making the switch

[gmcsierra]

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i'm a freshman ME major pondering pre-med. it has been a very tough choice whether or not i want to work towards medical school. i finished my first sem. 4.0 (18 credits with calc II and chem).

i think i'm going to drop the statics class from my second semester schedule and pick up second semester chem. does anybody know if this will hold me back from my ME schedule? i will also be taking bio and orgo in my sophomore year, and is that a problem?

i am afraid to go. because i don't want to have the horrendous hours of a resident or even after i become a doctor. i talked to a doctor in my hometown who said you don't have to work the 130 hrs/week as a resident. do you guys agree? is there a range of hours?

i am also slightly timid when it comes to some of the things i will see in medical school with sickness and injury. is this common? maybe i am not cut out?

i am interested in learning medicine and think i have a decent work ethic.

for volunteer hours i coach baseball and basketball. i am a mentor. i am on a committee in my church and for the resident hall association. these don't have anything to do with medicine, so will they do me any good? do you guys have any otrher suggestions?

thanks for any help and i apologize for the length.

 

[klinzou]

A 4.0 in ME is really good, so if your interested in Engineering, and can keep the grades that high, it couldn't hurt to throw in the pre-med classes wiht the ME, and then when you graduate with your ME, you'll probably have a easier decision as to if you want to go to med school or be an ME.

As far as holding back on the statics, it will depend greatly on your school's curriculum. At my school, ME's take statics sophomore year and take chem 1 and 2 freshman year, so as long as you check with your school, that shouldn't cause any problems.

And on... for the volunteer work, I can't help you out, b/c I haven't done any yet. I am in the same boat as you, being a EE student and thinking abotu med school...just my .02

 

[Neuronix]

I think your plan is good, but as for the details of your major you should really consult with an advisor at your school. Certainly you can do engineering + pre-med, but the exact sequence varies from program to program. Does your school have a pre-med advisor? You should make yourself known to that person. You should have one year of bio, inorganic, organic, and physics done by the end of your second year of college so you can take the MCAT in April of your Junior year. There are some other requirements that vary from school to school (stats: usually not required, full year of calc: covered by your program, full year of English, intro biochem), but are not required for the MCAT, so you can take them later.

As for the hours, residencies are now limited to 80 hours per week under the new regulations. Whether or not this is actually in effect or whether or not this will continue is up in the air. However, working hours totally depends on the specialty you choose, and while you should expect to work hard as a resident and physician, you shouldn't have to expect 100+ hour weeks.

Almost everyone is slightly timid at first. Few are not grossed out at least a bit by anatomy lab and many things may take time for you to overcome. It's a completely normal part of the process. It usually means first that you are human and second that you care.

Your extracirriculars are totally valid and you should continue to do those things that you enjoy outside of the classroom. It sounds like you are a very hard worker to keep up such good grades with such a hard schedule, and then still do ECs on top of that. As you proceed in your studies you should consider doing some volunteer work or shadowing in a medical setting to convince adcoms that you know what you are getting into. However, just because your ECs are not medically-related does not mean that they are invalid. Keep them up!

Good luck in your endeavors and feel free to ask us any more questions you have. If you keep up your GPA and then prepare well for the MCAT, I'm sure you will be in medical school in a few years.

 

[Fletch_F_Fletch]

My roommate worked as an engineer for about 5 years, then decided to take classes to go to med school after he realized he didn't really like engineering. He's a first year at age 28. If you think it's something you want to pursue, it can't hurt to get the classes under your belt while an undergrad. Even if you don't, though, it really won't be too late to apply later on if you decide to take classes later.

 

[wolferman]

I would suggest volunteering in a hospital or shadowing a couple doctors. Not only will you get to see what it is they really do, but you may find out if you want to do it or not still.

 

[wazupshah]

I bought my first Mac about a year ago, And I'm never going back to the PC again!

Oh, wait....Uh... I mean,... Go engineering!

 

[siempre595]

Don't worry about being timid about medicine. I was totally backward when I started pre-med as a freshman; I basically went in with the idea that I'd never finish it. Now I'm applying. Get out there and do some volunteer stuff and you'll find out really fast if you can take it. I spent some time in a Children's Hospital ER this year. The first nite i was there, there were a bunch of new residents, I saw two of them faint over stuff that didn't really phase me. You find out a lot this way.
Your grades are great, take the classes you want to take, don't worry about having everything in at the perfect time or whatever, just get it done eventually. That's all that matters. I know seniors last year who were getting into great schools and were in the process of finishing physics still. You'll be fine.
Also, your volunteer stuff, mentoring, coaching, etc, DOES have something to do with medicine. It shows that you have a life outside the classroom and are interested in helping people. All my interviewers so far have spent the majority of the time talking about stuff I've done outside of academic work or medical volunteering. Schools want well-rounded people who want to make a difference. So keep involved in that stuff as long as it's important to you.

 

[Tuesday Weld]

You're young, so your timidness should ease up a bit.

Have you spoken to your advisor about doing an ME plus PreMed? You don't have to finish in four years...if it takes you an extra year, it may be worth it. This way, if your med school plans get derailed, you'll have a useful degree with your ME.

Originally posted by gmcsierra
i'm a freshman ME major pondering pre-med. it has been a very tough choice whether or not i want to work towards medical school. i finished my first sem. 4.0 (18 credits with calc II and chem).

i think i'm going to drop the statics class from my second semester schedule and pick up second semester chem. does anybody know if this will hold me back from my ME schedule? i will also be taking bio and orgo in my sophomore year, and is that a problem?

i am afraid to go. because i don't want to have the horrendous hours of a resident or even after i become a doctor. i talked to a doctor in my hometown who said you don't have to work the 130 hrs/week as a resident. do you guys agree? is there a range of hours?

i am also slightly timid when it comes to some of the things i will see in medical school with sickness and injury. is this common? maybe i am not cut out?

i am interested in learning medicine and think i have a decent work ethic.

for volunteer hours i coach baseball and basketball. i am a mentor. i am on a committee in my church and for the resident hall association. these don't have anything to do with medicine, so will they do me any good? do you guys have any otrher suggestions?

thanks for any help and i apologize for the length.

 

[wgu]

There are lotto people who mix Engin w/ Med. I'm BME leaning towards ChemE. ME and EE can be both related to medicine (Biomechanics, Bioinformatics). I even know an AERO person dead set on med school- can't directly link that one