pharmacist or doctor

[jag]

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i am in a unique situation....i am graduating from pharmacy school in september but i have also been accepted to tufts and jagiellonian medical school in poland starting september.....i was born in poland and i think going to poland would be a great experience...but i have a $75,000 contract on the table to work as a pharmacist starting in september....this is a really tough decision for me because i would love to get to tufts but a think i would get more out going to school in poland but then i could also start work as a pharmacist...any opinions from pharmacist, former pharmacist turned MD, etc would be great help

 

[Toran]

Do you want to be a doctor, or a pharmacist. Once you get started as a pharmacist it will be really difficult to go back to school.

 

[Dr JPH]

I once talked to a Pharmacist who decided to go back to medical school after working for a few years.

This person said the most difficult thing to do was give up the pharmacist paycheck.

Make sure you are 100% sure of your decision either way, or you will be cheating yourself and your family.

Good luck.



------------------
Joshua Paul Hazelton
[email protected]
University of the Sciences in Philadelphia (2002)

 

[stoic]

My Dad is a pharmacist; but he almost decided to go straight into med school after pharmacy school. He too was accepted to med school and really struggled with this choice. In the end he decided to go with pharmacy because he could not turn down the prospect of a paycheck. He doesn't really regret this decision; but he has never felt fully challanged as a pharmacist. Since making this choice, he has comtemplated going to med school every few years or so, but for various reasons he has never gone back. He would like nothing more than to go to med school; but because he will soon have two kids in college and he is getting up there in age, it doesn't seem a likely possibility. As a previous post said, it is really hard to leave a career such as pharamacy for any reason; even tougher when your income goes from 75k a year to nothing. I think that you really need to decide if you would rather be a doctor or a pharmacist. They both can be rewarding careers, but one is probably better for you. Don't make the decision based on $$$$ alone.

 

[Homunculus]

I know many pharmacists who have gone to medical school. The problem you run into with pharmacy is that you oftentimes "cap-out" at a certain salary or wage, so your income stagnates (unless, of course, you own your own pharmacy, where the money is better but there are more things to worry about). The upshot is, that once you've been a pharmacist a few years, you will hopefully have some $$ saved up to alleviate the debt that you will incur. I would suggest speaking with pharmacists who have done it, as they would be able to tell you more details....

take it easy

homonculus

 

[wooo]

oh no.....

I can't believe these people let the all mighty dollar determine what field to enter. Are there not any people that have a love for their jobs, regardless of the money? MONEY is evil!!!!

(just joking so chill out.)