My Story.

[Mcdgexx]

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Ok, well long story short. I joined the military pretty much right out of high school. Planned on either going SEAL or going out with the Grunts at a Corpsman. Well ended up going the corpsman route and ended up falling in love with medicine you could say. Well now after over a year as a corpsman, I've decided that a career in medicine is what is for me, and being a Dr. is what I want to do. So because I have no school, and obligatory service for the next 3 almost 4 years, I am trying to figure out the best path to med school for myself.

I am trying to get into online/night classes here on base at either Hawaii Pacific University or Chaminade University, but neither offer the Major I want, Biology (particularly micro/mollecular). So what is my best plan of action for right now?

 

[DrMidlife]

Ok, well long story short. I joined the military pretty much right out of high school. Planned on either going SEAL or going out with the Grunts at a Corpsman. Well ended up going the corpsman route and ended up falling in love with medicine you could say. Well now after over a year as a corpsman, I've decided that a career in medicine is what is for me, and being a Dr. is what I want to do. So because I have no school, and obligatory service for the next 3 almost 4 years, I am trying to figure out the best path to med school for myself.

I am trying to get into online/night classes here on base at either Hawaii Pacific University or Chaminade University, but neither offer the Major I want, Biology (particularly micro/mollecular). So what is my best plan of action for right now?

If you have no college at all yet, then I think it's appropriate to start easy, and don't worry about how/where you're getting a degree yet. You need to minimize the amount of community college or distance coursework you take, but you can take advantage of both for now. Do some classroom coursework before you take on distance/online learning.

For example, pick an English or Math class at Kapiolani CC or similar. Take one class, see how you do. If you struggle, seek help. If you thrive, take some more classes. If you're doing fine in the classroom (getting A's) then go ahead and get some general ed done in distance/online. Don't take math or science online. Move from the CC to a university as soon as is feasible.

Longer term, I would plan on getting no more than the equivalent of an AA degree done by the time you're discharged, and then spending 2-3 years finishing your bachelors at a good solid university. So for the next 3-4 years, get A's, by which I mean get A's, in other words: get A's. If this means you take only one class per semester, fine. If you are going to get sent overseas etc. and that's going to screw with your ability to get A's, then don't take classes for credit. Your transcripts are more permanent than a tattoo, and I'd hate to see you mess up your beautiful clean slate with withdrawals and incompletes and non-A's.

You should have good GI bill support for post-military schooling. In addition, think about getting the training you need to get a great part-time post-military gig while you're in school, such as working as a surgical tech. This sets you up with physician contacts and opportunities for research.

Lastly for now, look for one-at-a-time opportunities to do community volunteering. This is so easy in Hawaii. Volunteer at Special Olympics events, or triathlons, or work as a tutor or literacy advocate.

One more thing: get the Iserson book "Getting into Med School: a Guide for the Perplexed" which should be your reliable reference against all this SDN blather.

I envy your position, and I wish you success.

 

[Nanon]

In order to get a 4 year degree, most colleges require a lot of breadth classes - psychology, languages, math, soc. sciences and english. Most med schools require a lot of this, too. I would see if those kinds of classes are available to you right now, and see whether you can transfer them to a 4 year college that offers your intended major. Good luck! -S.

DrMidlife beats me again! And more eloquently! Drat it all... 😉

 

[Nasrudin]

Ok, well long story short. I joined the military pretty much right out of high school. Planned on either going SEAL or going out with the Grunts at a Corpsman. Well ended up going the corpsman route and ended up falling in love with medicine you could say. Well now after over a year as a corpsman, I've decided that a career in medicine is what is for me, and being a Dr. is what I want to do. So because I have no school, and obligatory service for the next 3 almost 4 years, I am trying to figure out the best path to med school for myself.

I am trying to get into online/night classes here on base at either Hawaii Pacific University or Chaminade University, but neither offer the Major I want, Biology (particularly micro/mollecular). So what is my best plan of action for right now?

I hope your tour of duty goes safely and well for you and your family.

Online classes for a full degree might not be the best thing. Hopefully some qualified academic advisers will weigh in for you. But until then, from what I've heard or read here, a good number of schools are not keen to accept course work from an online degree program.

Maybe you could get credit for general education up to an AA or something and then transfer to a 4-year school when you get done with your service. You especially want to take the required premed courses with labs at a 4-year non-online university or at least a community college.

