lawyer to dr.

[samespade]

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Hi all,

i'm about 5 months out of law school and 10 weeks into my job at a large firm. Years ago, before law school, i was seriously considering medical school--and finished all my prereqs--but was lazy, unwise, immature, and other stuff, and looked for an easier way out. Law school was deliciously easy to apply to--all i had to do was take a standardized test and write a crappy essay--and i ended up getting into some good ones that promised me a secure job and a lot of money.

I took on some debt, 150k overall, and spent three years in law school. Largely, the time wasn't terrible; i did pretty well and made some friends. I would occasionally notice that i lacked the passion for this stuff that some of my peers exuded, but i didn't let it bother me because, shortly, i was to be rolling in dough.

A few times each year, when law school would get particularly boring, i would wonder about medical school. I missed doing science, and wished that i had been a bit more mature and less lazy about the whole thing. But, even though i'd sometimes think wistfully of med school, sunk costs fallacy would kick in and i didn't want anyone to think i was a quitter and a serial school-applier so i stayed in school, passed the bar and started my job.

My job is boring. The details of biglaw lawyering are uninteresting and i won't bore you with them. Suffice it to say that my job inspires neither passion nor interest in me and when i look at what the older associates and partners are doing, i only dread more my progression up the biglaw ladder.

I'm thinking about med school again and stumbled upon this bored. I've begun to review some biology in slow prep for the MCAT; i'm looking into volunteering at a near by clinic and ER.

So, nontrads, anyone in a similar boat? If not, anyone have any suggestions regarding what kind of steps i should take in applying? I know that shadowing/volunteering and maybe research is important; how do i get into those? Do hospitals/clinics have programs?

I also know that young associates can work anywhere from 50 to 100+ hours a week which might leave me either barely adequate or no time at all to do extracurricular things. Will med schools recognize that i simply don't have the time to do the full gamut of extracurricular stuff, or will this be a blight on my record?

Anyone been in a similar position?

 

[flodhi1]

Hi all,

i'm about 5 months out of law school and 10 weeks into my job at a large firm. Years ago, before law school, i was seriously considering medical school--and finished all my prereqs--but was lazy, unwise, immature, and other stuff, and looked for an easier way out. Law school was deliciously easy to apply to--all i had to do was take a standardized test and write a crappy essay--and i ended up getting into some good ones that promised me a secure job and a lot of money.

I took on some debt, 150k overall, and spent three years in law school. Largely, the time wasn't terrible; i did pretty well and made some friends. I would occasionally notice that i lacked the passion for this stuff that some of my peers exuded, but i didn't let it bother me because, shortly, i was to be rolling in dough.

A few times each year, when law school would get particularly boring, i would wonder about medical school. I missed doing science, and wished that i had been a bit more mature and less lazy about the whole thing. But, even though i'd sometimes think wistfully of med school, sunk costs fallacy would kick in and i didn't want anyone to think i was a quitter and a serial school-applier so i stayed in school, passed the bar and started my job.

My job is boring. The details of biglaw lawyering are uninteresting and i won't bore you with them. Suffice it to say that my job inspires neither passion nor interest in me and when i look at what the older associates and partners are doing, i only dread more my progression up the biglaw ladder.

I'm thinking about med school again and stumbled upon this bored. I've begun to review some biology in slow prep for the MCAT; i'm looking into volunteering at a near by clinic and ER.

So, nontrads, anyone in a similar boat? If not, anyone have any suggestions regarding what kind of steps i should take in applying? I know that shadowing/volunteering and maybe research is important; how do i get into those? Do hospitals/clinics have programs?

I also know that young associates can work anywhere from 50 to 100+ hours a week which might leave me either barely adequate or no time at all to do extracurricular things. Will med schools recognize that i simply don't have the time to do the full gamut of extracurricular stuff, or will this be a blight on my record?

Anyone been in a similar position?

