Need advice, possibly dropping out

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mr.applesauce

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So I may drop out after my first semester and switch to a different career (not doing very well). The problem is that I have a 12 month lease. My apartment made it abundantly clear that I'd have to pay the rest of my lease if I were to leave.

So if I dropped out, I'd have to immediately get a job to pay my monthly rent because I don't have enough in my savings to pay off the rest of my lease (another 6 months). So if I was lucky enough to immediately find a job, I'd be able to pay the rest of my rent. But the next problem is that my student loans will kick in within 6 months! So once I'd pay off my lease and move back to my parents house, I'd then have to find another job to start paying my student loans! So then when would I ever have the time to get back into school to switch to something else?

My apartment does not allow subleasing either. I'm starting to think that getting a 12 month lease as a student was a bad idea because of how quickly our situations in school can change.

So yeah I can use some advice. Maybe I should have saved up a lot of money before I started med school.
 
Looks like you answered your own question.

mr.applesauce said:
So I may drop out after my first semester and switch to a different career (not doing very well). The problem is that I have a 12 month lease. My apartment made it abundantly clear that I'd have to pay the rest of my lease if I were to leave.

So if I dropped out, I'd have to immediately get a job to pay my monthly rent because I don't have enough in my savings to pay off the rest of my lease (another 6 months). So if I was lucky enough to immediately find a job, I'd be able to pay the rest of my rent. But the next problem is that my student loans will kick in within 6 months! So once I'd pay off my lease and move back to my parents house, I'd then have to find another job to start paying my student loans! So then when would I ever have the time to get back into school to switch to something else?

My apartment does not allow subleasing either. I'm starting to think that getting a 12 month lease as a student was a bad idea because of how quickly our situations in school can change.

So yeah I can use some advice. Maybe I should have saved up a lot of money before I started med school.
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Dude - you made it to med school because you are smart (whether you believe it or not right now, it is true).

You can figure out how to get a job faster than that. What will hold you back (if it does) is that you might not work hard at getting apps in or applying broadly to a bunch of menial jobs.

Just like med school, it is a work ethic thing - not an intelligence thing, that holds people back from succeeding. Good luck to you on the roads ahead - whatever path you choose.

mr.applesauce said:
What if it takes me 4 months to find a job?
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Apartment complexes have a legal obligation to try to fill your apartment after you leave. It is illegal for them to say u have to cover the next 6 months without trying to find a replacement. If they can't find a replacement then you have to pay the cost but they need to make a good faith effort.
 
Starting medical school is tough and it only gets tougher afterwards (except between when you match and when you start residency). I have met several people who thought about quitting and one person actually did. He ended up going to nursing school and the last I heard he is applying back to medical school. My question to you is have you ever held a "career" job? People say that they wish they never became a doctor but when you get a taste of what is waiting for you on the other side I have a feeling you will wish you didn't drop out.

I say stick with it. Try and figure out why you aren't doing well and see if you can improve.

My opinion is more a broad statement and individual consideration is needed though.
 
freecitizen said:
Starting medical school is tough and it only gets tougher afterwards (except between when you match and when you start residency). I have met several people who thought about quitting and one person actually did. He ended up going to nursing school and the last I heard he is applying back to medical school. My question to you is have you ever held a "career" job? People say that they wish they never became a doctor but when you get a taste of what is waiting for you on the other side I have a feeling you will wish you didn't drop out.

I say stick with it. Try and figure out why you aren't doing well and see if you can improve.

My opinion is more a broad statement and individual consideration is needed though.
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This 100%. You don't want to be that spiteful nurse who's feeling under appreciated by your fellow colleague (you know the guy that has to retake 5-6 exams and still become a BC Family Med doc) 6-7 years from now. It will be too late then.
 