The major your interested in would almost certainly require lots of physical work in the laboratory. On-line programs specialize in soft degrees like business. Science is a different gig.

Definitely do your homework like you are now before enrolling in any course work on-line so that you don't waste your time.

Good luck.

 

[Mcdgexx]

If you have no college at all yet, then I think it's appropriate to start easy, and don't worry about how/where you're getting a degree yet. You need to minimize the amount of community college or distance coursework you take, but you can take advantage of both for now. Do some classroom coursework before you take on distance/online learning.

For example, pick an English or Math class at Kapiolani CC or similar. Take one class, see how you do. If you struggle, seek help. If you thrive, take some more classes. If you're doing fine in the classroom (getting A's) then go ahead and get some general ed done in distance/online. Don't take math or science online. Move from the CC to a university as soon as is feasible.

Longer term, I would plan on getting no more than the equivalent of an AA degree done by the time you're discharged, and then spending 2-3 years finishing your bachelors at a good solid university. So for the next 3-4 years, get A's, by which I mean get A's, in other words: get A's. If this means you take only one class per semester, fine. If you are going to get sent overseas etc. and that's going to screw with your ability to get A's, then don't take classes for credit. Your transcripts are more permanent than a tattoo, and I'd hate to see you mess up your beautiful clean slate with withdrawals and incompletes and non-A's.

You should have good GI bill support for post-military schooling. In addition, think about getting the training you need to get a great part-time post-military gig while you're in school, such as working as a surgical tech. This sets you up with physician contacts and opportunities for research.

Lastly for now, look for one-at-a-time opportunities to do community volunteering. This is so easy in Hawaii. Volunteer at Special Olympics events, or triathlons, or work as a tutor or literacy advocate.

One more thing: get the Iserson book "Getting into Med School: a Guide for the Perplexed" which should be your reliable reference against all this SDN blather.

I envy your position, and I wish you success.

I'll do that thank you very much, I've been looking at the Liberal Arts Associates degree from Chaminade since I can take their classes here on base (with labs) and online or out in town if I wish. Are you living in Hawaii? It would be nice to have some more people to maybe meet up with on occasion if I need any help as far as tutoring/etc go. And the military is big on trying to get people to do CLEP courses, I obviously wouldn't do this for a science or math class, but what about english/history?

 

[DrMidlife]

I'll do that thank you very much, I've been looking at the Liberal Arts Associates degree from Chaminade since I can take their classes here on base (with labs) and online or out in town if I wish. Are you living in Hawaii? It would be nice to have some more people to maybe meet up with on occasion if I need any help as far as tutoring/etc go. And the military is big on trying to get people to do CLEP courses, I obviously wouldn't do this for a science or math class, but what about english/history?

Nope, I'm on the mainland. I used to have the coolest housesitting gig, and clocked about 6 months in the Aina Haina area over 8 years. Not that this earned me any love from JABSOM I really miss Waimanalo...

I don't know anything about CLEP, sorry. Hopefully somebody else will pipe up on that.

 

[Vith]

I'll do that thank you very much, I've been looking at the Liberal Arts Associates degree from Chaminade since I can take their classes here on base (with labs) and online or out in town if I wish. Are you living in Hawaii? It would be nice to have some more people to maybe meet up with on occasion if I need any help as far as tutoring/etc go. And the military is big on trying to get people to do CLEP courses, I obviously wouldn't do this for a science or math class, but what about english/history?

As others have said, knock out your general ed stuff while you can. Ideally, think of a 4 year school you'd like to transfer to once you finish your service, and look at their degree requirements and look at their transfer requirements. I kind of got screwed in that regard because the school I was wanting to transfer to doesn't accept transfer credit from either the Air Force or the 4 year school I've been attending while active. So make sure you do your homework.
Take gen ed stuff that will transfer, and CLEP your ass off, then punch out when the time comes. As long as you do well there, you'll have a great transfer GPA and a freakin' sweet new GI bill to get you through undergrad. If you like the military, they're more than happy to have you back when you go to med school. I'm of the opinion that it's a bad idea to try and do a science degree while active unless your supervision is EXTREMELY supportive about letting you miss work for school.
There's a lot of vets and active duty guys around these parts with good advice, so stick around and feel free to ask questions. You're young and are already racking up clinical experience, which gives you a leg up on a lot of us around these parts. Best of luck to you.

