Is Age a Liability?

[gary5]

---

Members don't see this ad.

I'd say no. Having read through numerous med school prospecti, many emphasize that they do not discriminate based on age. What do you think?

🙂 🙁 😳 😍 😳 🙁 🙂

 

[tugbug]

My own thought is that it is a liability. Im 30. It seems to me that all things being equal it would be better for schools to pick students with those extra7-8 yrs of possible practicing.

However, that being said. Ive been told by two people involved in adcoms that it is actually a benefit. Some schools seem to be looking for a group of non trad's for each class. So the competition might not be quite as stiff.

 

[kgal16]

i think it definitely is a liability
but probably only if u r either really young, like 15
or really "aged" like 35 or something

if you're really young, u just need to be more mature
if you're really aged, they wonder why u would go to med school, and ask all sorts of questions about your motivations, etc... and u have to give a damn good reason (more than the reg. traditional applicant)
they probably also wonder to themselves if u can hack the endless studying u will start having to do at med school
after like a decade or more of not studying, i figure it may be difficullt to get into the groove of studying

 

[efex101]

Really aged at 35? No, it is not a liability. I am past 35 and have been invited for 22 interviews so hence obviously my age did not impede my application. Not one interviewer (10 down) has inquired about my age. I do have to say that all my coursework is recent meaning that I am now finishing my first ever B.S. so maybe that helped I don't know. Regardless I do not think age will have a huge impact either way. Adcoms want to know that a) you can handle the work b) you have clinical exposure to see what you are getting into c) there is more to you than studying and wanting to go to medical school. Do not let age be a barrier or do not assume that having life experience will slide you in. Also to the poster that stated that adcoms may want to accept applicants that will give more time back that is a null point IMHO. There is no way to tell how long someone will give back to the medical field no matter how young. Some younger individiuals may realize after med school and residency that this is way too demanding and quit medicine early on, the same could happen for non-trads so going by that is really pointless. Adcoms try to accept the best folks they can that will integrate well into their school...

 

[Dr.Linus]

Age is not a liability if you are an outstanding candidate. one of the factors that will make you outstanding is your life experiences other than GPA and MCAT and ECs.

I feel that age will become a liability if a candidate is in mid to late 40's.

 

[usmaple]

I think it's been a benefit for me. I'm not too old (I'll be 27 when I start), but in all of my interviews so far it's come up indirectly. No direct questions about my age, but lots of talk about maturity and having "life experiences" that I wouldn't have gotten if I had applied 4 or 5 years ago.

I also have a small kid, which I thought would be a huge liability, but that's also been nothing but positive so far.

I think it's all how you spin things. Then again, I've only been on a few interviews since my letters went out late, so I guess things could turn negative. The "big name" interviews are starting to roll in now, and I'm not sure how they'll look at things.

p.s. efex101 is my new hero.

 

[efex101]

Thanks maple! I am sure that you will rock the interview trail. One thing is that I am not assuming that I will get tons of acceptances. Although my interviews went really really well, you really never know. Most of the folks interviewing were great and smart and can carry out conversations. I am sure that med schools have a tough time sometimes trying to select folks to accept....

 

[Amy B]

Originally posted by kgal16
i think it definitely is a liability
but probably only if u r either really young, like 15
or really "aged" like 35 or something

Yikes really aged at 35. Oh speak up, this "aged" 37 year old can't hear you. The hearing is gone, the eyesight is failing and I need a cane. NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!😀 😀 😀 😀

I'll let you know if my age is a factor after the application process (ex: if I get rejected or accepted). I have had a number of interviews already and have 2 more scheduled. So far my age hasn't come up at all.

 

[skypilot]

I'm 40. I don't think age is a factor at all until 36. Then it gradually may become a factor. But as stated earlier if you have something to show for all those years like experience as an attorney, in business, or in research some med schools will get very excited and snap you right up. Pitt said specifically that they added points for older candidates.

I've gotten plenty of interviews.

 

[dstn2bmd]

Originally posted by usmaple
I think it's been a benefit for me. I'm not too old (I'll be 27 when I start), but in all of my interviews so far it's come up indirectly. No direct questions about my age, but lots of talk about maturity and having "life experiences" that I wouldn't have gotten if I had applied 4 or 5 years ago.

I also have a small kid, which I thought would be a huge liability, but that's also been nothing but positive so far.

I think it's all how you spin things. Then again, I've only been on a few interviews since my letters went out late, so I guess things could turn negative. The "big name" interviews are starting to roll in now, and I'm not sure how they'll look at things.

p.s. efex101 is my new hero.

