Hi all...well, here is my story.
I've been accepted into an accelerated nursing program in my city. I already have a BA and did all pre-med required coursework as a post-bacc, except one class. My post-bacc work was "meh" (due to me NEVER taking any serious science courses previously), but my most recent classes, including orgo and microbiology, were A's. To be truthful, I'd probably need to attend a master's or special master's program to be competitive for the two med schools in my city. However, a DO school just opened up 2 hours from here, which is a possibility, but would mean leaving my fiance for the bulk of the week.
I heard about this accelerated nursing program, applied, and was grateful to be accepted. It's a wonderful program at a great price, and at a well-respected school. My thinking is that I'm an older student and it would take a lot more time, money and heartache to get into med school. Why not just do nursing, because, after all, I can do a lot after nursing school -- be an RN (if I like it), get an MSN and become a Nurse Practitioner, go to PA school, or...work for a few years, pay down my undergrad loans, get A's in the last few pre-med classes (maybe take orgo 2, trigonometry and anatomy/physiology to up my GPA), and then apply to med school. I do very well on standardized tests and am thinking I'd therefore score well on the MCAT. The appeal of nursing school is that I'd be able to get a job in my chosen field -- the medical field -- after less than 2 years. My last few jobs were office jobs, bleh.
But here's the thing -- I was in the campus bookstore today, and saw all of the nursing shirts, mugs, etc, and was like "whatevs". Then, I saw the med school gear, and got a knot in my stomach and a lump in my throat. It's the same feeling I get when I see a group of med students roaming the halls of the hospital. If I had my way, I'd love to go to med school. Ugh. I just can't help wondering if I'm making a mistake. But my academic record has some not-so-great stuff, including a few W's in science classes :-( It'd take, I'm guessing, a good 2 years before I could apply to med school, and I'm having trouble funding all of this post-bacc work without being in a 'real' program. And, I'm in my early 30's, so I'm not exactly young.
I just don't know what to do! Is it a total waste to do nursing school and then go to med school after working only a few years as an RN? Will med school admissions (MD) even take me seriously? The DO school seems friendly to non-trads, but is VERY religious (I am not!). I'm thinking of going back to my volunteer site, this time to observe the nurses more than the docs, just to make sure I'll like the work. BTW, earning potential is not playing a role in my RN/NP/PA vs. MD/DO decision. I know I'll make enough as a nurse to live a nice life.
Any ideas, people? Thanks in advance.
I've been accepted into an accelerated nursing program in my city. I already have a BA and did all pre-med required coursework as a post-bacc, except one class. My post-bacc work was "meh" (due to me NEVER taking any serious science courses previously), but my most recent classes, including orgo and microbiology, were A's. To be truthful, I'd probably need to attend a master's or special master's program to be competitive for the two med schools in my city. However, a DO school just opened up 2 hours from here, which is a possibility, but would mean leaving my fiance for the bulk of the week.
I heard about this accelerated nursing program, applied, and was grateful to be accepted. It's a wonderful program at a great price, and at a well-respected school. My thinking is that I'm an older student and it would take a lot more time, money and heartache to get into med school. Why not just do nursing, because, after all, I can do a lot after nursing school -- be an RN (if I like it), get an MSN and become a Nurse Practitioner, go to PA school, or...work for a few years, pay down my undergrad loans, get A's in the last few pre-med classes (maybe take orgo 2, trigonometry and anatomy/physiology to up my GPA), and then apply to med school. I do very well on standardized tests and am thinking I'd therefore score well on the MCAT. The appeal of nursing school is that I'd be able to get a job in my chosen field -- the medical field -- after less than 2 years. My last few jobs were office jobs, bleh.
But here's the thing -- I was in the campus bookstore today, and saw all of the nursing shirts, mugs, etc, and was like "whatevs". Then, I saw the med school gear, and got a knot in my stomach and a lump in my throat. It's the same feeling I get when I see a group of med students roaming the halls of the hospital. If I had my way, I'd love to go to med school. Ugh. I just can't help wondering if I'm making a mistake. But my academic record has some not-so-great stuff, including a few W's in science classes :-( It'd take, I'm guessing, a good 2 years before I could apply to med school, and I'm having trouble funding all of this post-bacc work without being in a 'real' program. And, I'm in my early 30's, so I'm not exactly young.
I just don't know what to do! Is it a total waste to do nursing school and then go to med school after working only a few years as an RN? Will med school admissions (MD) even take me seriously? The DO school seems friendly to non-trads, but is VERY religious (I am not!). I'm thinking of going back to my volunteer site, this time to observe the nurses more than the docs, just to make sure I'll like the work. BTW, earning potential is not playing a role in my RN/NP/PA vs. MD/DO decision. I know I'll make enough as a nurse to live a nice life.
Any ideas, people? Thanks in advance.
