MSW considering medical school. I need advice. Do I have what it takes?

[mccordt]

Hello Everyone,

I am new to this forum and thank you all in advanced for your advice and support. I am a 25 year old master’s level social worker, currently working as a school social worker. I have always had an interest in pursuing a degree in medicine, but for one reason or another, followed other academic and career trajectories. Over the past couple of years, I have considered going to medical school, but was worried about going back to school after already completing my BSW and MSW. After being encouraged by other’s experiences on this forum, I am now strongly considering pursuing a medical degree. However, I have several trepidations in which I am seeking your guidance.

I received GPA’s of 3.8-3.9 in both my undergrad and graduate studies. It may also be worth noting that I completed my MSW at University of Michigan at the age of 22. With that being said, I have not taken a biology course or chemistry course since high school. I received good grades in these courses at the time. Also, my favorite undergrad course was Health Psychology, which counted as my Bio credit. This course focused on the functioning of the brain, the nervous system, various psychiatric disorders, and psychopharmacology. It was by far the most difficult, yet most rewarding class I took. I also did quite well in the course, receiving the only A in the class. I am very nervous about taking bio and chem courses that are required for med school. I watched several pre-med friends in undergrad struggle with chemistry and bio courses, eventually abandoning their hopes of med school due to poor performances in these courses. Can anyone give me any guidance or recommendations in this area?

If I make the final decision to pursue medical school, I am considering completing my pre-requisite science courses either at a local community college or completing a yearlong Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Premedical Studies at a local University. I currently work full-time and would have to quit my job in order to complete the post-baccalaureate program. I am unsure if this would be the best idea since I am unsure of how I would perform in the science courses. On the flip side, I do have summers off as I work in a school and could easily take community college courses over the summer. However, from what I have read on the forum, a post-baccalaureate program seems to be the better option. I am nervous to quit my stable job with no guarantee for success. Any advice on this topic?

I have a fairly diverse background in social work, having worked in community mental health, outpatient therapy, home healthcare, and school social work. I also plan on volunteering and shadowing doctors as much as I can. I feel these experiences along with my successful academic background up to this point would be beneficial to pursuing a medical degree. What do you think?

Thank you so much for your help! Please let me know if there is more information that may help inform your advice.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[DrMidlife]

That 3.8-3.9 is most of the story, really. I think you should do a few things to figure this out.

1. Take a math class now. Pick a class that will challenge you. Community college is fine. Just see what happens when you're in class again. If you can pull an A, then keep going.

2. Apply to the postbac program now. That gives you 7-8 months to figure out next steps. Also look at the more competitive postbac programs outside Michigan. There's a list of these on aamc.org. (I had a huge crush on the Bennington program - wish I'd gone.)

3. Think about taking a free practice MCAT, cold. People have disagreed with me on this, but I allege that your cold verbal score prior to taking med school prereqs is a reasonable predictor of how you'll do on the MCAT after prereqs. You can skip over the science sections and just take the verbal section. I allege that if you can throw a 10, you can be confident.

4. Find a pissed off doc who is close to retirement and get him/her to bitch without mercy about why the practice of medicine has gone straight to hell in a handbasket. Be willing to be talked out of medicine.

Honestly I think with your GPA and your background, you'll be well received as a med school applicant. Quitting your job is a big step, but you know what Goethe had to say about that.

Best of luck to you.

 

[Niemi]

.

 

[SN12357]

I think you sound like a great candidate. You won't know if you can hack the coursework until you try, but there's no reason not to wade in and see how it goes. Have faith in yourself.

In general I'm an advocate of working while doing your post-bacc if you can, as it allows for greater financial stability and lower risk. The extra time is generally worth it. However, some jobs are not compatible with this strategy and some people have trouble dividing attention between work and school. You'll need to figure those variables out for yourself. Perhaps starting classes this summer (without quitting your job) and going from there would be a good starting place. Good luck!

 

[MedPhys2MD]

I think I would start by taking a few classes at a community or local college before giving up your career as a social worker. You sound like you'd be a really desirable candidate, but if you start taking classes and then decide you no longer want study medicine at least you still have you current job. So I'd start out slow, then you can ramp it up and focus solely on coursework later if you decide to

 

[Goro]

Great advice here from my young colleague. I would modify #2 by saying that these programs are a dime-a-dozen, so do a little homework and you'll handily find one. For #1, suggest taking statistics. Very useful. I especially like #3, too.

That 3.8-3.9 is most of the story, really. I think you should do a few things to figure this out.

1. Take a math class now. Pick a class that will challenge you. Community college is fine. Just see what happens when you're in class again. If you can pull an A, then keep going.

2. Apply to the postbac program now. That gives you 7-8 months to figure out next steps. Also look at the more competitive postbac programs outside Michigan. There's a list of these on aamc.org. (I had a huge crush on the Bennington program - wish I'd gone.)

3. Think about taking a free practice MCAT, cold. People have disagreed with me on this, but I allege that your cold verbal score prior to taking med school prereqs is a reasonable predictor of how you'll do on the MCAT after prereqs. You can skip over the science sections and just take the verbal section. I allege that if you can throw a 10, you can be confident.

4. Find a pissed off doc who is close to retirement and get him/her to bitch without mercy about why the practice of medicine has gone straight to hell in a handbasket. Be willing to be talked out of medicine.

Honestly I think with your GPA and your background, you'll be well received as a med school applicant. Quitting your job is a big step, but

you know what Goethe had to say about that.

Best of luck to you.

 

[DR MOM]

I think taking one class while working is a great idea. You should also check with your undergrad and see how far out the pre-health people will work with you - at my college the limit is five years. I was three years out so I was able to do mock interviews with them and get a committee letter. (It was a little different for me because I did a lot of my science classes there).

I think social work is a GREAT background for medicine!