med school dropout thinking about going back

[ruffity]

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hi

i entered med school in 1996 and, for various reasons dropped out after my first year to pursue a career in computer science. now that i'm in the field of bioinformatics research, i'm thinking about going back to med school. i was wondering if anyone out there has successfully gained admission to med school after dropping out in the past (or has heard of anyone who has) or if this would just be a crazy idea.

as for my qualifications, i think my academics would be okay (enough to get me into several top ten med schools back in 1996), and i would retake the mcat, hopefully doing okay, but i'm worried that adcomms would "blackball" me or reject me on account of the fact that i already gave up a space at a med school years before (please don't flame me for this!). i'm just wondering if i should even consider returning to medicine, i.e., if it's even possible to get back into med school given my past history of dropping out, and if anyone has ever done this. any feedback or responses would be greatly appreciated. thanks!

 

[WatchingWaiting]

Why don't use this slow period for med school admissions offices to ask a few about what they think? I would say you're going to have a very, very hard time convincing them that you're serious about medicine (especially now that you have another career) and will have to have a very well-thought-out explanation for (1) why you quit the first time, (2) why you went to cs and now want to go back to medicine, (3) how med schools will know that you are truly devoted to medicine. Many med schools will assume that you quit medicine the first time due to the strength of tech in the late 90s and are now interested in going back to medicine due to the downturn in the cs marketplace, and will not consider this to be an acceptable motivation for changing careers. You'll have to have some powerful alternative explanation, especially to justify why you'll do medicine for sure this time.

 

[fourthyear]

Go for it. You'll definitely need to apply to a whole lot of schools b/c some will count you out based on the past, but many will give you a chance. Many med schools look for the non-traditional students who have more life experience, maturity, and ultimately enough committment to medicine to quit a paying job to pursue four years of paying them tuition.

I sent you a PM too.