I have a few questions regarding transitioning into the podiatry field as a non-traditional student. As a bit of a background, I attended a 4-year college as a Bio major but only made it 2 years due to financial issues. When I was 21, I was able to get enough funds to enter school for a short time and got a degree in Veterinary Technology. I worked a a Vet Tech for about a year as a civilian, then went into the Army (as a Vet Tech) for 4 years. My aspirations since I was a child was to become a Veterinarian, and while I love animals and am glad to have worked in the field, I have come to understand that I do not think I will be happy as a veterinarian for various reasons. Mostly because the patients are often seen as "disposable", and the low salary potential.
At my age now, I am much more financially secure and can probably qualify for loans/grants (my problem when I was younger was that my father was a well-off MD but would not pay for my schooling, yet I was considered his dependent for financial aid, and could not qualify). I also have the fortune of having two GI Bills at my disposal. I love the medical field, but have no interest in becoming an MD/DO; if I am to work in human medicine, I would rather focus on one area from the start. Podiatry in particular really attracts me.
I have completed all the pre-reqs with my previous schooling except for two semesters of physics with lab. I will be enrolling in a local college next fall to finish that, but am not sure if I should go ahead and finish my BS as well, or just get my pre-reqs done and take the MCAT. I am planning on studying for the MCAT for a year, as it has been almost a decade since I took most of my college classes. I have not determined if there is a time limit on pre-reqs in pod schools and if I must retake some of these classes - any input would be appreciated. I am also currently tracking down podiatrists in the area to shadow for the next year to make sure I know what I am getting into.
My husband has 5 years left in the Army until retirement, and while we are used to being apart due to deployments, attending pod school will have particular difficulties for us. We have two children (currently 2 and 5), and if I were to enter pod school fall `11, he would still be in the Army and most likely unable to follow me. His hours are very unstable (often long hours and/or nights, sometimes gone for missions) and he likely would deploy one more time before retirement (he is currently in Iraq for a year, so he would have a year back at least before being considered again), so leaving the children with him would probably not be best. My area of main concern is attending pod school as virtually a single parent for the first 2 or 3 years until he retires and can be with the children. Under ideal circumstances, I would wait until he is out before doing this, but I'm not getting any younger and my returning to school will be a big part of improving our financial future once my husband is retired. What can be expected of any "free time" as a pod student? I can live without much of a social life for myself, but want to be able to have a presence for my children - at least be able to help with homework and have some time on weekends for "fun" things.
Thank you for reading, I hope some of you could give some insight into some of my questions.
ETA: I am also wondering if it would be appropriate to have LORs from people I worked with years ago. In particular I am thinking of the head vet of where I used to work emergencies as a civilian in 2000 and an Army vet from around `03, to give insight as to how I work in a medical setting. Or would that be to old? I would also get current ones, of course, from podiatrists I shadow and professors from the school I will be taking my physics from.
At my age now, I am much more financially secure and can probably qualify for loans/grants (my problem when I was younger was that my father was a well-off MD but would not pay for my schooling, yet I was considered his dependent for financial aid, and could not qualify). I also have the fortune of having two GI Bills at my disposal. I love the medical field, but have no interest in becoming an MD/DO; if I am to work in human medicine, I would rather focus on one area from the start. Podiatry in particular really attracts me.
I have completed all the pre-reqs with my previous schooling except for two semesters of physics with lab. I will be enrolling in a local college next fall to finish that, but am not sure if I should go ahead and finish my BS as well, or just get my pre-reqs done and take the MCAT. I am planning on studying for the MCAT for a year, as it has been almost a decade since I took most of my college classes. I have not determined if there is a time limit on pre-reqs in pod schools and if I must retake some of these classes - any input would be appreciated. I am also currently tracking down podiatrists in the area to shadow for the next year to make sure I know what I am getting into.
My husband has 5 years left in the Army until retirement, and while we are used to being apart due to deployments, attending pod school will have particular difficulties for us. We have two children (currently 2 and 5), and if I were to enter pod school fall `11, he would still be in the Army and most likely unable to follow me. His hours are very unstable (often long hours and/or nights, sometimes gone for missions) and he likely would deploy one more time before retirement (he is currently in Iraq for a year, so he would have a year back at least before being considered again), so leaving the children with him would probably not be best. My area of main concern is attending pod school as virtually a single parent for the first 2 or 3 years until he retires and can be with the children. Under ideal circumstances, I would wait until he is out before doing this, but I'm not getting any younger and my returning to school will be a big part of improving our financial future once my husband is retired. What can be expected of any "free time" as a pod student? I can live without much of a social life for myself, but want to be able to have a presence for my children - at least be able to help with homework and have some time on weekends for "fun" things.
Thank you for reading, I hope some of you could give some insight into some of my questions.
ETA: I am also wondering if it would be appropriate to have LORs from people I worked with years ago. In particular I am thinking of the head vet of where I used to work emergencies as a civilian in 2000 and an Army vet from around `03, to give insight as to how I work in a medical setting. Or would that be to old? I would also get current ones, of course, from podiatrists I shadow and professors from the school I will be taking my physics from.
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Glad to offer any advice I can.
