ministry to medicine

[divinityapp]

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[Goro]

1. Anyone also gone from ministry to medicine?

No one that I know amongst my students

Any thoughts on how a masters program in religion would look to adcoms? Would it be a plus or just not matter?

I think it would be novel!

2. Any advice on how I can improve my application? Going to try to find shadowing opportunities.

Get in ~50 hours shadowing, espeically in longitufduinal care.
Get into 150 Hrs of service ot other less fortunate than yourself.

3. Would adcoms look down on how old my clinical volunteering hours are? Should I try to get more recent ones?

I personally would like to see some more recent clinical exposure (say 100 hrs worth, just to show that the itch is truly still there.

4. Any advice on finding shadowing hours? I'm going to reach out to the career center here at my university, but it looks like they mostly help with undergrad premeds and science grad students, at least when it comes to med school.

Talk to your personal doctor,and see if you can shadow tem. If not, ask if they know of anyone willing to let you shadow. If that fails make connections with your next clinical exposure experience.

5. How strict are some school's that require statistics, or other courses outside the usual ones? I saw one school required stats, think it was Johns Hopkins. I've never taken stats and don't fancy taking extra coursework that might delay my application. Would I just have to forego applying?

Requirements are requirements. If youwant to take the shortest direction to med school, then invest in MSAR Online and apply to those schools that have the minimal amount of req's. Most schools have recommendations, anyway. Please note that a 510 MCAT is not compettive for JHU, so you'll need to be realstic in your target list once you get your new MCAT score. This is where the MSAR is so valuable.

6. I think my undergrad has a recommendations committee, but not sure how many will remember me. Any advice on this?

You'll want to get LORs from profs with whom you've taken classes most recently.

Should I send a letter to them explaining my journey? I think professors would remember to give me a decent rec, but certainly not stellar.

This would NOT be helpful to you.

Appreciate your reading and feedback!

TLDR: mid-20s pastor considering going switching to medical school to make a difference in people's lives in the here and now

Loma Linda and LUCOM should be your top two on your list, BTW.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Couple questions:
1. Anyone also gone from ministry to medicine? Any thoughts on how a masters program in religion would look to adcoms? Would it be a plus or just not matter?

Yes I know of a few. In general, they picked up their religious degree AFTER they completed their professional training. It's not to say you can't do it the other way, especially if you have some chaplaining.

Medical doctor connects faith and health care through theology degree

Newman University has always been known for its Catholic heritage, offering a faith-based liberal arts education with the purpose of empowering graduates to transform society. Its newly formed School of… Continue reading Medical doctor connects faith and health care through theology degree

news.newmanu.edu

Alumni Profile: Dr. Carlos Smith (DDS 2007) – Advocating for ethics, diversity and access to care because dentistry is about much more than clinical skills - U-M Dentistry News

Carlos Smith is the rare dentist who holds both a DDS degree and a Master of Divinity Degree. The combination of those interests has led Smith to a successful career in academia as a faculty member and Associate Dean at the School of Dentistry at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). In the...

news.dent.umich.edu

Why Religious Literacy is Pivotal to Providing Better Healthcare

Through the Foundations course, healthcare provider, Steven Clark Cunningham, found connection between his work and religious literacy.

www.interfaithamerica.org

https://stanfordhealthcare.org/content/dam/SHC/patientsandvisitors/spiritual-care/docs/articlefeldsteinbridgingwiththesacred71211.pdf

2. Any advice on how I can improve my application? Going to try to find shadowing opportunities.

My opinion, finish your MDiv. Hopefully it gets you into jobs that can earn you a bit more money. Given your leadership as a pastor and involvement with community, I'm not worried about your service orientation compared to others who post WAMC profile. It shouldn't be hard to identify opportunities to observe/work in hospice, rehab, or traditional hospital settings. What you need to do is make sure you can partner with physicians with your expressed goal to become a physician, not a chaplain.

3. Would adcoms look down on how old my clinical volunteering hours are? Should I try to get more recent ones?

Hard to give a blanket statement. Ask admissions professionals representing the programs closest to you.

4. Any advice on finding shadowing hours? I'm going to reach out to the career center here at my university, but it looks like they mostly help with undergrad premeds and science grad students, at least when it comes to med school. On that note, any suggestions for making use of my university's resources while not technically "pre-med" and in the humanities?

Don't forget your alumni office.

5. How strict are some school's that require statistics, or other courses outside the usual ones? I saw one school required stats, think it was Johns Hopkins. I've never taken stats and don't fancy taking extra coursework that might delay my application. Would I just have to forego applying?

If a school says they require statistics, you can't get around it. Ask the admissions professionals near you.