Pompacil said:
Med school is tough...but they're going to do everything they can to keep you from failing out.
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It's just that build up of debt that concerns me *IF* I fail out much later... like when I hear about med students that barely pass the first semester then fail out in third year with $150k+ in debt... screw that
 
mr.applesauce said:
It's just that build up of debt that concerns me *IF* I fail out much later... like when I hear about med students that barely pass the first semester then fail out in third year with $150k+ in debt... screw that
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Fake news there. Nobody fails out during their third or fourth year. If you make it past Year 2 and pass all of your boards, your chances of being a doc is close to 99%.
 
mr.applesauce said:
It's just that build up of debt that concerns me *IF* I fail out much later... like when I hear about med students that barely pass the first semester then fail out in third year with $150k+ in debt... screw that
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Is the only reason you're considering dropping out because you're not doing well? If so, I wouldn't quit *yet*. Go to your learning coordinators, professors, dean, whoever you need to in order to figure out how to do better. 99% of people that get into med school are smart enough to graduate, those that don't make it typically have some sort of extenuating circumstance that prevents it or just hate it so much they don't want to continue. Even in that 1%, I think most probably have personality problems or problems with work ethic that prevent them from succeeding, not just that they're just not smart enough to cut it. Bottom line is that unless you've exhausted all your resources in terms of help and are still failing (note: failing, not barely passing), I wouldn't quit because you think you're not good enough.

On the other hand, if you're struggling heavily, legitimately hate the material, and find that medicine is not what you thought it was at all, considering leaving early on is a more valid option. As others have said though, even that can just be a "grass is always greener" mindset. So unless you did something before med school you really liked and now hate what you're doing, I'd still consider pushing through as clinical years and real medicine are far different than pre-clinical years are.
 
Dude, if you started with anything plus anatomy, please have a little faith. Anatomy is the worst. If you can tame the beast, great. If not, trust those who have come before you and know that everything else is better than anatomy.
 
hey man, if you aren't doing well but are putting in the work, then may'be change your strategy? unless you truly want to drop out of medical school, like someone above said, it's partly intelligence and work ethic. but work ethic won't get you anywhere if you aren't studying / utilizing your time well. I almost failed my first exam, felt like I didn't belong here the entire second block, but I switched up "how" I studied. I definitely studied less, and did MUCH better. I scored slightly above average, I'm no genius, but I'm happy with that. I reached out to some MSII's, and that really helped me recalibrate the way I approached studying, and honestly, the way I "thought" about the material as I studied. Good luck man, with whatever you decide to do
 
sammiesings said:
Dude, if you started with anything plus anatomy, please have a little faith. Anatomy is the worst. If you can tame the beast, great. If not, trust those who have come before you and know that everything else is better than anatomy.
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Anatomy is my problem. And it's causing me to do well below average in my other courses for how much I have to study for this class.
 
mr.applesauce said:
Anatomy is my problem. And it's causing me to do well below average in my other courses for how much I have to study for this class.
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I would definitely go to the academic counselor/equivalent at your school if you haven't already. They may have some additional resources for you that could help. How long does anatomy last for you? Seeing as your post history suggests you definitely want to stay in healthcare, and most medical schools work very hard to keep you IN, I would not quit in your shoes.
 
Only quit medical school if you do not want to be a doctor. You made it to medical school, you can cut it. Adcoms are very good in determining who can make it through medical school.

If you go to an american school, your school will do its best to keep you.

Does your school have decelerated options?
Have you altered your strategy for Anatomy?
Have you sought help from academic services?

Even after all of this if you want to drop out, look at the lease paperwork. Ususally there is a clause where you can break the lease and pay a certain number of months rent to get out. Maybe ask for help from your parents?
 
68PGunner said:
Fake news there. Nobody fails out during their third or fourth year. If you make it past Year 2 and pass all of your boards, your chances of being a doc is close to 99%.
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I wouldn't necessarily go that far, my school historically usually loses a few during 3rd year. 4th year yeah, hard to fail out unless you just can't pass step 2 for some reason.
 
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