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[bnm83]

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Hello all 🙂 -

I am 28 years old and am interested in pursuing a career as a doctor. I have read through many of the posts in the non-traditional forums and found them all fascinating and very encouraging. I wanted to take a moment to put my name and story out here as I am sure through the next few years I am going to need all of your wisdom and guidance.

Here is a brief history of my life in academia thus far:

I attended a private university straight out of high school and didn't do so well. I was the classic case of no direction/didn't want to be there/didn't know what I wanted out of life. Throughout high school I was the kid that never cracked a book but aced all of her tests and I had the misguided hope that that would get me through my undergrad as well. As we all know, that is not the case. After my tough freshman year and at the urging of my parents, I went to a community college and again, just didn't know what I wanted other than I wanted to be anywhere but there. After one semester at the community college my parents finally took the hint and let me try and find my own way. I immediately found a full time job and began working. I have been with that same company ever since, working my way up promotion after promotion (I manage phone operations for a behavioral health managed care company).

In 2008, I decided that I was ready to return to school. I didn't know exactly what I wanted to do yet but I knew I would have pre reqs to contend with so I assumed that I would figure it out along the way. Since then I have had two different majors. The first was graphic design. I have some artistic talent and enjoyed the classes immensely but when it came down to it I didn't feel fulfilled and wasn't excited about graphic design as a career. The second major, and my most recent, is computer science. My father is an engineer and I inherited his gifts in science and math and since I already had some computer science course work completed due to my previous major, it seemed like a good choice.

I am sure that after reading all of this most of you are wondering where my interest in medicine came from or what is driving my interest now. 🙂

In 2007 my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer and was re-diagnosed in 2009 with mets to her lungs and several local reoccurrences. Since 2009 it has been a second job caring for her and educating myself on her disease. She has had some of the best doctors working with her and they have been such an inspiration to me. Through the entire ordeal the one thing that helps me cope with all of this is learning. Learning about the science behind what is going on in her body and how the various adjuvant therapies work is how I spend most of my free time. Sadly, the week before Christmas we found out that my mother's cancer has metastasized to her brain and that the tumors in her lungs are progressing. With the ideas of death and dying looming over me and the thoughts of how short (and precious) life is, I decided to start taking a few pre reqs to see how I faired. Up until now I have kept these thoughts and ideas deep in the recess of my mind, thinking that everyone would feel I was being foolish for changing paths in life yet again. The problem is I can't stop thinking about it. I have never felt this clear about a choice in my life. So, I decided to start researching non-traditional medical students and that is how I happened upon this intriguing forum.

I know that there is a lot of hard work ahead of me but I am ready for it. I really appreciate reading about everyone's experiences on this website and I hope to continue reading about them as I start on this journey.

 

[GenusTide]

Hello all 🙂 -

I am 28 years old and am interested in pursuing a career as a doctor. I have read through many of the posts in the non-traditional forums and found them all fascinating and very encouraging. I wanted to take a moment to put my name and story out here as I am sure through the next few years I am going to need all of your wisdom and guidance.

Here is a brief history of my life in academia thus far:

I attended a private university straight out of high school and didn't do so well. I was the classic case of no direction/didn't want to be there/didn't know what I wanted out of life. Throughout high school I was the kid that never cracked a book but aced all of her tests and I had the misguided hope that that would get me through my undergrad as well. As we all know, that is not the case. After my tough freshman year and at the urging of my parents, I went to a community college and again, just didn't know what I wanted other than I wanted to be anywhere but there. After one semester at the community college my parents finally took the hint and let me try and find my own way. I immediately found a full time job and began working. I have been with that same company ever since, working my way up promotion after promotion (I manage phone operations for a behavioral health managed care company).