I second the motion....efex101 is mine too!😀

I have noticed that my age has given much more confidence and security during the interview process. I don't care what people think of me. I am me. I have had enough time to fully shape my values and ideals and ambitions. Older applicants have texture in their personas. 😎 And personally I think the older you get the more interesting you are. I think that is why I flock to people older than me.

Heb

 

[Moose1]

Originally posted by efex101
Not one interviewer (10 down) has inquired about my age.

just got to say that interviewers aren't supposed to bring up your age as an issue...you'll find somewhere in their policies that they don't discriminate based on race, gender, age, sexual preference, etc. if they bring it up in an interview and you are later rejected, you could claim that you were discriminated against based on age because they specifically asked about it. they have to be cautious in some areas.

now, if you were to bring up your age and how it has allowed you to become more focused and whatnot, that's a different story because you brought it up first. same thing goes with asking if you have a boyfriend or girlfriend, etc. Once you bring it up in your interview or in your essays, it's fair game, otherwise it is left alone.

similar interview policies apply to medical schools in comparison to hiring businesses.

i say more power to the "experienced" applicants. they make for a more mature class.

 

[njbmd]

Hi there,
I started medical school well into my forties and I can say that age has not been a liability but an asset. I was able to get interviews at all of the schools that I applied to and I had six acceptances. I was also able to get a full-ride scholarship. If you have a competitive application and lots of energy, age is not a factor.

I am currently a General Surgery resident in a good residency program. Surgery is well-known for being a specialty that attracts younger folks. If you have life responsibilities like family and a mortgage, you will be at a distinct disadvantage unless you have a pile of money lying around to keep the mortgage going and the family happy. Medical schools do not make allotments for family expenses but only for living below the poverty line.

If you have been in a career, you are going to take a financial hit by being out of the workforce for four years. Make sure that your spouse and children are with you on this one. You won't be able to work much outside your studies and residency pays just above the poverty line.

Check out the website for experiences Old Premeds for some experiences of other non-traditional pre-meds and medical students. (Efex is one of our heros and well on the way to a great career in medicine)

As Satchel Page said " Age is mind over matter. If you don't mind, age don't matter." Good luck!

njbmd

 

[Amy B]

This 37 year old is headed to med school, so I guess age didn't affect me.

 

[sunni]

It could be on the other end, ie if you're too young. People always jump and think it'd only be the older applicants w/ age problems. Not true (IMO). The older applicants are probably looked at as more "experience" and are more "mature."
This is not by any means a scientific sampling, but a single experience.
A friends brother graduated high school & college early, he keep his ECs from high school (IMO-shows committment), after busting his butt to graduate w/ honors, and getting a good score on the MCAT, he was rejected by everywhere, including the state school. He asked somebody, and they told him they thought he was too young to be serious (~20).

 

[efex101]

Hey guys I am the woman! no not really. I think that I have been really blessed and that I did get my apps in ASAP. Secondaries were sent out as they came in within two days at the most. All my stuff was done including secondaries prior to August 10 or so. I have to say that I never ever dreamed that I would get so many interviews...but I am nto complaining. All that said you never really know. For those that have one, two, three interviews they may get accepted at all schools, and for those with none it is still really really early in the process so do not freak out yet. Good luck to all of us!🙂

 

[mamadoc]

I feel that age will become a liability if a candidate is in mid to late 40's.

Hmmmm. I entered med school at age 44. I'll graduate next year at age 48. (I have kids graduating from high school and college next year, too.) I think age >40 is going to make AdComs look carefully but I do not agree that it's a liability.

Okay, a person who's significantly older than the vast majority of med school applicants is obviously going to have to bring something a little different to the table. They need to prove, in a way that younger applicants don't, that they're up to the challenge of med school. A lot will be expected of them in terms of maturity and insight - the social faux pas that a younger candidate might commit in an interview will be less forgiveable in someone who's old enough to have interviewed for jobs. They'll have to be pretty impressive - but then you can say that about every applicant, can't you?

I do occasionally run into folks who think they should get "credit" *simply* for being older. That ain't gonna happen. You have to prove that you deserve respect and that your long life has taught you a lot. AdComs aren't going to assume that you're a mature, responsible, thoughtful, hard-working student just 'cause you're 40.

