I'm a nontraditional student who is interested in going to med school. When I was in undergrad, I only took one premed course, so I would need to go back to take premed courses. I'm also not in a position where I can be a medical scribe or accept a job where I'm earning less than my salary now. A lot of clinical positions (EMT, etc.) that I see are somewhat long programs that would result in me earning less than what I'm earning now (which is not a lot). What do you suggest/which clinical positions could I target to switch fields so I can get clinical experience?
Nontraditional student
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You don’t have to pursue paid clinical experiences. You could continue with your current job, take night classes, and volunteer in clinical settings.
Clinical research coordinator and research assistant positions are highly coveted. Without having a background in research or statistics or CS it would be hard to get your foot in the door.
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Covid has everything In flux. Since you need to take all of the prereqs and the MCAT, you have time to get clinical experience. No, not all clinical experiences occur during business hours. I got mine through volunteer work at night and on weekends while working full time as a teacher and taking night classes. Look at large hospitals, community hospitals, free clinics, and hospice/nursing homes.
To get research positions you need to have experience with research unless you are in an area where these positions are not in demand. Most of my postbac classmates started by volunteering for a few months before applying for paid positions.
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Sure
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This is a common problem that non-traditional premeds run into.simanur said:
The easiest thing to do (if you're really serious about medicine, which you must be--you can't half-a$$ this) is: quit your job, take out loans, and go to school full-time. This will give you time to volunteer and work at a clincial job/volunteering gig on the weekends or perhaps 2-3 days a week.
A lot of premeds struggle with the loss of income vs. the potential payoff. Remember, if you succeed and become a doctor, you will probably earn much more than you are earning currently. Have you taken a practice MCAT FL yet? What are your college grades like? These kinds of things can help you gauge whether or not you're a good candidate for med school, or if it's worth taking the plunge. Feel free to PM me, too
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You need to develop a plan first. From your post, you seem to be everywhere and yet nowhere. You are looking for "clinical experience" yet, there is no information on your education. I can tell you that you can be the best EMT scribe that has put IVs into the smallest veins but if you do not have the academic fortitude, you are not getting into medical school. You are going up against every other pre-med out there and you will not be seen any differently just because you are non traditional. You will be looked under the same microscope. And because of that, almost all other applicants have been scribes, EMTs, worked in hospitals, etc.
First this is fist, academics. You need to focus on academics. I suggest NO clinical positions, focus on academics (see the theme here), volunteer, and don't kill yourself with debt. If you need to go to school part time because you have to maintain a family, that is understandable. What you are entering is a marathon and not a sprint.
First this is fist, academics. You need to focus on academics. I suggest NO clinical positions, focus on academics (see the theme here), volunteer, and don't kill yourself with debt. If you need to go to school part time because you have to maintain a family, that is understandable. What you are entering is a marathon and not a sprint.
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I disagree. The worse thing you can do is drown yourself in debt. You are already looking at $200-300K for medical school, taking undergraduate loans will make it worse and if you have children you are going to subject them to a large debt burden. If you do this, you will very likely never be out of the crushing yoke of debt and not be able to enjoy the fruits of your labor.
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Well, technically the OP hasn't gotten into medical school yet. Max undergrad debt should be $50k, which can be paid off in <5 years even with the most menial type of job and some budgeting. If the OP becomes a doctor they will make at least $110k/year, and therefore should be able to pay off their debt in about the same time frame. YMMV.NontradICUdoc said:
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A complete postbac requires 9 courses. Assuming OP attends a reasonably priced college or university, this should easily come in around the 10-15k range. The X factor is CoA.
