Quitting med school to work for Uber

Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine
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twospadz

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Med school is very stressful. Of course im not 100% serious but the thought of making your own hrs and the work not being intense is appealing. Also, Uber drivers are paid on avg 19 dollars an hr. Still paying off loans would be diffucult but i would also be working a second job too besides Uber. Do you think this would be a bad idea?
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No it's not a bad idea if you're using it help pursue other interests, but if you plan on being an uber driver for 20 years or until electric auto cars takes its place; then that's up to your future goals. Will you be complacent with that future?
 
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I knew a guy who drove for Uber in between 1st and 2nd years. He had a blast and made good money.
 
beethousand said:
It depends. I would only quit for uber black. Too much midlevel encroachment on uberx.


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Uber black you need a luxury car. You really want to put miles on an expensive car?
 
What constitues a luxury car though?
 
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twospadz said:
Med school is very stressful. Of course im not 100% serious but the thought of making your own hrs and the work not being intense is appealing. Also, Uber drivers are paid on avg 19 dollars an hr. Still paying off loans would be diffucult but i would also be working a second job too besides Uber. Do you think this would be a bad idea?
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it would be a nice gig for the weekend i guess. my buddy, after taxes, pulled in an extra 15 gz last year by doing it on the side. he was a grad student not in med school so he had a little bit more time
 
Favoritefarm said:
it would be a nice gig for the weekend i guess. my buddy, after taxes, pulled in an extra 15 gz last year by doing it on the side. he was a grad student not in med school so he had a little bit more time
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True, that or being a delivery driver on weekends if you live in the right area. The guy that does my parent's taxes is a pizza delivery driver on weekends. He makes almost 6 figures as an accountant and makes an extra 20-30k on the side delivering pizzas. Still, neither job will make nearly as much nor be as secure as a physician, or many other jobs.
 
Favoritefarm said:
it would be a nice gig for the weekend i guess. my buddy, after taxes, pulled in an extra 15 gz last year by doing it on the side. he was a grad student not in med school so he had a little bit more time
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I thought about doing it over the summer after MS1. Then I realized the extra couple grand was vastly outweighed by the opportunity cost of sacrificing my last time I will ever have a couple months to do nothing but drink beer and play Xbox.
 
Quit med school, learn computer programming, and join Uber as a software developer. You will earn far more money that way.
 
I drive for Uber, and they just cut our fares by 40%.

So yeah...
 
jqueb29 said:
I thought about doing it over the summer after MS1. Then I realized the extra couple grand was vastly outweighed by the opportunity cost of sacrificing my last time I will ever have a couple months to do nothing but drink beer and play Xbox.
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ya you are right. enjoy life!
 
Psai said:
Wtf i was literally about to sign up. Maybe they are feeling heat from lyft
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They did the same last year, but prices went back up after winter. Good luck making less than 6 dollars per hour after gas expenses...
 
Makes me wonder how did you get through the interview process at your school...Please teach me this for residency yeah?
 
Psai said:
Gas is pretty cheap now actually. There's a place where it's under 50 cents a gallon
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1.55 down here. Count it car maintenance and devaluation in there too.
 
I appreciate everyone except the haters. I made this thread because I really needed some advice. Medical school can suck the life out of you. And I've realized there's more to life than medicine. Overall, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't the only one feeling this way.
 
twospadz said:
I appreciate everyone except the haters. I made this thread because I really needed some advice. Medical school can suck the life out of you. And I've realized there's more to life than medicine. Overall, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't the only one feeling this way.
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We're kidding... mostly.

Med school is tough. We all empathize with you in that respect.
 
I'd look into being an uber driver if my car wasn't 18 years old. :lame:
 
I know the OP was half joking, but I just want to say in all seriousness don't quit med school to become an Uber driver! I think it's normal to daydream about other careers when you're stressed out in your current career (or training). I'm a practicing physician and, in general, love my job, but I have days when I walk by the administrative assistant's desk and really wish I was an admin assistant. To me, it's always seemed like the most low-key, low-stress, perfect job. I fantasize about not having to use critical thinking skills and being able to waltz out at the stroke of 5 PM. But deep down inside I know that after about 2 days as a secretary I would be bored from not using my critical thinking skills and feel unimportant and underutilized if there was nothing important or pressing enough to keep working for even a few minutes after my shift was over.

