~NonTraditionals~: Ages

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jl lin said:
Hmmm seems like a troll-like comment. . .but hey, listen. If you, regardless of how you are, want to do your family a favor, go out and plan your own funeral and pick your own plot now. Seriously. If they will be stressed at your loss, which hopefully--at least from the perspective of them valuing you--they will be, well be kind to them and take the edge off. There is nothing worse than having to plan a funeral when you are blowm out of the water by grief. It's a kindness to take that burden off of them. I've been through it. I know what I am talking about.

And you see, no one knows when they will die.

I've seen a number of very young med students bite it as well as young docs over the years.

BTW, with the advancing number of individual Americans that have many decades of life on them, it would be wise to drop such an ageistic attitude. These people need smart but yes also insightful, compassionate, humble, and wise physicians. And listen to the cliche' about life/time/age sneaking up on your faster than you think. Remember, if you live long enough, you'll be in their shoes. Ageism won't do you well then, and it certainly doesn't help your interactions with other people and patient now.
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I'm older than him/her. It was sarcasm.
 
Ok.. I am encouraged! I just applied overseas and am 48... dying to get in.. lifelong dream.... 🙂 Love to hear you are having the time of your life.. I feel it will be the same for me!
 
jl lin said:
Woe. I'm quite sorry. Forgive me for that😳.
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Just saw this two months later. Forgiven. 🙂 I'll add to your advice by saying that it's a good idea to get a will prepared, no matter how young you are. Nothing like dying intestate to make things hell for your loved ones.
 
I'm 25, and going to be 26 at the end of July. I have a few semesters of grades behind me, but withdrew like a fool and got caught up in the "real world."

I'm either going to basically restart school this coming fall, which will place me finishing med school at around 35-37 I guess; or I'll take this year and part of the next to earn my paramedic certification (not for med school purposes, I would simply like to do it--if I were just a year or two out of high school I'd definitely do it, but at this point I'm ready to get on with my ultimate goal, so eh), pushing everything back another year. We'll see.

Either way, I'm not looking at finishing until 40 or so (thankfully my preferred specialties all involve relatively short residencies, though of course that could change in the next decade).
 
I'm going to be 24 in April and just getting back into undergrad. graduating spring or fall 12' no kids, no boyfriend 🙁
 
I just noticed something kinda cool about this thread.

If you go back to the 1st post and read through about all the people saying their ages and when they hope to apply to med school then look at their current status quite a few say "Medical Student" now. 😎
 
wholeheartedly said:
I just noticed something kinda cool about this thread.

If you go back to the 1st post and read through about all the people saying their ages and when they hope to apply to med school then look at their current status quite a few say "Medical Student" now. 😎
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Nice!! :claps:

I think non-trads are starting to really see lots of success. Not that we haven't in the past, but it seems like a trend as of late.
 
I'm 42 7/12, with a BA in history and a fine arts background. I've never married, never had kids, and have 8 cats.

Right now, I'm back in school, taking all the math and science prereqs my younger Humanities-nerd self neglected. And there's a lot of them--I'd never taken a Chemistry class before, and I only took the bare minimum of Math required for the history BA. I had so much difficulty with Math as a teenager that I gave up on it entirely, which also meant giving up my desire to be a vet (or any other career in the sciences).

In the ~30 years since I decided I wasn't smart enough to be a vet, I've never stopped wishing I could be one. If I've ever had one big regret, that's it. I'm always egging other people on to pursue their deepest desires, telling them that it's never too late--so I'm finally taking my own advice.

By the time I apply to vet schools I'll be 44, and if I get accepted on the first try I'll be 45 when I matriculate. For my 49th birthday, I want a shiny, new DVM. And if anyone suggests that maybe I waited until too late to follow my desire, I'll just tell them, "I'm not old--I'm an outlier!" 😛
 
Was 46 when I started process. 48 now.
 
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I'm 27 and will be turning 28 this year. I hope to be in medical school by age 29.
 