Ecs will be a major part of your application. If you do not have at least the average which is 1 and half years of clinical experience then it's going to be rough considering the competition. There are many students with high stats that do not get accepted due to the lack of ECs. Honestly, I do not know if medical schools will be forgiving about ECs considering you are a lawyer and you're going to have to justify your change in profession. Part of that justification and showing commitment is by really providing a thorough clinical and non-medical volunteering experience. I consider myself a non traditional, I went from being an Infantry Marine to just getting accepted into medical school. I would say that for my acceptance into medical school LORs and ECs played a major role.
You can go to local physicians in the area and start shadowing with them. It would be preferable to start shadowing with a primary care physician since they get a lot of exposure to a wide variety of patients. Also you would want leadership qualities which can be achieved through tutoring and other means of course. An essential part of volunteering as i stated before is non-clinical volunteering where you reach out to the community. There are tons of events for homeless people etc...

 

[samespade]

that's good to know; thanks! I figure ECs will be important and i'll have to figure out a way to volunteer over the next 1-2 years. Is it ok to do a bit each week?

I probably won't apply until next summer so at least i have time.

 

[flodhi1]

that's good to know; thanks! I figure ECs will be important and i'll have to figure out a way to volunteer over the next 1-2 years. Is it ok to do a bit each week?

I probably won't apply until next summer so at least i have time.

Yes a bit a week is perfectly fine, I personally went a little hardcore and decided to do it multiple days a week such as Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Pick one day a week and just try to devote a couple hours, you really don't have to devote more than one day. I personally would say pick one day out of the weekend and spend a couple hours volunteering/shadowing at a clinic (try to alternate), spend an hour or two tutoring (you can even tutor law students or people in your firm that's fine since all you are trying to show is a leadership/role model quality) and last but not least try to devote an hour or two to a community service event at a homeless shelter, cultural community center etc. Generally speaking this whole process should not take up more than 4-6 hours once a week. On the weeks that you're off or you really feel like being a champ make it 8-12 hours. Either way as I stated before if you have strong ECs you will definitely show a commitment to medicine. Even if in a rare case an ADCOM asks well how do we know you won't leave medicine like you left law you can tell them that hey look at my community and clinical experience. I did not have these types of experiences when entering law school but I do for medical school and I absolutely love this profession and what it has to offer. If you need any help let me know and good luck to you.

 

[samespade]

In terms of leadership, i did three years of test prep tutoring for TPR during college, after college and during law school. It was my full-time job for the year between college and lawschool and i did it part time during junior/senior year and the first 1/3 of law school. Is this sufficient or should i try to do more?

Edit: an i keep forgetting! Thank you for your service!

 

[gman33]

You won't get cut any slack; if anything, they probably will want you to demonstrate why you are making a change to medicine.

I don't have the time for a long reply right now, but it seems like you are trying to run away from law, instead of running towards medicine. At the end of the day, they are both just jobs with pros and cons.

Give law at least 3-5 years before you bail out.
If it still sucks, think about something else.
Also, if it's just big-law, look at some other options.

 

[flodhi1]

You won't get cut any slack; if anything, they probably will want you to demonstrate why you are making a change to medicine.

I don't have the time for a long reply right now, but it seems like you are trying to run away from law, instead of running towards medicine. At the end of the day, they are both just jobs with pros and cons.

Give law at least 3-5 years before you bail out.
If it still sucks, think about something else.
Also, if it's just big-law, look at some other options.

I agree switching immediately from law to medical school will give ADCOM a perspective that you really didn't give the profession time and simply ran away from it. This will really question your commitment as I stated before.

In terms of leadership, i did three years of test prep tutoring for TPR during college, after college and during law school. It was my full-time job for the year between college and lawschool and i did it part time during junior/senior year and the first 1/3 of law school. Is this sufficient or should i try to do more?

Yeah that is sufficient, I would say focus on the others now. Research is kind of an iffy EC, I would definitely not prioritize it to clinical experience but it's really up to you if you want to pursue it. I personally got accepted into 2 MD schools without any research probably because I made it obvious that I wanted to be a primary care doctor. So, I'm not a huge advocate of it but you will meet plenty of pre-meds with some form of research.

 

[samespade]

You won't get cut any slack; if anything, they probably will want you to demonstrate why you are making a change to medicine.

