Prospective medical student seeking advice (changing career to medicine)

[kaion]

Hi all,

Not sure if this is the right place to post but it would be greatly appreciated if someone can offer some advice.

I graduated from college almost 3 years ago and have been working since then. I am approaching 26 soon and medicine is a direct entry degree for high school graduate back in my country so I am relatively late compared to my peers.

I am considering a switch as a career in medicine is more stable and also because I was diagnosed of some health issues (and situation would have been much better if I had the knowledge to figure it out myself earlier). Basically, I want to learn something that is more useful to myself and meaningful.

I understand medicine is quite intense and I want to make sure I am well prepared / suited for it given it is a multi year commitment that resets my career.

Is there a way to test myself or giving me a sense of studying medicine? It has been a long time since I last take a course in chemistry and I have never taken biology before.

I am thinking of giving myself 1-2 years time and start taking some online courses in basic chemistry/biology/anatomy/neuroscience (edX/Saylor Academy/etc.) and volunteer for some shadowing experiences to get a sense of it in the meantime. Would that be enough?

I am afraid medicine is way more intense than that so I want to make sure I can handle the intellectual rigor. Is there any other suggestion? I know that people often recommend incoming MS1 not to study ahead but I guess my situation could be quite different as the opportunity cost is high and it is better to make sure I am committed and able.

Sorry for the long thread but thank you so much for your help!

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[lumya]

Hi! Are you currently still in a non-US/Canada country? If you’re in the US there’s a lot of great resources in the non-traditional student forum that can help give you some guidance on the next step to take. I would say generally your plan of taking the science pre requisite courses and shadowing physicians is a good starting point but If you want more specifics, you can check out the pre-Med and non-traditional students forums.

 

[kaion]

Hi! Are you currently still in a non-US/Canada country? If you’re in the US there’s a lot of great resources in the non-traditional student forum that can help give you some guidance on the next step to take. I would say generally your plan of taking the science pre requisite courses and shadowing physicians is a good starting point but If you want more specifics, you can check out the pre-Med and non-traditional students forums.

hi lumya, thanks for your reply! Yes, I am in a non-US/Canada country. I am aware of the resources there but I guess I would have limited access (especially given I am working full time).

I am trying to self-study for MCAT now but I am not very sure if being able to score well in MCAT means I can handle the rigor of med school..

 

[lumya]

hi lumya, thanks for your reply! Yes, I am in a non-US/Canada country. I am aware of the resources there but I guess I would have limited access (especially given I am working full time).

I am trying to self-study for MCAT now but I am not very sure if being able to score well in MCAT means I can handle the rigor of med school..

Hi, I read through your old posts and it looks like you're trying to get into an Australian medical school. I don't know much about the system there, but if you can handle higher-level science courses and do well on the MCAT, you should be decently prepared for medical school. Of course there's a lot of stress associated with the whole process so if you know a doctor or a medical student to talk to, they might be able to give you some insight on what its like. Best of luck.