In 2008, I decided that I was ready to return to school. I didn't know exactly what I wanted to do yet but I knew I would have pre reqs to contend with so I assumed that I would figure it out along the way. Since then I have had two different majors. The first was graphic design. I have some artistic talent and enjoyed the classes immensely but when it came down to it I didn't feel fulfilled and wasn't excited about graphic design as a career. The second major, and my most recent, is computer science. My father is an engineer and I inherited his gifts in science and math and since I already had some computer science course work completed due to my previous major, it seemed like a good choice.

I am sure that after reading all of this most of you are wondering where my interest in medicine came from or what is driving my interest now. 🙂

In 2007 my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer and was re-diagnosed in 2009 with mets to her lungs and several local reoccurrences. Since 2009 it has been a second job caring for her and educating myself on her disease. She has had some of the best doctors working with her and they have been such an inspiration to me. Through the entire ordeal the one thing that helps me cope with all of this is learning. Learning about the science behind what is going on in her body and how the various adjuvant therapies work is how I spend most of my free time. Sadly, the week before Christmas we found out that my mother's cancer has metastasized to her brain and that the tumors in her lungs are progressing. With the ideas of death and dying looming over me and the thoughts of how short (and precious) life is, I decided to start taking a few pre reqs to see how I faired. Up until now I have kept these thoughts and ideas deep in the recess of my mind, thinking that everyone would feel I was being foolish for changing paths in life yet again. The problem is I can't stop thinking about it. I have never felt this clear about a choice in my life. So, I decided to start researching non-traditional medical students and that is how I happened upon this intriguing forum.

I know that there is a lot of hard work ahead of me but I am ready for it. I really appreciate reading about everyone's experiences on this website and I hope to continue reading about them as I start on this journey.

Hello and welcome. Very sorry to hear about your mother, cases such as that are certainly hard to deal with. If you have any generalized questions feel free to ask as most everyone is quite helpful and knowledgeable on this forum. I wish you the best of luck on your future endeavors in medicine. It is a long hard road, but if it is in your heart, you will certainly make it work.

 

[Prncssbuttercup]

Welcome! Terrible thing cancer is, so sorry about your mom 🙁

In short, many of us on here don't have the most shining examples of undergraduate work, some do and decided to do this late in life, some are a combination. Just remember, it's a long road, but I think we'll all agree at the end it is worth it!

Best of luck to you on your journey! Again, deepest sympathies for you and your family.

 

[bnm83]

Thank you for the responses!

 

[bnm83]

Also, I wanted to add that I am quite capable of this course load. After reading my first post it kind is sounds like I could be a dolt but with science classes I have taken thus far (chem I, bio I, and human bio) I have a 4.0 and since returning to school in 2008 have maintained a 3.8 overall. I had to retake several classes to get there but I did it. 🙂.

 

[Bkid2022]

Sounds like you have a good start to your personal statement there. My mom also had cancer when I decided to pursue medicine. You're doing good with classes so far. If you're attending community college I'd suggest looking into a post-bacc program or university classes later on, especially for the bio courses. Post-bacc programs are good because they know how to help non-traditional students.
Then, start volunteering or working to get clinical experience. A lot of people start volunteering in a hospital for instance. I got a job as a medical assistant in a pediatric office.
One final consideration: getting some research under your belt. Med school eat it up.

 

[bnm83]

I have taken classes at a cc in the past but I have been back at a university for a while now.

In regards to the research, how does one get involved? I assume talking to my professors?

I live in St. Louis so I was thinking of looking into volunteering at Siteman although I am sure anywhere at Barnes would be good.

Thanks for the feedback!

 

[hopeful22213]

Finding research opportunities shouldn't be too difficult as long as you are proactive. Some schools may have a list of current undergraduate research opportunities or the professors most actively involved in research projects. Even without that, just speaking to the professors you know or emailing the ones you don't to see if they have or know of anything is a great start. I emailed a few professors about my interest in volunteering with their research projects. A few never responded but one got back immediately and offered me a paid part-time position despite no experience in the field on my part.

Good luck!