Med school vs genetic counseling

[Bellaburgundy]

Which would you choose? Remember to factor in schooling, pay. enjoyability, stress, and overall happiness.

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[NotASerialKiller]

I think there's a more than decent chance that the pre-med forum is going to vote for med school.

 

[Petrichor1]

probably genetic if you are worried about stress, schooling, and overall happiness. You also have to account what gender you are. As a female going into medicine having problems stressing about family it would make a big impact on your psyche if you pursue medical school. You probably could rise up the ranks by becoming a director or something to compensate for salary.

 

[NorthOfBroad]

Seeing you posted this in the pre-med forum I suspect this dosen't really need to be a poll

EDIT: @NotASerialKiller beat me to it

 

[Doudline]

probably genetic if you are worried about stress, schooling, and overall happiness. You also have to account what gender you are. As a female going into medicine having problems stressing about family it would make a big impact on your psyche if you pursue medical school. You probably could rise up the ranks by becoming a director or something to compensate for salary.

You know that the majority of medical students are females, right?

 

[Petrichor1]

You know that the majority of medical students are females, right?

Yes but I sense this person is worried about stress and overall happiness, which probably imply manageable hours from the start. I do understand what I am saying and you can ask any female about a) when they had kids b) how much they loved balancing medical school stuff and kids. Have you shadowed geneticist? They seem to be pretty satisfied with great hours. Can you come up with a counter-argument to this?

 

[shapley]

I was really interested in genetic counseling especially since Genetics is an increasingly large and growing field.
Do note you will need to shadow a genetic counselor (probably in some hospital) to be accepted into these programs.
The job's are fairly steady but there is little mobility (you'll be stuck in the same position + salary range through your career).

 

[danib2k15]

I think in your previous post you mentioned that you don't know much about genetic counseling? See if you can talk to a counselor and as about their daily schedule, etc. Of course, there are also different specialties like oncology, prenatal, etc. Consider which of those you would be interested in when you speak to a counselor.

 

[Bellaburgundy]

probably genetic if you are worried about stress, schooling, and overall happiness. You also have to account what gender you are. As a female going into medicine having problems stressing about family it would make a big impact on your psyche if you pursue medical school. You probably could rise up the ranks by becoming a director or something to compensate for salary.

Yep actually that's mainly what is making this a fdifficult choice. Because I understand that doctors don't have a "good" work like balance until they are in their forties or sometimes never. Its difficult to decide if that's worth almost double- sometimes triple the salary.

 

[Bellaburgundy]

I was really interested in genetic counseling especially since Genetics is an increasingly large and growing field.
Do note you will need to shadow a genetic counselor (probably in some hospital) to be accepted into these programs.
The job's are fairly steady but there is little mobility (you'll be stuck in the same position + salary range through your career).

Yeah and I've heard that jobs are often located in one area and you won't be guaranteed a job in a place you necessarily want to live in which is quite a downside but it will likely change as this profession grows (hopefully!)

 

[Bellaburgundy]

Yes but as a genetic counselor many of your requirements are similar to that of a premed and often many premeds choose a career in medicine that doesn't involve med school. After all not every premed can get admitted to med school and often many decide med school isn't for them

I think there's a more than decent chance that the pre-med forum is going to vote for med school.[/QUOTE\]

 

[Petrichor1]

Yep actually that's mainly what is making this a fdifficult choice. Because I understand that doctors don't have a "good" work like balance until they are in their forties or sometimes never. Its difficult to decide if that's worth almost double- sometimes triple the salary.

go and shadow. Choose which lifestyle you'll like and just keep in mind that if you shadow like a specialist in medicine you have to ask about whether or not you are even going to get into that specialty. Hence, you have to basically like primary care enough that even if you end up with it you will be content with its offered lifestyle. In my opinion, a life in medicine is a gamble that you play as a losing candidate in your early years. Only later in life do you have much of any hold (possibly after residency and work experience). Relocation is also a wonderful twitch you have to worry about (not for yourself but for your spouse/fiance/committed-boyfriend/girlfriend). Of course things work out but you have to question where you are in the point of your life and 3 years down the road where you want to be. No one knows but hopefully most people think about factors that reel in the best outcomes and not the worst.