That said, take your prerequisites and science recommended courses with your full attention and best effort. Sure, you were immature at 21, but you have to show you aren't that person, or you can't "handle" science material because you've been more successful in a humanistic arena. Your academic competencies need to be your major focus over the next few years, even after you have been accepted to medical school.

How to Assess Your Academic Competencies | SDN

Over a decade ago, I wrote a series of articles (here is Part 1) that heralded the growing importance of understanding “competency.” Over the last decade,

www.studentdoctor.net

6. I think my undergrad has a recommendations committee, but not sure how many will remember me. Any advice on this? Should I send a letter to them explaining my journey? I think professors would remember to give me a decent rec, but certainly not stellar. I was never exceptional about connecting with professors at the time.

You can see if you are still eligible, but I would plan on going independent given your non-traditional journey. You would need to identify science professors who can speak about you NOW.

Where To Start: A Non-Traditional Student Guide to Beginning Your Pursuit of Medicine - SDN

The Student Doctor Network provides free tools, resources, and advising services to help students become health professionals.

www.studentdoctor.net

 

[divinityapp]

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[Mr.Smile12]

How Nontraditional Students Can Best Position Themselves When Applying to Med School - SDN

The Student Doctor Network provides free tools, resources, and advising services to help students become health professionals.

www.studentdoctor.net

Where To Start: A Non-Traditional Student Guide to Beginning Your Pursuit of Medicine - SDN

The Student Doctor Network provides free tools, resources, and advising services to help students become health professionals.

www.studentdoctor.net

Here's the challenge with research: You're not a naive undergraduate who seeks research experience to prepare for a job in a research lab once they graduate (or pursue a research degree).
[For those thread readers who are, read...
Building a Prehealth Foundation at Small Colleges: A Conversation with Dr. Chloe Lash - SDN ]

Reach out to admissions professionals first and ask what they suggest you do. They should be able to offer ideas based on other applicants in similar situations as yours.

 

[Goro]

Thanks for taking the time to read and respond!
By longitudinal care, would that be like shadowing primary care?

Yes

Does it matter what sort of clinical exposure it would be?

The sort that shows you what a doctor's day is like and how different doctor's approach the practice of Medicine.


Also, do you think finding a new research opportunity would be important?

NOPE

 

[gyngyn]

1. Anyone also gone from ministry to medicine? Any thoughts on how a masters program in religion would look to adcoms? Would it be a plus or just not matter?

You received good guidance from our community above. I'll offer what little I know about question one.

In all my years, I can only recall one person with a history of ministerial work. I wish I could say that he adjusted well to medical school. Sadly, he could not refrain from proselytizing in inappropriate settings and was ultimately dismissed. He went on to become a priest and I lost track of him.

A Masters in religion would be a plus (I'd imagine) at all the schools with religious affiliations. It may also have resonance in large parts of the country (Utah, the South). It would probably be neutral at most of the rest.

 

[divinityapp]

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[gyngyn]

Prison work is highly regarded at my school.
Research is not a requirement.
Stats is important (even when it's not required).

 

[Hollow Knight]

I know a med student who is a pastor and still preaches on Sundays during school. It can be done.

I do want to point out that medicine can feel pointless as well. Counselling patients who refuse to eat better, quit smoking, or take vaccinations, etc. Or even taking care of that old COPD or heart failure lady in the hospital; yeah, you saved her this time, but in a few weeks she'll be back.

My faith is important to me as well. I went into medicine and not the pastorate because I think my personality and skills are better suited to this area. So make sure you're doing this because you think it's the way you want to serve the world. Being a doctor is no more valuable to society than being a pastor, schoolteacher, nurse, social worker, pharmacist, auto mechanic....... you get the idea. But it might be more PERSONALLY fulfilling for YOU. If that makes sense.

And not having to stress over finances will be nice one day I'm sure.

 

[deleted1197125]

Hi everyone, considering a career change and looking for some feedback on what my chances might be for application in the '25-'26 cycle.

Background

Mid 20s
Graduated 2020
Undergrad was at a small religious university.
cGPA: 3.97
sGPA: 3.945
Major: Theology
Minor: Chemistry
Completed the honors program in my university
- More rigorous gen ed coursework
- Undergraduate research thesis in chemistry and biology ~ 200 hours, presented at my university poster session
Took the MCAT in 2020: 510
Volunteered in local emergency department: ~ 200 hours (2018-2020)
Volunteered in local elementary school: ~ 50 hours (2016-2019)
Volunteered in local retirement home: ~ 25 hours (2018)
Shadowing: ~ 10 hours, though I'm not sure I can get proof for this since it's been awhile (2017-2019)

Since graduation, I've served as a pastor for four years. During the first two I was a children's, youth, young adult pastor for five congregations, and the latter two I was the sole pastor of three congregations. During that time, I began volunteering at a local soup kitchen once a week to connect and support clients (~50 hours), started an outreach program at a local prison where I provided spiritual support and services (~25 hours), and spent many hours visiting hospices and providing spiritual support to the terminally ill. I also volunteered in a mentorship program at my local middle school (~60 hours).

