Not so traditional

[Energon]

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Hi guys I want to hear from some of you out there who left a professional program (pharm, dentistry, PhD) to attend med school.
I was a very strong student as an undergrad but decided not to apply to med school because I thought I could not afford to finance the whole thing myself. I instead took up a career that was a lot less school, more $$$ and one that gave me a scholarship. I did ok in my basic sciences B B+. But I realized that medicine is what I really want to do (badly) and I dont care about the cost/ debt/ crappy lifestyle etc. I am taking my MCATS in aug and applying.
I want to know if any of you have been thru something like this and also if you can tell me if some med schools are more/less lenient to prospective students like me.

Thank you

 

[spacecadet]

Here's a website just for Non-trad students. I think you'll find some good information.

OldPreMeds

 

[deleted6669]

take a look at DO schools, they tend to favor nontraditional students more so than their MD counterparts.

 

[Energon]

The other thing that I forgot to mention before is that I am only 23 yrs old. I graduated college when I was 20. I dont think I will be considered as a non traditional student, ironically, I am not really a traditional student either since I have already done basic sciences at a med school (for another program). Any thoughts on how the adcoms will react to my situation?

 

[kcrd]

If you are finishing your degree, don't worry about how schools will perceive your career change. I wouldn't be surprised if most med schools have at least one pharm D and/or PhD in each class. As long as your motivations for making this change are good, it can only help you. (Dentistry to medicine might be a hard sell, though.)

However, if you are saying that you plan on dropping out of a professional program so that you can apply to medical school - that might be more difficult. I have a vague recollection of reading that schools want you to finish any program you are currently in before starting med school. You might want to call the admissions officer at your state school and ask them if they have any such requirement.