 

[Mad Jack]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_genetics

 

[Cotterpin]

probably genetic if you are worried about stress, schooling, and overall happiness. You also have to account what gender you are. As a female going into medicine having problems stressing about family it would make a big impact on your psyche if you pursue medical school. You probably could rise up the ranks by becoming a director or something to compensate for salary.

Is this for real? Do men not have families? Are only women prone to having medicine impact their psyches?

 

[Cotterpin]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_genetics

 

[Mad Jack]

Is this for real? Do men not have families? Are only women prone to having medicine impact their psyches?

Male physicians are forced to drown their families with their bare hands prior to taking the Hippocratic Oath, didn't you know?

 

[narvik2016]

Is this for real? Do men not have families? Are only women prone to having medicine impact their psyches?

Seriously! I swear... it seems like every time someone posts about considering another career against medicine, someone has to bring up the gender card.

I guess men don't stress about their families?

 

[Bellaburgundy]

Is this for real? Do men not have families? Are only women prone to having medicine impact their psyches?

I believe that being a female requires more effort in child care simply because you are pregnant for 9 months and your body needs to recover. Although being a father is very demanding as well it doesn't requires as much of a sacrifice as it does for women at least in the earlier stages.

 

[Petrichor1]

Is this for real? Do men not have families? Are only women prone to having medicine impact their psyches?

I see the male med student's life easier than a woman's primarily because for a man, the woman usually keeps the kids busy. And of course silly if you're married you're going to have stresses for both cause you're parents (not parent) but coming from what family has said, it's easier for the male (unless you're a single parent). I'm not going to sugarcoat this and if you get pregnant, tell me how it is. I support women 1000% and it's unfair how workplace just disregards a woman's hardships. They are just incredible in how they manage life. Many of the women I work with will have a baby 2 days ago and come to work like nothing ever happened. Even though they make it look so easy, I have so much respect for them and can see how many things they multitask with everyday. If the OP wanted to be that, they would never have asked this question.

 

[Cotterpin]

I see the male med student's life easier than a woman's primarily because for a man, the woman usually keeps the kids busy. And of course silly if you're married you're going to have stresses for both cause you're parents (not parent) but coming from what family has said, it's easier for the male (unless you're a single parent).

Sorry, but I think that's sexist. If I have a baby during med school, my baby daddy can take care of it. I have work to do.

 

[Mad Jack]

Sorry, but I think that's sexist. If I have a baby during med school, my baby daddy can take care of it. I have work to do.

The trouble is that, unless he is very progressive, most men have internalized the traditional gender roles imposed by society. So even though you're a physician or physician-in-training, he still expects you to do much (if not all) of what a mother is traditionally expected to do. Worse still, many women feel like "bad mothers" for working hard rather than taking care of their children, and many men are reluctant to date hard-working women or women that earn more than them. What this all adds up to is female physicians having a rough time. It sucks, but we're in a transition period in society where we're still not quite progressive, and the people that suffer most are the women that reach the highest. If they choose their partners carefully, however, things should work out fine.

 

[Bellaburgundy]

Sorry, but I think that's sexist. If I have a baby during med school, my baby daddy can take care of it. I have work to do.

We having differing opinioms on what a mother child bond is and I respect your opinion. Having a family is something I want to factor into my career and that's why I asked for viewpoints about this certain topic.

 

[Petrichor1]

Sorry, but I think that's sexist. If I have a baby during med school, my baby daddy can take care of it. I have work to do.

sorry if you feel that way. But it seems the OP concurs with me and right now I'm catering this conversation to him/her. If you would like to open your own thread, I'd be much obliged to cater to your personality and I would have never said this in the first place, but as of right now it's pretty rude to bring up your personal interests when this thread is to help a person who seems to personally care for her children and maintain a family. I am not going to contest what is the truth from many women who have already had children versus someone who hasn't.

 

[Cotterpin]

The trouble is that, unless he is very progressive, most men have internalized the traditional gender roles imposed by society. So even though you're a physician or physician-in-training, he still expects you to do much (if not all) of what a mother is traditionally expected to do. Worse still, many women feel like "bad mothers" for working hard rather than taking care of their children, and many men are reluctant to date hard-working women or women that earn more than them. What this all adds up to is female physicians having a rough time. It sucks, but we're in a transition period in society where we're still not quite progressive, and the people that suffer most are the women that reach the highest. If they choose their partners carefully, however, things should work out fine.