 

[exmike]

I'll be 26 when (if) I start. So far my age has indirectly been a big boost in my interviews. Most of the expriences I talk about in my interviews were post-college, and when I reflect on it, I really wouldnt have had much to talk about if I applied right out of college (not that that was a possiblity). Age is good so long as you didn't spend it peddling smut or something. Then, too much can be a good thing (when you pass the 40's). Also, don't be discouraged by lower acceptance rates for older premeds (as reported by AAMC). I think it has mostly to do with the fact that

1) older premeds are usually longer removed from academia, and thus may not do as well in subsequent tests or coursework such as the MCAT (this is vividly seen on the AAMC site of MCAT/Age averages)

2) older premeds include the pool of younger premeds that didn't get in initially and reapplied later on, and those premeds obviously have less competitive applications (reapplicants are older, and have lower scores)

3) older premeds must have good reasons for applying to medical school, which can present a challenge during the application process.

and more of course

 

[8744]

Your youth, inexperience, and lack of life experience are most certainly a liability. I'm suprised anybody under the age of 35 actually gets into medical school especially since at 22, the normal age of matriculation, you are just way to immature to handle the responsibilty of other people's lives.

Plus you are probably just barely weaned and no doubt miss your mammas. I find it amusing that many of my classmates were playing with their barney dolls and filling their huggies when I was slogging through jungles and deserts training to kill communists and islamofascists.

Sincerely,

P. Bear
Age 40

 

[Skialta]

I am 33 and an MS1, I would have to say that my age only worked to my benefit. At most of my interviews I think the interviewer was more impressed that I would change careers and go through all the work to apply to med school. Because of that, they know you are committed to the rigors of school. Just my 2 cents.

 

[efex101]

See it is comments like what P Bear wrote that tick me off somewhat. There are very very mature individuals that are 20 and there are very very silly folks that are 30 and above. Yes, usually life experience may give you other perspective but to say that someone who is less than X or Y age should not become a physician is ludicrous. Another thing that irritates me is when some older med students whine/complain about their younger counterparts not having to go home and cook/clean/take care of kids whatever, well duh. We are chosing to go to med school with families so suck it up and move on but do not be a little upset because other folks chose to go to med school w/o a family and other commitments...okay now I get off the soapbox. Slickness do not even give a thought to your age if you made it this far obviously you are qualified to become a highly competent and caring physician.

 

[Amy B]

A funny thing happened at my last interview.

I was of course the oldest person there. We were all talking, basically shooting the breeze after our interviews and one of the girls there cussed.

She then looked at me and said.... ooops I'm so sorry."

I just laughed and said "I've heard bad words before, you don't have to apologize, I'm not that old."🙄 🙄

 

[pathdr2b]

Originally posted by efex101
See it is comments like what P Bear wrote that tick me off somewhat.

Chill out Efex 101, I think Pbear was joking around (at least I hope). Looks like having "1 trillion interviews" is starting to get to you

I'll be 43 when I finish MD/PhD (assuming I can get into the MD part of it 😉 ) but so is one of the residents I work with. She's a married mother of 2 and just finished the MD/PhD at 40 something from a Cali med school. So, there are too many role models around for me to give much of a dam about age😎

 

[8744]

Originally posted by efex101
See it is comments like what P Bear wrote that tick me off somewhat. There are very very mature individuals that are 20 and there are very very silly folks that are 30 and above. Yes, usually life experience may give you other perspective but to say that someone who is less than X or Y age should not become a physician is ludicrous. Another thing that irritates me is when some older med students whine/complain about their younger counterparts not having to go home and cook/clean/take care of kids whatever, well duh. We are chosing to go to med school with families so suck it up and move on but do not be a little upset because other folks chose to go to med school w/o a family and other commitments...okay now I get off the soapbox. Slickness do not even give a thought to your age if you made it this far obviously you are qualified to become a highly competent and caring physician.

efex101, tounge was firmly in my cheek and your leg was being vigorously pulled.

Most of the young people in my class are first class individuals and will make excellent doctors.

Just a word of advice, you may think that 30 or 40 is unspeakably old. But I assure you that when you reach those ages you will still feel pretty fit and ready to conquer the world.

 

[efex101]

Okay I though that you were serious, oh and by the way I am almost 40 myself...

 

[gary5]

I'm 35 and applying now. When someone asks me about the age part, I mention that I'll be an M.D. at 40, with 25+ years more to practice. Put that way, people always think it's no big deal.

Versus applying at 22, my essays are much better now. I have life and work experience which give me more material to discuss. One negative is that I think my MCATs will be lower than at 22. I'm hoping to come in around 30+, whereas I was a megabrain at 22: I probably would have gotten around 35+.