I was 43 when I started my PsyD; I will be 49 when I (hopefully) graduate this year.
 
musashi said:
Wow, I feel old. I will start medical school at 35 and finish my residency by 42 or so. Well, I am going to be 42 regradless, so might as well be 42 and enjoy what I'm doing or 42 and still teaching H.S. It could always be worse!
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I'll be 33 if I'm fortunate enough to start Med school this year so I totally hear you on the feeling super old part....but like you said, I reasoned with myself and figured, I'd rather be in my forties and be happy with what i'm doing then spend another 5-10 years doing what I dont want to be doing and then have to continue that for the rest of my life! so like they say...its never too late! So keep that fire alive and keep chugging!🙂 Good Luck
 
Futuredoc2014 said:
I'll be 33 if I'm fortunate enough to start Med school this year so I totally hear you on the feeling super old part....but like you said, I reasoned with myself and figured, I'd rather be in my forties and be happy with what i'm doing then spend another 5-10 years doing what I dont want to be doing and then have to continue that for the rest of my life! so like they say...its never too late! So keep that fire alive and keep chugging!🙂 Good Luck
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The good news is that you probably won't feel that old when you're in med school. What you will feel is how much your perspective has changed compared with the average perspective of a new college grad. That's not necessarily a bad thing.
 
I'm hopeful that this will be true when I start my prereqs in the fall. A few years ago I went back to school for an AA (in something completely unrelated to my first degree OR medicine) and I found that I connected with my professors much more readily than the majority of my classmates did. And since every professor is a potential letter of recommendation, too, this is a big positive.

Good luck to everyone!
 
SalemK said:
I'm hopeful that this will be true when I start my prereqs in the fall. A few years ago I went back to school for an AA (in something completely unrelated to my first degree OR medicine) and I found that I connected with my professors much more readily than the majority of my classmates did. And since every professor is a potential letter of recommendation, too, this is a big positive.

Good luck to everyone!
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You know, thats true. I would have lunch with some of my professors and became very close to a couple. Most students in the classes didn't care enough to remember their names. I didn't get LOR from them but there is a lot you can learn and gain from someone older than you, especially a professor. One professor that took a real interest in me was the kind that gave out grades based on what he thought you should have....worked out great for me 😀

Not to mention some had some great insight into life in general that I felt really added to my education. Most traditional students wouldn't be caught dead talking to the professor out of class. Too bad for them, there is a lot to gain from them. Oh, and I loved to be around when the butt sniffers came up (suck up, whatever you want to call them). That was hilarious to watch.
 
I guess Im at the "regular" college age Im 21, but Im a single mommy to two 4 year old.. so I feel old
 
I'm 20 years old. Currently I'm not even enrolled in a 4 year university. I'm planning on attending a local community college to accomplish the science lab courses, then transferring those credits to a university where I can complete the rest of the requirements for a Bachelor's online. I know that isn't the optimal choice but I currently don't have another option.
 
m.
 
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34 (oops, delete), 35. I'll be 39 when I start residency (woohoo!) Hard to believe it's only been two years since I was asking myself what i want to do with my life!
 
Ceryni said:
I'm 20 years old. Currently I'm not even enrolled in a 4 year university. I'm planning on attending a local community college to accomplish the science lab courses, then transferring those credits to a university where I can complete the rest of the requirements for a Bachelor's online. I know that isn't the optimal choice but I currently don't have another option.
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Welcome to the boards. Stick with it, anything can be done. I'm living proof of that.
 
🙂
 
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This thread makes me feel like it's NOT too late to start this silliness. I'm 23 and hoping to begin pre-reqs this summer. 🙂

On the other hand, by the time I matriculate, my spouse will have her PhD. That's a really scary thought....
 
alienwares said:
This thread makes me feel like it's NOT too late to start this silliness. I'm 23 and hoping to begin pre-reqs this summer. 🙂

On the other hand, by the time I matriculate, my spouse will have her PhD. That's a really scary thought....
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I was older than that when I went back. You wont be so old. I'm starting med school at 32! 😱 I'll have to make rounds on my walker!

so you have to call her Dr. before she calls you Dr. At least you guys wont be starving to death in med school and residency. Thats a good thing.
 