Yeah, yeah, I'm an old lady. I already know all of this. I would never have a child with a man who doesn't respect my medical career and isn't willing to take on a bigger role in raising kids.

We having differing opinioms on what a mother child bond is and I respect your opinion. Having a family is something I want to factor into my career and that's why I asked for viewpoints about this certain topic.

You're still in high school, right? You don't need to make career decisions for a good long while yet.

 

[Bellaburgundy]

The trouble is that, unless he is very progressive, most men have internalized the traditional gender roles imposed by society. So even though you're a physician or physician-in-training, he still expects you to do much (if not all) of what a mother is traditionally expected to do. Worse still, many women feel like "bad mothers" for working hard rather than taking care of their children, and many men are reluctant to date hard-working women or women that earn more than them. What this all adds up to is female physicians having a rough time. It sucks, but we're in a transition period in society where we're still not quite progressive, and the people that suffer most are the women that reach the highest. If they choose their partners carefully, however, things should work out fine.

Exactly. And there are many men and women who prefer gender roles of the past. Progressivism should be about giving you the choice to do what you think is best for you and those you love while not harming anyone else. Whether a woman wants to be a stay at homemom or a top surgeon is up to her. Neither is a "good" or "bad" choice.

 

[Dr.Sticks]

Genetic Counseling sounds so boring..
If you're into that, why not focus on a specialty that specifically deals with genetic problems? You could do well with a practice in Lancaster.

 

[Petrichor1]

Yeah, yeah, I'm an old lady. I already know all of this. I would never have a child with a man who doesn't respect my medical career and isn't willing to take on a bigger role in raising kids.

The problem isn't respect, of course you are going to find plenty that will respect you for who you are. However, the most responsible person in the relation for children is usually the mother. Regardless of however much a father does, there are a lot of things that women have to do. It comes with the semi-progressive society we live in and the motherly affection for her children. If you are not that, then you will definitely find a guy out there responsible enough but alas there are not that many in my experience.

 

[Mad Jack]

Yeah, yeah, I'm an old lady. I already know all of this. I would never have a child with a man who doesn't respect my medical career and isn't willing to take on a bigger role in raising kids.



You're still in high school, right? You don't need to make career decisions for a good long while yet.

I'm probably your elder little one That was mostly a general statement for everyone reading the thread, not you specifically.

 

[Cotterpin]

The problem isn't respect, of course you are going to find plenty that will respect you for who you are. However, the most responsible person in the relation for children is usually the mother. Regardless of however much a father does, there are a lot of things that women have to do. It comes with the semi-progressive society we live in and the motherly affection for her children. If you are not that, then you will definitely find a guy out there responsible enough but alas there are not that many in my experience.

I do not want to get into this bs argument that pops up whenever a woman tries to point out how none of this "it's a woman's job" crap is necessary or fair. Yeah, that's The Way Things Are And Have Always Been, but that doesn't make it correct. Women should be allowed to have the same kinds of dreams and goals in life as men without having to make special considerations for the fact that men tell us we have to take care of the babies.

I'm probably your elder little one That was mostly a general statement for everyone reading the thread, not you specifically.

I wouldn't bet on that. Don't call me "little one."

 

[Petrichor1]

I do not want to get into this bs argument that pops up whenever a woman tries to point out how none of this "it's a woman's job" crap is necessary or fair. Yeah, that's The Way Things Are And Have Always Been, but that doesn't make it correct. Women should be allowed to have the same kinds of dreams and goals in life as men without having to make special considerations for the fact that men tell us we have to take care of the babies.

Of course this is what I and others are trying to say that it is unfair but society is still this way so you have to walk progressively but cautiously. Tell me about a woman who has gone to medical school and has a child but has no plans for that child? Most of them have had it planned and they try minimizing the stress because their husband may not be up to the task. They have family take care and all of that jazz fixed beforehand. So if OP wants to have a family, Be Prepared; you'll thank yourself. I am sure you have none of the concerns that OP has and you want to paint an optimistic picture. However, I am painting a realistic picture. I am definitely not going to say, honey you're going to have a husband who is able to share every responsibility with you and you're going to not go through rollercoaster trying to keep up with your husband and kids at the same time you do residency. It's like saying residency isn't hard; but ofcourse it is.