I don't have the time for a long reply right now, but it seems like you are trying to run away from law, instead of running towards medicine. At the end of the day, they are both just jobs with pros and cons.

Give law at least 3-5 years before you bail out.
If it still sucks, think about something else.
Also, if it's just big-law, look at some other options.

I can totally see how this can seem like running away rather than toward and these plans are in their infancy; i just like having all of my options open.

Med school takes time to apply for and i will need to build up ECs that demonstrate that i'm not full of ****. Even if i apply this summer--highly unlikely unless the partners become murderous--i will have spent two years lawyering it up before i go on to med.

I want to start some sort of volunteering/shadowing now to expose myself to the profession and make sure that i don't make another huge decision that i regret. There are only so many more professional schools i can go to!

 

[tkim]

Med school takes time to apply for and i will need to build up ECs that demonstrate that i'm not full of ****. Even if i apply this summer--highly unlikely unless the partners become murderous--i will have spent two years lawyering it up before i go on to med.

Think hard about going into further debt to pursue medicine. It will essentially double if not triple your educational debt, take at least seven years to complete, not including prereqs. And it's not all people think it is.

 

[samespade]

Think hard about going into further debt to pursue medicine. It will essentially double if not triple your educational debt, take at least seven years to complete, not including prereqs. And it's not all people think it is.

believe me, this, if anything, i have learned from law school and the 150k of debt now following me around.

Happily, i am well paid and will be able to pay off all or nearly all of that before i start med school. Also, i will aim for a state school with lower tuition and hopefully one that will provide some sort of scholarship.

 

[FutureDrB]

While I didn't go to Law School, I feel that I'm in a similar boat. I started college with the intention of going into medicine. But, I was young (21) and immature and thought, "do I really want to spend the next 11+ years in school and training?"

That was 11 years ago and I've regretted every minute that I didn't pursue medicine in the beginning. Now I'm 32 and starting over again. I've spent the past 11 years getting a bachelors degree and 2 masters degrees and working in an Education field. I'm also $150K in debt.

But, the thought of medicine never left me. I spent my free time volunteering at a local hospital, involving myself in other medicine-related community service groups and shadowing a close friend of mine who is a D.O.

I guess my point is... My fear is similar to yours in that the admissions committees will question why I pursued a different career field for so long if I wanted to go into medicine all along.

I think you just have to explain (as I plan to do) that sometimes life steers you in a different direction and it takes time to realize what it truly is you were meant to do. Obviously we all have our own life stories, but if medicine is what you want, go for it!

 

[samespade]

While I didn't go to Law School, I feel that I'm in a similar boat. I started college with the intention of going into medicine. But, I was young (21) and immature and thought, "do I really want to spend the next 11+ years in school and training?"

That was 11 years ago and I've regretted every minute that I didn't pursue medicine in the beginning. Now I'm 32 and starting over again. I've spent the past 11 years getting a bachelors degree and 2 masters degrees and working in an Education field. I'm also $150K in debt.

But, the thought of medicine never left me. I spent my free time volunteering at a local hospital, involving myself in other medicine-related community service groups and shadowing a close friend of mine who is a D.O.

I guess my point is... My fear is similar to yours in that the admissions committees will question why I pursued a different career field for so long if I wanted to go into medicine all along.

I think you just have to explain (as I plan to do) that sometimes life steers you in a different direction and it takes time to realize what it truly is you were meant to do. Obviously we all have our own life stories, but if medicine is what you want, go for it!

thanks, man, I appreciate that. Good luck to you!

 

[UpwardTrend]

I think you're going about this the right way (slowly). Plan on not applying until June 2013 or 2014 and you'll be able to prove your commitment through EC's as well as prove that you tried law. There are dual JD/MD degrees out there and it could help you to have both in the future. You're not crazy and you will most likely never get rid of that "itch" to pursue medicine. Its good that you already have the pre-reqs done. You can always fit in a weekly 4 hour volunteer shift at a hospital, even as a busy lawyer. If you get a day or two of vacation then maybe you could use it to shadow too. The thing you may need to think about is when it comes time to study for the MCAT. You will be years removed from the pre-reqs and will most likely require 3-4 months of heavy review. What can you do when that time comes in order to set plenty of time aside? What is your undergrad cumulative and science gpa?