7starmantis said:
I was older than that when I went back. You wont be so old. I'm starting med school at 32! 😱 I'll have to make rounds on my walker!

so you have to call her Dr. before she calls you Dr. At least you guys wont be starving to death in med school and residency. Thats a good thing.
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Texas might pretty much be the best thing to ever happen to us, in an academic sense. Their universities have money for grad students, and tuition is dirt-cheap (10k/year for med school!*). 100-degree summers are a small price to pay for a much, much better financial picture.

*This is assuming, optimistically, that I can get into a Texan medical school. Since I am a fair distance away from the MCAT, please wish me luck. :luck:
 
alienwares said:
Texas might pretty much be the best thing to ever happen to us, in an academic sense. Their universities have money for grad students, and tuition is dirt-cheap (10k/year for med school!*). 100-degree summers are a small price to pay for a much, much better financial picture.

*This is assuming, optimistically, that I can get into a Texan medical school. Since I am a fair distance away from the MCAT, please wish me luck. :luck:
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True that. Good luck, just keep your head down and work hard, you will be there before you know it.
 
My birthday is in next week!:scared: I'm just wondering are you happy on your birthday(agewise)?Assuming you are not gonna get any gift or party...
 
anavistas said:
My birthday is in next week!:scared: I'm just wondering are you happy on your birthday(agewise)?Assuming you are not gonna get any gift or party...
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Good question. Things are really mellow this year, age-wise or otherwise. I do hope this ennui does not continue in the years to come.
 
I'm 29 and just got accepted to school for class of 2014. Within the first few months I'll turn 30. This means graduation at 33 and a completed Family Medicine residency at 36.

As excited as I am to start medical school I'm really concerned with the debt that is going to be accumulating over the next 4 years. Even though it's just me and my fiance, who is a non-trad pharmD class of 2012, and we don't plan on having any kids, I'm looking at $250K in debt (medical school + master's degree).

For the rest of you non-trads is this just something you're taking in stride, or are you also concerned with waking up in your mid-30s to 40s with such a significant amount of debt?

I know we're going to be doctors, but 10 years of paying off that kind of debt means we'll be paying into our 40s or even 50s!
 
Phew..I thought I would be the oldest applying for sure.

I'm 32 now but by the time I finish my job overseas, I will be applying at 33-34!
 
26! 27 in the fall...shadowing/obtaining clinical experience all next year in CO to gain residency and start the pre-reqs...then 2 years of those and hopefully begin med school at 29!
 
Here's a story for the "You know you're a nontrad when" file. It seems that I am several years older than one of the statisticians I'm working with. That in and of itself isn't a huge surprise; what's funny is how this fact came up. The conversation had turned to calculators, as conversations with statisticians are wont to do, and the statistician mentioned having used a TI-80-something-or-other graphing calculator while in high school. This was said with the clear expectation that I would be awed by said calculator's oldness. At which point, I pulled out my old solar-powered TI-36, which I've been using since high school. The look I got was absolutely priceless; I might as well have pulled out an abacus. 😛
 
QofQuimica said:
Here's a story for the "You know you're a nontrad when" file. It seems that I am several years older than one of the statisticians I'm working with. That in and of itself isn't a huge surprise; what's funny is how this fact came up. The conversation had turned to calculators, as conversations with statisticians are wont to do, and the statistician mentioned having used a TI-80-something-or-other graphing calculator while in high school. This was said with the clear expectation that I would be awed by said calculator's oldness. At which point, I pulled out my old solar-powered TI-36, which I've been using since high school. The look I got was absolutely priceless; I might as well have pulled out an abacus. 😛
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I just ordered a TI-84 to replace my TI-36 (which I bought it in 1989--and I was four years out of high school by then).

