Job with Post Bac...???

[Teach4us2MD]

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Hey folks!

So I finally started my post bac journey this summer after years of lurking on SDN. I'm doing well in my classes and I love what I am doing. My plan was to go to school full time and not work, yet out of the blue a company I interviewed with last year but turned down for a research job just called me asking me if I was still interested they have a position for me. The job pays 52k a year plus bonuses which sounds great after making so little in research. I just wanted to reach out to all of those working full time, how do-able is the year with a full course load. Did you have enough time to study? And would you recommend this path to others?

Thanks for reading my long post!

 

[HollywoodUpstairs]

I began a full time formal post-bacc program recently, and I would strongly advise against a full time job with a full academic course load. Depending on the nature of the program you're considering, it may not even be possible to work ~40 hours a week and still attend all the necessary labs and lectures.

My personal experience prior to beginning the post-bacc is that I could comfortably accommodate one evening class with a full time job and two classes if I eliminated all other distractions (easier said than done).

Every individual has different requirements for sleep, family time, etc., but be sure to budget for the significant amount of time each class will require outside of lab and lecture when you plan your schedule.

 

[johnnyscans]

I began a full time formal post-bacc program recently, and I would strongly advise against a full time job with a full academic course load. Depending on the nature of the program you're considering, it may not even be possible to work ~40 hours a week and still attend all the necessary labs and lectures.

My personal experience prior to beginning the post-bacc is that I could comfortably accommodate one evening class with a full time job and two classes if I eliminated all other distractions (easier said than done).

Every individual has different requirements for sleep, family time, etc., but be sure to budget for the significant amount of time each class will require outside of lab and lecture when you plan your schedule.

This past semester I did approx. 30 hours of research a week (plus weekend work for cell culture), took 3 4-credit courses and did 3 hours of clinical volunteering/week. I was extremely busy. I had practically zero room in my schedule for anything else outside of the occasional non-clinical volunteering, shadowing and my workout/gym time.

Lucky for me my GF is in a DPT program, so she's just as busy, if not busier, than I am. We had no problems spending a good chunk of our weekends studying together. If you have a SO or friends who are on the full-time weekend party schedule you may find yourself quite distanced from them.

 

[cabinbuilder]

When I did my post-bacc I took 16 hours each semester (4 sciences) on MWF and worked a 32 hr week T,Th,Sat, Sun.

It was hard but I didn't have a choice not to work with a baby and bills to pay.

 

[thlaxer]

Like others said, it's doable, but I wouldn't recommend this approach if you can avoid it. There were several people in my post bac program working full time while also taking a part-time to full-time class load. They were always very busy and unfortunately, some of them eventually dropped out because their grades were suffering 🙁.

 

[Flim Flam Man]

what are your reasons for doing a post-bac program? Did you have low grades in the past and this is a way to show that you can do better? If so I wouldn't risk it. What is your credit load going to be like this fall? How many hours is this job expecting you to work? Is it a full time job that ends up lasting longer than 8 hours a day?

 

[kinokoboy]

I'm going to be reducing my time at work and only work three days a week for a total of 24 hours so I can take o-chem I and physics II in the fall. I'm going to continue this schedule in the spring and take o-chem II and study my brains out for the MCAT. This should give me adequate time to also volunteer at a hospital and shadow a couple doctors.