 

[Bellaburgundy]

I do not want to get into this bs argument that pops up whenever a woman tries to point out how none of this "it's a woman's job" crap is necessary or fair. Yeah, that's The Way Things Are And Have Always Been, but that doesn't make it correct. Women should be allowed to have the same kinds of dreams and goals in life as men without having to make special considerations for the fact that men tell us we have to take care of the babies.



I wouldn't bet on that. Don't call me "little one."

I agree WHOLEHEARTEDLY with what you are saying. Some women want to spend a lot of time with their children so I think they should account for that when choosing a career but it should never be forced by outside pressure, it should ALWAYS be a woman's decision what she considers important.

 

[Bellaburgundy]

Of course this is what I and others are trying to say that it is unfair but society is still this way so you have to walk progressively but cautiously. Tell me about a woman who has gone to medical school and has a child but has no plans for that child? Most of them have had it planned and they try minimizing the stress because their husband may not be up to the task. They have family take care and all of that jazz fixed beforehand. So if OP wants to have a family, Be Prepared; you'll thank yourself. I am sure you have none of the concerns that OP has and you want to paint an optimistic picture. However, I am painting a realistic picture. I am definitely not going to say, honey you're going to have a husband who is able to share every responsibility with you and you're going to not go through rollercoaster trying to keep up with your husband and kids at the same time you do residency. It's like saying residency isn't hard; but ofcourse it is.

I believe many women would agree with this but obviously not all. Residency is hard either way and it is important to understand what you will be dealing with throughout the process and make a choice based on that.

 

[Cotterpin]

I agree WHOLEHEARTEDLY with what you are saying. Some women want to spend a lot of time with their children so I think they should account for that when choosing a career but it should never be forced by outside pressure, it should ALWAYS be a woman's decision what she considers important.

Yeah, if a woman wants to prioritize kids above a career, then she should be able to do that. I just really hate the attitude Petrichor1 expressed about women having more of a responsibility than men to take family planning into account for their careers (men should think about it too) and that women's psyches will be more affected by it. That sounds way too close to saying that women have inherent psychological weaknesses that make them less capable of having careers.

 

[Petrichor1]

Yeah, if a woman wants to prioritize kids above a career, then she should be able to do that. I just really hate the attitude Petrichor1 expressed about women having more of a responsibility than men to take family planning into account for their careers (men should think about it too) and that women's psyches will be more affected by it. That sounds way too close to saying that women have inherent psychological weaknesses that make them less capable of having careers.

omg what attitude? I think you're thinking too much cotterpin. I get OP's situation and the OP understands what I said. You are trying to find meaning behind something that clearly wasn't meant for you. Please open up another thread to express your concerns.

 

[Cotterpin]

omg what attitude? I think you're thinking too much cotterpin. I get OP's situation and the OP understands what I said. You are trying to find meaning behind something that clearly wasn't meant for you. Please open up another thread to express your concerns.

If you didn't want me to take your first post that way, then maybe you shouldn't have worded it in a way that is insulting to women.

 

[Petrichor1]

If you didn't want me to take your first post that way, then maybe you shouldn't have worded it in a way that is insulting to women.

ugh you are taking this way too far to the pacific ocean and if you didn't realize I expressed my apology for having hurt your feelings cause apparantly I didn't take into account that you were also the OP. If you really had that big of an issue with my first post, you shouldn't have elongated this conversation this far. I was specifically catering the thoughts of the OP as it was clear that she wants to be a mother and care for her kids. This is simply not as manageable in medicine than it is in genetic counseling. End of conversation. Again, this thread is not about your schedule, feelings, and concerns. It is of a female who wants to have a traditional family and serve as a mother who has good enough time for her kids. You can do it as a part-time person but the OP also worries about "stress" and "overall happiness" which I don't know if by that she means constant studying like you would in medicine. My initial convo was all comparing to genetic medicine, somehow people started taking this out of context and saying this is in general....talk about "well that seemed to have gone smooth".

 

[Mad Jack]

I wouldn't bet on that. Don't call me "little one."

I'm just poking fun. It's always a good time playing the "who's the actual old and decrepit one" around here. Usually I win, but you could surprise me.

