MD vs Comp Sci HELP

[coolperson]

Hey guys, so I am debating between a CS or a MD (and slightly considering dental, but first I want to eliminate or not eliminate CS). I am going to college (a T10) this fall.
I am taking an intro CS class as well as pre med requirement classes such as phys and chem, skipping out of intro bio and calc. (Please read this entire post)

I have been torn between cs and MD for a while now and I need to make a decision soon, bc it is hard to maintain grades while doing CS.
I don't have much experience in CS. I started doing some coding this summer for a month and a half in python. I like logical/analytical thinking but I am not naturally good at coding and many times I cannot solve coding problems ( I stare blankly at the screen sometimes and don't know what to do). I get some satisfaction from solving the problem but I can't really imagine sitting at a computer for the rest of my life that sounds very dull. Also, a lot of software don't have an impact on people/are kind of useless (i.e. creating a mobile paying app for Starbucks or something).
CS pay/job security is great, but pay varies and apparently, CS jobs are going to foreign countries like India. Also, IDK if I'm good enough at CS to land a position at a top company (many are better than me). CS is less stable and more variable. CS is definitely pretty cool and interesting, but seems more of a gimmick to me than directly helping people, and I can't code for hours at a time, I get bored or frustrated (keep in mind I don't have much experience in coding).

I shadowed a doctor for a few days (pediatric general surgeon). It was interesting and satisfying and meaningful work for sure. I also LOVE science, especially chemistry, and am really good at memorizing. I like chem bio a lot. Medicine is more interesting than CS, like I can read medical research papers and biomedical engineering research papers for long period of time. However, I think some parts of medicine are a little gross, like manual disimpaction, diseases like rett syndrome, etc. (but maybe I can work through that)?

the main thing that turns me off is the tons of years and lack of sleep needed to become a doctor. I can't tolerate that much sleep debt. I also have read so many blogs of med students who want to kill themselves, doctors have the highest rate of depression, suicide, long work hours, career regret, and many doctors tell their children to never become one because of no work-life balance and divorces. Doctors can have emotional tolls too (seeing some of the babies who were sick with SMA and IBD made me really emotional). However, doctors can maybe retire earlier and have better pay, and the work is obviously more meaningful, more social, and less boring than coding, and also maybe? less difficult than coding. Med is more stable.

I don't have a strong "burning" passion for either: I know many who have more passion than me for CS and more passion than me for med. I also am not the person who had an interest in medicine since I was born, I just started thinking about medicine in the last year.

tl;dr: CS is better work-life balance, easier, less time spent, good pay, but more boring and less impactful. Med is more interesting/more impact but burnout/ bad work life balance.
What are your guys thoughts on what I should choose? Is CS pre-med possible for at least the first year?

THANK YOU!!

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[emiko]

If you are not good/are bored at coding, you should definitely NOT major in CS. CS is a very skill based major and employers care much more about your actual abilities than your credentials such as your degrees. People who succeed at CS are naturally talented at CS and are very into it. You will not be very successful if you are not that interested in engineering.

If you love memorizations then medicine could be a really good fit! Medical school is almost 100% memorization. I wouldn't say it's intrinsically more interesting, and it can be super repetitive honestly. Shadowing someone for a day can feel exciting but imagine doing the same thing for 30 years.

The work/life balance is bad at the medical school stage and earlier years in residency, but it can be really good down the road. Many doctors work <40h per week, and it's not just the competitive specialties! Just make sure you are honest with yourself and choose the right specialty and practice setting. However, it's unlikely that you can retire early as a doctor just because it takes so long to finish training and start working. I would actually think a successful CS person will reach financial independence way earlier than physicians.

Based on what you wrote, I feel that medicine is a way better fit for you. There are also other careers in healthcare that offers better work-life balance that you may want to consider.

 

[plshelpvanxious]

I've known CS premeds, although how easy that will be depends on your school. If it's possible, I'd try doing that until you figure it out.

I don't recommend medicine unless you can't really imagine yourself being happy doing anything else. Get more shadowing experience as well as more CS experience. CS is pretty broad, you might find something you really love. You can also look into biomedical engineering (often as a lot of coding) and maybe bioinformatics as well if you think you might like something bridging CS with medicine.

I don't agree that CS is less stable and less pay. You can get six figure job straight out of undergrad (i know multiple people who did this from a low ranking school). It's a growing field, huge job market. Medicine is constantly changing, and it's politically influenced. You have potential to make a lot, but only after 4 years of expensive MD schooling and years of residency... and then pay also depends on specialty and location.

 

[pawprint]

“I really can’t imagine spending the rest of my life at the computer”

...I spend more time at the computer as a resident writing notes, orders, etc than both of my parents who are software engineers

 

[libertyyne]

If you are even asking the question, you should do CS.