Why: In undergrad, I was a theology pre-med. I've always loved helping people and my faith is a big part of that. I wanted to go into the ministry, but my parents told me to consider other options. So I became a pre-med student. However, I wasn't sure I wanted to do it. The idea of medical school was cool, many of my friends were pre-med, and it beat telling people I was going to be a pastor. I enjoyed the coursework and found it fascinating, but I didn't love volunteering at the ED. There wasn't much more I could be of help, for good reason, so much of the time was just waiting for something to happen, but the times I got to observe procedures or be of help to patients who made small requests was rewarding. I shadowed at a surgeon's office and an ENT doctor and enjoyed it. I found it rewarding to see people benefit from procedures and have hope as they had their concerns heard. But I wasn't entirely sure if I found it rewarding or if I was just trying to in hopes of making my parents proud and following the pre-med crowd around me. When COVID hit in 2020, I wasn't sure what the future held and I certainly did not want to do medical school on Zoom. Plus I received a call to serve in ministry so I decided to pursue my "passion".

Ministry was rewarding though exhausting. I find a lot of encouragement and hope in my faith and enjoy sharing it with others who are interested and looking for something similar (I'm not the type to try to convert people). I also enjoyed serving in other contexts, and it brought me in contact with so many different kinds of people in different places: from prisons to soup kitchens, to hospices, from log cabins to lakeside mansions. I wouldn't have gotten to have that experience without it. I started ministry right in the midst of COVID so I also found myself explaining vaccines and mRNA delivery and the efficacy of masking as we tried to navigate church members splitting over the issues. We weathered through, and I was thankful for my pre-med background. Through pastoring, I also learned how to do administration, handle interpersonal conflict, and position the church as a contributor to the community.

I'm currently in an MDiv program at an Ivy League. For those who don't know it's a professional degree for ministers, chaplains, non-profit org leaders, etc. I wanted to take a break from pastoring and go back to school. But the longer I'm out of it, the more I'm reflecting on whether I should go back. I'd like a job that will provide for my family, since my spouse and I are starting to talk about kids. Ministry doesn't pay very well, to be quite honest. Plus, I want to make a concrete and significant difference in people's lives now. While I've seen people find meaning and purpose through the spiritual support I've provided, I can't help but think there's more I could do right now. Basically, I'd like to see results. And I figure, I only get one life—why not make the most of it? I'm not a big hobbies guy, so there's not much I think I'd be missing out on by going back to medical school. I mainly enjoy work, spending time with family, and reading.

So with all that said, I'm wondering if anyone has any thoughts on how my application presently would fare. I'm studying for the MCAT right now and looking to score higher than in 2020. To be honest, I was a lazy 21 year-old who spent more time watching anime than studying when I took it the first time, so I think I can do better even being several years out of school.

Couple questions:
1. Anyone also gone from ministry to medicine? Any thoughts on how a masters program in religion would look to adcoms? Would it be a plus or just not matter?
2. Any advice on how I can improve my application? Going to try to find shadowing opportunities.
3. Would adcoms look down on how old my clinical volunteering hours are? Should I try to get more recent ones?
4. Any advice on finding shadowing hours? I'm going to reach out to the career center here at my university, but it looks like they mostly help with undergrad premeds and science grad students, at least when it comes to med school. On that note, any suggestions for making use of my university's resources while not technically "pre-med" and in the humanities?
5. How strict are some school's that require statistics, or other courses outside the usual ones? I saw one school required stats, think it was Johns Hopkins. I've never taken stats and don't fancy taking extra coursework that might delay my application. Would I just have to forego applying?
6. I think my undergrad has a recommendations committee, but not sure how many will remember me. Any advice on this? Should I send a letter to them explaining my journey? I think professors would remember to give me a decent rec, but certainly not stellar. I was never exceptional about connecting with professors at the time.

Appreciate your reading and feedback!

TLDR: mid-20s pastor considering going switching to medical school to make a difference in people's lives in the here and now

It’s not a common career change and think that’s definitely unique and to your advantage

 

[WildWing]

@divinityapp - A bit late to this thread, but you might be interested to read the obituary of this woman, who combined her faith with a career helping the underserved in Washington DC:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2024/11/11/janelle-goetcheus-homeless-doctor-dead/