs are needed in the US. This also explains the lower salary. Also, since the crime rate is lower, there is less of a need here.

I hope this kind of helps, and clears it up for others, so you can explain stuff better.......