 

[Cotterpin]

ugh you are taking this way too far to the pacific ocean and if you didn't realize I expressed my apology for having hurt your feelings cause apparantly I didn't take into account that you were also the OP. If you really had that big of an issue with my first post, you shouldn't have elongated this conversation this far. I was specifically catering the thoughts of the OP as it was clear that she wants to be a mother and care for her kids. This is simply not as manageable in medicine than it is in genetic counseling. End of conversation. Again, this thread is not about your schedule, feelings, and concerns. It is of a female who wants to have a traditional family and serve as a mother who has good enough time for her kids.

Listen, man. If you don't want to keep having this conversation, then you could have stopped responding to my relatively short comments with long, patronizing paragraphs ages ago. You made a sexist comment on a public forum, so should probably be prepared for a response to that.

I'm just poking fun. It's always a good time playing the "who's the actual old and decrepit one" around here. Usually I win, but you could surprise me.

PM me your age and we'll find out.

 

[Mad Jack]

Listen, man. If you don't want to keep having this conversation, then you could have stopped responding to my relatively short comments with long, patronizing paragraphs ages ago. You made a sexist comment on a public forum, so should probably be prepared for a response to that.



PM me your age and we'll find out.

I'm 30. Feel free to PM me a laughing/taunting/pwnage gift if you're older

 

[Cotterpin]

I'm 30. Feel free to PM me a laughing/taunting/pwnage gift if you're older

I'm older than you, little one.

 

[Petrichor1]

Listen, man. If you don't want to keep having this conversation, then you could have stopped responding to my relatively short comments with long, patronizing paragraphs ages ago. You made a sexist comment on a public forum, so should probably be prepared for a response to that.

If you assume something incorrect and are convoluting my words, I have the right to clarify my sentences. I actually like writing a lot, don't yet know how to make short comments.

 

[Mad Jack]

I'm older than you, little one.

 

[Cotterpin]

If you assume something incorrect and are convoluting my words, I have the right to clarify my sentences. I actually like writing a lot, don't yet know how to make short comments.

I don't think I'm convoluting your words to say that I found what you wrote sexist and offensive. You assumed that OP would have to take her gender into account, that she'd be worrying about a family, and that her psyche would be impacted by it. And that offended me. Because it's sexist.

 

[Cotterpin]

How does this gif apply?

 

[Mad Jack]

How does this gif apply?

I'm speechless because it doesn't happen often and you win

 

[Cotterpin]

I'm speechless because it doesn't happen often and you win

Oh, ok. I guess I see that one used in different contexts. Just so you know, 30 is not old at all. It just seems like that in this context where we're talking mostly to kids in the 18-22 year-old range. But there are a lot of nontrads around here too.

 

[Cotterpin]

.

 

[Petrichor1]

I don't think I'm convoluting your words to say that I found what you wrote sexist and offensive. You assumed that OP would have to take her gender into account, that she'd be worrying about a family, and that her psyche would be impacted by it. And that offended me. Because it's sexist.

At that time I was thinking about the post where the woman was wondering about taking 5 years off for maternal reasons. If I cross-thought and posted for this thread without thinking keeping that experience in mind, I apologize. However, I would like to point out that next time you call foul maybe you should approach the situation better. But it seems that the OP is following this train of thought. Aside from providing that genetic counseling might be easier in whatever way you think possible, I say go for medicine if that is really where your heart desires.

 

[Mad Jack]

Oh, ok. Just so you know, 30 is not old at all. It just seems like that in this context where we're talking mostly to kids in the 18-22 year-old range. But there are a lot of nontrads around here too.

There's a few of us. But I'd bet that 1/100 users starts on SDN over the age of 30, if that. Lots of people who are like, "I'm 23, I can has be nontrad pls?" In my med school class, I think I'm like, the fourth oldest out of 178.

 

[Bellaburgundy]

I don't think I'm convoluting your words to say that I found what you wrote sexist and offensive. You assumed that OP would have to take her gender into account, that she'd be worrying about a family, and that her psyche would be impacted by it. And that offended me. Because it's sexist.

Okay I just have to clear this up. Gender matters in at least one regard -physically if a woman is 8 months pregnant would she be able to work during her residency with absolutely no extra hardships than a man whose wife/gf was pregnant? Saying both their emotional feelings are the same, a woman will have to factor this in some regard. If she can do the residency then honestly more power to her. But it is something everyone needs to consider and I think that's what petrichor1 meant. A female doctor isn't any different from a male doctor in terms of practice , its just that the struggles each face can be different.