 

[RavishingB]

I love your avy 😍

 

[KaseyA]

Hi all,

i'm about 5 months out of law school and 10 weeks into my job at a large firm. Years ago, before law school, i was seriously considering medical school--and finished all my prereqs--but was lazy, unwise, immature, and other stuff, and looked for an easier way out. Law school was deliciously easy to apply to--all i had to do was take a standardized test and write a crappy essay--and i ended up getting into some good ones that promised me a secure job and a lot of money.

I took on some debt, 150k overall, and spent three years in law school. Largely, the time wasn't terrible; i did pretty well and made some friends. I would occasionally notice that i lacked the passion for this stuff that some of my peers exuded, but i didn't let it bother me because, shortly, i was to be rolling in dough.
If you switch to medicine, you will go at least 7 yrs w/o any income while racking up 1/4 million dollars of debt.

A few times each year, when law school would get particularly boring, i would wonder about medical school. I missed doing science, and wished that i had been a bit more mature and less lazy about the whole thing. But, even though i'd sometimes think wistfully of med school, sunk costs fallacy would kick in and i didn't want anyone to think i was a quitter and a serial school-applier so i stayed in school, passed the bar and started my job.
We all think wistfully of a fantasy world when the real one gets too tough.

My job is boring. The details of biglaw lawyering are uninteresting and i won't bore you with them. Suffice it to say that my job inspires neither passion nor interest in me and when i look at what the older associates and partners are doing, i only dread more my progression up the biglaw ladder.
But then you will still be making bank as a biglaw partner.

I'm thinking about med school again and stumbled upon this bored. I've begun to review some biology in slow prep for the MCAT; i'm looking into volunteering at a near by clinic and ER.

So, nontrads, anyone in a similar boat? If not, anyone have any suggestions regarding what kind of steps i should take in applying? I know that shadowing/volunteering and maybe research is important; how do i get into those? Do hospitals/clinics have programs?

I also know that young associates can work anywhere from 50 to 100+ hours a week which might leave me either barely adequate or no time at all to do extracurricular things. Will med schools recognize that i simply don't have the time to do the full gamut of extracurricular stuff, or will this be a blight on my record?


Anyone been in a similar position?

..

 

[Cooperd0g]

Not to dissuade you from going into medicine as I'm 35 and hoping to get accepted this year after many years in the military, but there are some other options in law. I know lots of lawyers. The non a-hole money grubbers seem to be of the same mind as you. Many of them are really happy being a prosecutor or a public defender. Much less money, but depending on the way you lean, one of those might give you some of the passion you are currently lacking without starting over completely. Yes, they have all kinds of bureaucratic nonsense to deal with, but so does medicine.

 

[samespade]

I think you're going about this the right way (slowly). Plan on not applying until June 2013 or 2014 and you'll be able to prove your commitment through EC's as well as prove that you tried law. There are dual JD/MD degrees out there and it could help you to have both in the future. You're not crazy and you will most likely never get rid of that "itch" to pursue medicine. Its good that you already have the pre-reqs done. You can always fit in a weekly 4 hour volunteer shift at a hospital, even as a busy lawyer. If you get a day or two of vacation then maybe you could use it to shadow too. The thing you may need to think about is when it comes time to study for the MCAT. You will be years removed from the pre-reqs and will most likely require 3-4 months of heavy review. What can you do when that time comes in order to set plenty of time aside? What is your undergrad cumulative and science gpa?

thanks man. I think that slow and steady is the key.

w/r/t studying for the MCAT: i'll review bio and orgo slowly now but phys and chem i used to tutor actively while at TPR so those concepts are unlikely to ever leave me.

Happily, i've an excellent track record w/ standarized tests so as long as i can make the time to practice, i think i'll do fine. My ugpa was a bit over 3.5 and sGPA of like 3.2. Unfortunately sophomore year was basically a black hole so that brought down my gpa. My law school, GPA, on the other hand, is awesome. Too bad i can't use it.