I'm way too young to have used a slide rule, but the last time I used the TI-36 was in a Stats class almost ten years ago--and even then I was the lone dinosaur without a graphing calculator...:laugh:
 
Ahhhhhhh.......most of you are still babies. Babies, I tell you!😉
I am 40, will be 41 when I start school in August. Still waiting to discover if I am the oldest in the class......
 
Friend of mine (dentist) told me about a friend he had who went back to med school at 45. I'm sure thats not the oldest, but sure made me feel a little better about it all.
 
Magical Realist said:
I just ordered a TI-84 to replace my TI-36 (which I bought it in 1989--and I was four years out of high school by then).

I'm way too young to have used a slide rule, but the last time I used the TI-36 was in a Stats class almost ten years ago--and even then I was the lone dinosaur without a graphing calculator...:laugh:
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Too bad whenever I pull out my HP48GX, all I get are blank stares.

Then if I start talking about RPN....
 
DrMidlife said:
HP28 right here. RPN rocked.
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I still can't use an algebraic calculator to this day.

Check out the HP35S. HP resurrected their old school RPN line with this calculator. Not quite as nice (not embossed numbers but painted) but still a solid machine with RPN.
 
Ive just turned 26, and will be in pre-med courses for almost 2 years, going year round. Im thinking about 32 years old when out of med school.
 
This is definitely motivating. 26 going on 27..halfway through undergrad. Took working a bunch of backbreaking jobs after highschool and 4 years in the army to get my head on straight. 28-29 by the time I could get to medschool if I decide to go for it. Would earn my first real paycheck of my "chosen career" by the time I'm 36.....whoa. Some of you people are really inspiring though....go for it.
 
I just turned 21. I probably won't enter med school until about 25, 24 if I take a couple of summer courses and up my work load. Is that considered old and nontrad? I can't really tell what's old what isn't anymore.
 
What are the ground rules for this thread?

Do I have to come back and update my age every year?
 
I'm 24 right now. I'm married and have a 3.5 month old daughter. I graduate in May with my B.S. in Health Care Administration. This degree has turned out to be absolutely worthless because I earned it from a vocational college that is not regionally accredited (only nationally accredited).

So I get to start over from scratch in the fall at my local public university. I hope to be done in 3 years, including summers. My other school had year-round attendance so I'm already used to it.

I would just be turning 28 at the start of med school, 32 when I would start residency.
 
35, currently; turn 36 two days after I apply EDP; hopefully matriculate at 37. Wife, 3 kids (6, 4, and 7 mos.) As has already been said on here several times, I'm going to be 45 anyway--might as well be doing something I love.


edited to add: wow, didn't realize i'd been lurking on here for over 7 months without ever posting!
 
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JKinSC said:
35, currently; turn 36 two days after I apply EDP; hopefully matriculate at 37. Wife, 3 kids (6, 4, and 7 mos.) As has already been said on here several times, I'm going to be 45 anyway--might as well be doing something I love.


edited to add: wow, didn't realize i'd been lurking on here for over 7 months without ever posting!
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Welcome to the boards, or at least posting on the boards! 🙂

I'm glad you guys are posting, its good to know there are others as old as myself going in. I'm 32 right now and start in august, so pretty close.
 
live2theedge said:
I am 51 and 11/12 years old. Right now I am an M1 at The University of Nebraska Medical Center and having the time of my life!
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I am so impressed with your success so far----I have been in the clinical lab business for years as well as a famous pharma company, My passion has always been to go to med school but life got in the way and kids, educ took precedence. I haven't lost hte passion or drive for med school I am not looking for $$$$--just survival and the ability to help those underserved (which I have seen in many of my client;s HIV offices). I have post Bacc clasess (exp for Phsyics) at UCLA--haven't taken the MCAT yet but will. Can you give my a suggestion--should I head for the Caribbean or DO school (Touro in NV)? Any anecdotal info would be most helpful!🙂
Marie (gramdoc)
 
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