 

[DrRedstone]

Only do the one that brings you there most joy. If you love coding and can spend hours a day doing it, go into it. If money is your main motivator, still go CS. I'm an MS3 and my brother is a senior engineer for Square. We both love our respective fields, but have almost no interest in the other's job.
Anyway, here's a meme to brighten your day.

 

[Dro133]

If your main motivation for choosing medicine are pay and job stability, you're likely going to have a bad time. It is a big sacrifice to make if you don't really love it, and money as motivation will really only take you so far.

It sounds like you love science and like coding. Have you looked into bioinformatics at all? I feel like it could be a good fit for you. As a bioinformatician, you will be working on impactful projects. The pay will be less than a pure CS job, however.

 

[sella.turcica]

If you love memorizations then medicine could be a really good fit!

I know what you're getting at, but man does that pitch suck

 

[Thesimplelifeofamyloid]

I know what you're getting at, but man does that pitch suck

I wouldn't say med school or medicine is all memorization by any means

 

[kb1900]

CS is a great hobby that can accompany a career in almost anything tbh.

can really say the vice versa is true

personally I had the same decision to make and chose medicine because I know for a fact that real coding jobs suck compared to being a hobbyist and making apps, websites,automations, data analysis, research in spare time. It’s a completely different part of your brain compared to studying medicine and they complement each other very well

 

[differentiating]

Sounds to me that CS isn’t a good fit - if you don’t like coding, you’re going to have a rough time of it, and tech jobs often require decent time commitments. I think people underestimate the time required.

 

[Angus Avagadro]

Hey guys, so I am debating between a CS or a MD (and slightly considering dental, but first I want to eliminate or not eliminate CS). I am going to college (a T10) this fall.
I am taking an intro CS class as well as pre med requirement classes such as phys and chem, skipping out of intro bio and calc. (Please read this entire post)

I have been torn between cs and MD for a while now and I need to make a decision soon, bc it is hard to maintain grades while doing CS.
I don't have much experience in CS. I started doing some coding this summer for a month and a half in python. I like logical/analytical thinking but I am not naturally good at coding and many times I cannot solve coding problems ( I stare blankly at the screen sometimes and don't know what to do). I get some satisfaction from solving the problem but I can't really imagine sitting at a computer for the rest of my life that sounds very dull. Also, a lot of software don't have an impact on people/are kind of useless (i.e. creating a mobile paying app for Starbucks or something).
CS pay/job security is great, but pay varies and apparently, CS jobs are going to foreign countries like India. Also, IDK if I'm good enough at CS to land a position at a top company (many are better than me). CS is less stable and more variable. CS is definitely pretty cool and interesting, but seems more of a gimmick to me than directly helping people, and I can't code for hours at a time, I get bored or frustrated (keep in mind I don't have much experience in coding).

I shadowed a doctor for a few days (pediatric general surgeon). It was interesting and satisfying and meaningful work for sure. I also LOVE science, especially chemistry, and am really good at memorizing. I like chem bio a lot. Medicine is more interesting than CS, like I can read medical research papers and biomedical engineering research papers for long period of time. However, I think some parts of medicine are a little gross, like manual disimpaction, diseases like rett syndrome, etc. (but maybe I can work through that)?

the main thing that turns me off is the tons of years and lack of sleep needed to become a doctor. I can't tolerate that much sleep debt. I also have read so many blogs of med students who want to kill themselves, doctors have the highest rate of depression, suicide, long work hours, career regret, and many doctors tell their children to never become one because of no work-life balance and divorces. Doctors can have emotional tolls too (seeing some of the babies who were sick with SMA and IBD made me really emotional). However, doctors can maybe retire earlier and have better pay, and the work is obviously more meaningful, more social, and less boring than coding, and also maybe? less difficult than coding. Med is more stable.

I don't have a strong "burning" passion for either: I know many who have more passion than me for CS and more passion than me for med. I also am not the person who had an interest in medicine since I was born, I just started thinking about medicine in the last year.

tl;dr: CS is better work-life balance, easier, less time spent, good pay, but more boring and less impactful. Med is more interesting/more impact but burnout/ bad work life balance.
What are your guys thoughts on what I should choose? Is CS pre-med possible for at least the first year?

THANK YOU!!

If you dont have a strong burning passion for medicine, dont do it. Way too expensive. Med education will cost you in the neighborhood of 250 to 300k, not counting undergrad. Then there is the min of 7 yrs of training with either no or meager resident income. Then there is the workload, long days and sleepless nights, Holidays, etc.. If you have to think about doing medicine, stay with CS.

 

[GoSpursGo]

The medical student forum isn't really intended as a place to ask med students questions; rather, it's a place for medical students to discuss issues directly related to being in med school. Accordingly this thread is being closed, and anyone wishing to answer the OP's question may do so in the other thread they opened: MD vs Comp Sci HELP!