Anyway, secretary is my Uber. And my point is that it's fine and normal to think about other jobs - just don't act on those thoughts. It's just you're stress talking. If you find yourself filling out an Uber application and washing your car, then it's reached another level and you should talk to your advisor or a mentor or someone.
 
This is a very bad idea - I am an (ex) Uber driver and joined just to tell you... don't do it!

Uber is manipulating the numbers to make it appear drivers are earning a lot more than they really are. Do not believe the ads saying "make 70K a year!" or make "$x amount of dollars an hour!" ... they are calculating these numbers by looking at the drivers with the highest hourly pay and taking their "total fares" divided by the "number of hours online" to get hourly rate, and multiplying this rate by 40-50 hours per week * 52 weeks in a year...

This is a very dishonest calculation because of four main factors - it's only counting time ONLINE... if I end a trip and "GO OFFLINE", I am still technically working if I go offline to drive to a more profitable zone or turning it off because I do not want to pick up in an unsafe area - but this time is not being counted in Uber's calculation. Second, a lot of drivers are only working the busiest times (Friday & Saturday when the bars are busy...) and possibly even only when there is a surge going. Also, Uber neglects to mention the numbers they are quoting are before they take out their cut (safe ride fee + 20-30% commission depending on when & where you signed up as a driver)... the 4th factor is that you still have to pay for your gas and maintenance.

I started driving a cab and am doing much better than Uber - and not tearing my own car up. The downside with driving a cab is that although you may be able to set your own hours depending on who you work for - you WILL need to put in the hours to pay your lease on the cab. Mine is $430 a week... but I am already in the profit this week (my week starts on Tuesday since that's when I started) and still have 4 days to make some money... and I'm not in a particularly cab friendly city - everything I get is regulars or through dispatch - haven't had a street hail yet.
 
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Looking back after all the years of what I today would call living Hell, I do not at all regret quitting my practice and become a stone mason. Yes, you heard me right. I quit working as a physician three years ago and opened up a stone mason company with some friends. The only thing I do now that is medical is some age-management and cosmetics.

The joy of never having to think about ICD-9 (well ICD-10 now) is amazing, just like it is amazing to be paid IN CASH after I finish a job.

It took me two solid years of training to pick up my new field. At that time, I only did some ER and U/C to stay afloat, but even that was becoming such a drag that I simply sat out for 1/2 a year doing nothing.

We do all residential custom-make, natural and fabric stone wall and now have also started some sculpting. Most of my old Dr friends think I am nuts, but with a MON-THU schedule, all direct pay, free of "managers" and "compliance officers", it is a sheer thrill to be at work every day.
 
DrMason said:
Looking back after all the years of what I today would call living Hell, I do not at all regret quitting my practice and become a stone mason. Yes, you heard me right. I quit working as a physician three years ago and opened up a stone mason company with some friends. The only thing I do now that is medical is some age-management and cosmetics.

The joy of never having to think about ICD-9 (well ICD-10 now) is amazing, just like it is amazing to be paid IN CASH after I finish a job.

It took me two solid years of training to pick up my new field. At that time, I only did some ER and U/C to stay afloat, but even that was becoming such a drag that I simply sat out for 1/2 a year doing nothing.

We do all residential custom-make, natural and fabric stone wall and now have also started some sculpting. Most of my old Dr friends think I am nuts, but with a MON-THU schedule, all direct pay, free of "managers" and "compliance officers", it is a sheer thrill to be at work every day.
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And yet, in the middle of a Wednesday you're trolling on SDN... Feeling nostalgic, are we?
 
twospadz said:
I appreciate everyone except the haters. I made this thread because I really needed some advice. Medical school can suck the life out of you. And I've realized there's more to life than medicine. Overall, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't the only one feeling this way.
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If there is ANY take-home from this thread, it is exactly the reality that life has more things than medicine within it.

I have enjoyed going for walks in the park at 5 AM without being worried about something, noting the leaves, grass that smells fresh and then come home for a loooong breakfast before going for my first work of the day.
 
Kylie317 said:
And yet, in the middle of a Wednesday you're trolling on SDN... Feeling nostalgic, are we?
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Just like "racism", "peer review" and "QI" is a nonsense terminology, so is the notion of " trolling".