 

[samespade]

kaseyA
1. i've found that money is not a good motivator for me. i'd rather find away to avoid depression and do something interesting/fulfilling than try to drown depression in dollars.

2. I've no objection to work; actually, it so far hasn't been tough at all--market ****-ups an all--and will only be really tough if i want to gun for partner. What it is, however, is boring--among other things.

 

[samespade]

thank-ee, ravishing

 

[CougarMD]

Making the switch can totally be done. But really, take a couple of years to do it....your application and success rate will thank you.

1 - You want to have a coherent story. That story is built up over time. Take at LEAST a year, and probably 2, to build up ECs. You want to show 1- that you can slog through it for at least that long, and 2 - that you have a real reason to feel passionate about medicine. They already know you can slog through law school, which you didn't particularly enjoy, but you are going to have to show them that law isn't for you, and here is WHY. You need stories from those ECs that are passionate and show how much you want to be in medicine, not how much you don't want to be in law.

2 - You're not 21 (or you won't be when you apply). So guess what....your ECs need to be good. You have the resources and the brain to get yourself into cool positions. Volunteering in the ED shuffling labs around won't cut it. I think that a lot of people around here disagree with me on that, but it goes back to #1....your story needs to be good, otherwise you just look like you're jumping ship.

3 - To help with the "I'm not jumping ship" stuff, I agree that staying in law for 3-5 years will really help. Put another way...being 3-5 years away from law school really helps. (I was 7 years out when I applied).

4 - The GPA, especially the science GPA, may be a but of a problem (this is based on the fact that you have no MCAT to balance it out yet) I would highly recommend either considering DO schools, or going back and taking some more science classes to bulk it up. I did this and it helped immensely. I think that there are a lot of schools out there who may not even look at your app with a 3.2/3.5. It also shows them you're willing to sack up and take classes again with more traditional students, which you're going to have to do anyway. And again...this helps you with the story. You get to talk about your recent experience in classes with 20 year olds, and how you bring X to the table, and enjoy how they bring Y to the table, etc etc.

I truly believe that a lot of this process is about determination, so I don't doubt that you will get in if you decide to go all in. Good luck dude. Feel free to PM if you have any other random questions.

 

[Law2Doc]

Hi all,

i'm about 5 months out of law school and 10 weeks into my job at a large firm. Years ago, before law school, i was seriously considering medical school--and finished all my prereqs--but was lazy, unwise, immature, and other stuff, and looked for an easier way out. Law school was deliciously easy to apply to--all i had to do was take a standardized test and write a crappy essay--and i ended up getting into some good ones that promised me a secure job and a lot of money.

I took on some debt, 150k overall, and spent three years in law school. Largely, the time wasn't terrible; i did pretty well and made some friends. I would occasionally notice that i lacked the passion for this stuff that some of my peers exuded, but i didn't let it bother me because, shortly, i was to be rolling in dough.

A few times each year, when law school would get particularly boring, i would wonder about medical school. I missed doing science, and wished that i had been a bit more mature and less lazy about the whole thing. But, even though i'd sometimes think wistfully of med school, sunk costs fallacy would kick in and i didn't want anyone to think i was a quitter and a serial school-applier so i stayed in school, passed the bar and started my job.

My job is boring. The details of biglaw lawyering are uninteresting and i won't bore you with them. Suffice it to say that my job inspires neither passion nor interest in me and when i look at what the older associates and partners are doing, i only dread more my progression up the biglaw ladder.

I'm thinking about med school again and stumbled upon this bored. I've begun to review some biology in slow prep for the MCAT; i'm looking into volunteering at a near by clinic and ER.

So, nontrads, anyone in a similar boat? If not, anyone have any suggestions regarding what kind of steps i should take in applying? I know that shadowing/volunteering and maybe research is important; how do i get into those? Do hospitals/clinics have programs?

I also know that young associates can work anywhere from 50 to 100+ hours a week which might leave me either barely adequate or no time at all to do extracurricular things. Will med schools recognize that i simply don't have the time to do the full gamut of extracurricular stuff, or will this be a blight on my record?

Anyone been in a similar position?