 

[njbmd]

I agree with what the other posters have recommended for you. I would also add that you should take as much math as you can so that you have a strong mathematical background before you enter your pre-med courses at university. Most people who end up having difficulty with General Chem and General Physics do so because they have poor math skills.

I would also encourage you to try to find a good critical reading and writing course. These courses are invaluable for any university level work and for the verbal reasoning portion of the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT). You have plenty of time to take your general ed work so take full advantage of this factor. By the time you get to university, you will be prepared for a high level of scholarship and performance. Good luck!

 

[phrygian]

Nice to see another Corpsman trying to become a physician! I was in a similar situation, and found it very difficult to get my education finished while I was on active duty. I spent most of my active duty time with the USMC which made it difficult to really get things done since deployments would come up. If you are on shore rotation, you can get a lot done. Like others have said, I would focus on getting an AA degree to get all the core general education classes out of the way. I got my AA in general education, and when I transferred to my shore rotation, I was able to take more actual science classes. Once I got discharged, I finished my BA degree in history. It still took almost 2 years to get my BA degree along with all med school pre-reqs so shop around for a 4 year school for one that will give the most credit for the classes you took. Many schools gave me almost nothing as far as transfer credits.

CLEP classes would help to get the degree faster, but they are not reflected well during application time just as the "classes" you get SMART credit for being a Corpsman. They can be listed, but there is no real grade and no impact on GPA.

Another thing to keep in mind is an early discharge for education. I believe you can still get discharged up to 6 months early to start classes full-time. My discharge was set for late november and I got it moved up to mid august. You can find more info about that in the BUPERS manual since most people do not know much about it. I had to do all the leg work to get it done.

Get as much done as you can, and you should be able to get plenty of experience while on active duty. I was allowed to volunteer in the Navy Hospital in the OR during down time, and was able to learn a lot. Hopefully, when you voice your desires to the SNCO's, they will understand and help you out.

As with any applicant, get the best grades you can, kill the MCAT, and when the time comes: apply to many schools, both DO and MD!

Good luck and please feel free to PM me with anything you will need in the future!

 

[Nanon]

I agree with what the other posters have recommended for you. I would also add that you should take as much math as you can so that you have a strong mathematical background before you enter your pre-med courses at university. Most people who end up having difficulty with General Chem and General Physics do so because they have poor math skills.

That was certainly the case with me. If you find that you're having a hard time with math, get help RIGHT AWAY. I made a fatal gpa mistake by not getting tutoring and seeing a learning specialist as soon as I found myself having problems in this area.

Good luck!

S.

 

[8744]

Ok, well long story short. I joined the military pretty much right out of high school. Planned on either going SEAL or going out with the Grunts at a Corpsman. Well ended up going the corpsman route and ended up falling in love with medicine you could say. Well now after over a year as a corpsman, I've decided that a career in medicine is what is for me, and being a Dr. is what I want to do. So because I have no school, and obligatory service for the next 3 almost 4 years, I am trying to figure out the best path to med school for myself.

I am trying to get into online/night classes here on base at either Hawaii Pacific University or Chaminade University, but neither offer the Major I want, Biology (particularly micro/mollecular). So what is my best plan of action for right now?

Why not just complete your enlistment, get out, and then go to a regular university using the GI bill for assistance? The online or night course thing is just going to eat up a lot of your time and at the very best, and I'm talking if the stars align, might save you a few courses in college. In other words, you are going to waste a lot of time and money trying to short-circuit the process and may end up short-circuiting yourself.

What's the point and what's your hurry? Concentrate on being a corpsman which is excellent "clinical experience," have fun in college as a pre-med, and then apply to medical school just like everybody else.

The idea to me is that your undergraduate education is not just an obstacle to getting a medical degree. You have time.

 

[8744]

...Lastly for now, look for one-at-a-time opportunities to do community volunteering. This is so easy in Hawaii. Volunteer at Special Olympics events, or triathlons, or work as a tutor or literacy advocate...

Someone who knows the definitive answer needs to chime in here but I would imagine that being a trained Navy Corpsman is pretty good exposure to medicine, demonstrates pretty good committment, and should trump the usual bogus pre-med activities.

I mean, in a rational world anyway. Sort of reminds me of when I was applying (have I told you this story before?) and one of my interviewers said, "So, I see you were a Platoon Sergeant in the Marines but what real leadership experience do you have?"