Someone I know told me about this particular thread and after reading it, I felt it would be helpful to show my perspective. Both to corroborate the realThis may not be for everyone, but fits perfectly for me. And I also keep my license active, along with some insurance-free medical work.

Sorry my post didn't fit for your monolith view. Having said that, I'm not the only one.
Kylie317 said:
And yet, in the middle of a Wednesday you're trolling on SDN... Feeling nostalgic, are we?
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Hey guys just giving you an update. So i am working for uber but i'm still in medical school. Initially wasnt making much but now doing better since i'm only working surge. This would have been a cool job if i was in college but i'm just doing this for fun or if i have time which is rarely. You also get to meet a lot of cool people which is definitely a plus too. Thanks for everyone's help.
 
Consider this- make $0/week vs $100-400/week. I take slight beef with the ex-uber professionals on here. This is a med school part time job we are talking about - probably 10-15 hours per week on average. Personally, I would go for it. I'm doing it myself. As I said before- $0 vs $150. I'll take the $150. I have a plantronics earpiece and listen to audiobooks and important lectures to study for step 2 while I drive. And I only drive at peak hours- bar time. And if you want to study instead, then study! No one makes you work.

There's nothing wrong with finding creative ways to pay for things through med school. I applaud you for thinking outside the box!
 
I plan to do Uber and/or Lyft during medical school. I'll just hit the bar areas around like 10 PM on weekend nights after studying is done. Cash money.
 
uber/lyft generally pays you quite poorly if you account for gas and the average $/per mile cost of driving.
It feels like decent money because you don't factor in the wear and tear on the car, but in the long run it isn't.
 
----x---- said:
uber/lyft generally pays you quite poorly if you account for gas and the average $/per mile cost of driving.
It feels like decent money because you don't factor in the wear and tear on the car, but in the long run it isn't.
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So. There's no real get rich quick scheme for sure. We can agree on that. Additionally, if you drive, you need to set aside money for paying taxes cause they don't withhold for you. But in med school, I have time to study and work. I also have a wife, child, and I live close to the rest of my family. I also do martial arts 4 hrs a week. There's plenty of time to do the things you want if you are intentional about using all of your time wisely. And no this isn't a "sleep only 40 minutes a day" gimic. lol. 8 hrs for me.

As I have seen there are more people like me that make it work, a theme emerges. People who have circumstances that require them to make it work, make it work. People who have more comfortable financial circumstances and don't need any hustle, don't. In general.
I am more on the side of having to make it work, and I'm thankful for that. It has pushed me to be creative and think outside the box.
 
Mr Medschool Money said:
Consider this- make $0/week vs $100-400/week. I take slight beef with the ex-uber professionals on here. This is a med school part time job we are talking about - probably 10-15 hours per week on average. Personally, I would go for it. I'm doing it myself. As I said before- $0 vs $150. I'll take the $150. I have a plantronics earpiece and listen to audiobooks and important lectures to study for step 2 while I drive. And I only drive at peak hours- bar time. And if you want to study instead, then study! No one makes you work.

There's nothing wrong with finding creative ways to pay for things through med school. I applaud you for thinking outside the box!
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For a second I thought @SouthernSurgeon wrote this, and found it very disappointing given his usual sensible nature
 
Don't make it a career. You know they are planning to use driverless cars in the next upcoming years, dont you? Automation will be the death of the lower/middle classes.
 
Don't. When you account for taxes, gas, damage on your car, etc, the real average salary is close or less than minimum wage. It's a complete scam on naive people.
 
I'm a male hostess on the weekend. I pulled like $700-800 in cash per weekend. It's an awesome job. You're literally being paid to drink cocktails with a bunch of middle age housewives.
 
68PGunner said:
I'm a male hostess on the weekend. I pulled like $700-800 in cash per weekend. It's an awesome job. You're literally being paid to drink cocktails with a bunch of middle age housewives.
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Like a restaurant hostess or what?


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twospadz said:
Hey guys just giving you an update. So i am working for uber but i'm still in medical school. Initially wasnt making much but now doing better since i'm only working surge. This would have been a cool job if i was in college but i'm just doing this for fun or if i have time which is rarely. You also get to meet a lot of cool people which is definitely a plus too. Thanks for everyone's help.
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Congratulations on finding something that fits for your schedule. There will always be people to tell you that you can't do something. Do any of your fellow classmates work?
 
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