First, this question has been asked a lot over the years, so you might want to dig up a few of the older threads.
Second, you really want to make sure you are going to med school for solid specific reasons rather than simply running from the law. Your post suggests you at one time had been focused on the easiest path, on money. Now you don't like it out of lack of passion, boredom. You really need a much better back story as to what is drawing you to medicine, not away from law. Medicine doesn't want another fields malcontents, and it certainly doesn't want folks who just want to be a professional and consider being a doctor simply a tool to escape being a lawyer. You really really need to iron out your reasoning for medicine here (why medicine, not why not law) or it's a nonstarter.
Which basically means you must must must spend a lot of time volunteering and shadowing before you take the MCAT or do other steps toward a change. Med schools want to see you look before you leap. They want to be sure you know what you are getting into and have a good reason for it. Far more than if you were coming right out of college.
Med schools aren't going to recognize that you don't have the time for ECs. In fact, because you have a track record for taking a job/profession you don't like, they are going to expect even more due diligence than if you were just some silly 20 year old college junior.

So in short, get out there and shadow/volunteer to see what medicine is all about, get together a backstory for why you want to be a doctor which doesn't have any focus on why you don't want to be a lawyer (and ideally doesn't suggest you have a history of taking the easy way or being money focused), and only after substantial clinical exposure should you decide whether the MCAT is the next step.

 

[Esquire]

Similar story to you. I took the "easy" way out with the LSAT, law school, and Big Law. I am currently finishing med school pre-reqs, so I can't comment on what med schools want.

But I strongly recommend staying in Big Law for at least 5 years. Yes, the hours, work, and people suck, but you cannot beat the money at your age. Over 5 years, you will clear over $1,000,000. That goes a long way to paying off your loans & paying for med school.

And over those years, in addition to money, you will gain invaluable experience on what hard work really is, what relentless perfectionism is required when billions of dollars are on the line, what being on-call 24/7 is like, how to work with *******s, and what you want the rest of your working life to be like.

Oh, don't worry about extra-curriculars. Do them when you retire from Big Law.

Hi all,

i'm about 5 months out of law school and 10 weeks into my job at a large firm. Years ago, before law school, i was seriously considering medical school--and finished all my prereqs--but was lazy, unwise, immature, and other stuff, and looked for an easier way out. Law school was deliciously easy to apply to--all i had to do was take a standardized test and write a crappy essay--and i ended up getting into some good ones that promised me a secure job and a lot of money.

I took on some debt, 150k overall, and spent three years in law school. Largely, the time wasn't terrible; i did pretty well and made some friends. I would occasionally notice that i lacked the passion for this stuff that some of my peers exuded, but i didn't let it bother me because, shortly, i was to be rolling in dough.

A few times each year, when law school would get particularly boring, i would wonder about medical school. I missed doing science, and wished that i had been a bit more mature and less lazy about the whole thing. But, even though i'd sometimes think wistfully of med school, sunk costs fallacy would kick in and i didn't want anyone to think i was a quitter and a serial school-applier so i stayed in school, passed the bar and started my job.

My job is boring. The details of biglaw lawyering are uninteresting and i won't bore you with them. Suffice it to say that my job inspires neither passion nor interest in me and when i look at what the older associates and partners are doing, i only dread more my progression up the biglaw ladder.

I'm thinking about med school again and stumbled upon this bored. I've begun to review some biology in slow prep for the MCAT; i'm looking into volunteering at a near by clinic and ER.

So, nontrads, anyone in a similar boat? If not, anyone have any suggestions regarding what kind of steps i should take in applying? I know that shadowing/volunteering and maybe research is important; how do i get into those? Do hospitals/clinics have programs?

I also know that young associates can work anywhere from 50 to 100+ hours a week which might leave me either barely adequate or no time at all to do extracurricular things. Will med schools recognize that i simply don't have the time to do the full gamut of extracurricular stuff, or will this be a blight on my record?

Anyone been in a similar position?

 

[futureboy]

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[futureboy]

I agree with Esquire - stay at your biglaw job for 5-7 years. Keep your living expenses low (they can creep up on you) and pay off your loans, and maybe save some money for med school.