 

[Vith]

Why not just complete your enlistment, get out, and then go to a regular university using the GI bill for assistance? The online or night course thing is just going to eat up a lot of your time and at the very best, and I'm talking if the stars align, might save you a few courses in college. In other words, you are going to waste a lot of time and money trying to short-circuit the process and may end up short-circuiting yourself.

What's the point and what's your hurry? Concentrate on being a corpsman which is excellent "clinical experience," have fun in college as a pre-med, and then apply to medical school just like everybody else.

Having done almost exactly that, it just kind of seems like a lot of wasted time and money. Getting your gen ed stuff done can shave a year off your undergrad, or at least free up your summers for research internships or drinking cold beer and relaxing. Keep in mind the GI Bill is only 36 months of benefits.
Having slacked off for 5 out of my 6 years of service, I'm going to be forced to spend at least 2 summers in class to catch up on what gen ed stuff I have left while taking 4 classes per semester toward my majors during the regular year to get done in 36 months. Maybe I'm doing it wrong?
Another thing worth mentioning is getting some school done while in the service can offset a medeocre high school GPA when it comes time to get into a 4 year school. I'm not sure if the OP has this problem, but a lot of the folks I know (including myself) who jumped into the military after HS had trouble getting into decent undergrad schools due to lackluster grades in HS. When I got into my school, they didn't even ask for a HS transcript due to my previous college/military experience.

 

[Vith]

Someone who knows the definitive answer needs to chime in here but I would imagine that being a trained Navy Corpsman is pretty good exposure to medicine, demonstrates pretty good committment, and should trump the usual bogus pre-med activities.

I mean, in a rational world anyway. Sort of reminds me of when I was applying (have I told you this story before?) and one of my interviewers said, "So, I see you were a Platoon Sergeant in the Marines but what real leadership experience do you have?"

He's also going to be up to his neck in community crap he's been volunteered for, if the Navy's anything like the AF.

I probably would have had a hard time not flipping a desk and walking out if I were in your shoes for that interview, or being a smartass and telling them about your leadership experiences as a fry cook prior to enlisting. Being a Marine has probably given you experiences a lot more intense than mine, but I know as a SSgt in the AF I've definately had plenty of time and opportunity to discover and refine my leadership ability.

 

[Mcdgexx]

Well i've decided to start off slow, taking one class at a time, maybe work myself up to two, the focus being to get all A's working toward just a plain AA over the next 3 and a half years, that way i'll have a good 4.0 (hopefully haha), and be ready to transfer to USC or some other good undergrad to finish up my schooling there, work on the MCAT and applications 🙂

 

[bradt9881]

Pandabear, IMHO the real benefit to taking care of the general college courses now for the OP is the 100% tuition assistance while on active duty (free college doesn't suck).

 

[Mcdgexx]

Pandabear, IMHO the real benefit to taking care of the general college courses now for the OP is the 100% tuition assistance while on active duty (free college doesn't suck).

yes ta is a great benifit. My concern right now is if I'm not required to take the sat or act would it benifit to take it now or when it will be required?

And should I study at all for placement tests or take them as is

 

[bradt9881]

I would say take the SAT on active duty before getting out, since the military pays for it the first time. Its good for 5 years, then you would just have to pay for supplemental reporting on discharge and going to school.

 

[faultline]

I mean, in a rational world anyway. Sort of reminds me of when I was applying (have I told you this story before?) and one of my interviewers said, "So, I see you were a Platoon Sergeant in the Marines but what real leadership experience do you have?"

Just wondering... does this story end with you ripping out his/her still-beating heart and feeding it to him/her literally, or just rhetorically?

 

[sindadel]

I'd suggest sticking to one course a semester and throwing yourself into your work and some volunteering so you can have glowing letters of recommendation when you are ready to apply to med school. Good luck!!

 

[Destro96]

You've gotten some good advice here already.

That local schools don't offer a major you are considering is of zero value to you. Most college students will change major multiple times anyway.

What you need to do it start out by taking gen-ed requirements (English, math) that are required of all majors.

Feel free to take one or two courses in majors you may want to explore. Still, one of the fastest ways to step on your d*ck in college is to load up with courses in your "major" in your early years, decide you don't like it, and then have to start over at square one because you have nothing to show.

Lots of english (writing and reading) and math (will prep you for gen chem and physics). MCAT verbal is next to impossible to improve with test prep. You need to start now by doing lots of reading and writing.

Thanks for your service.