RN to MD

[mckiswi]

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Hi everyone,

I’m looking for some advice on my med school journey. Some background:

I’m 28 years old. I have my BA in Chemistry (GPA 3.65), and I worked as an EMT during my undergraduate career. I originally wanted to apply to med school right out of undergrad, but I burned out so spectacularly in my senior year that I had to step away. Instead, I took the summer after graduation off to do some soul searching and felt nursing was an honorable career that I’d be interested in and could be good at. I immediately started taking the remainder of the pre-reps I’d need for nursing school while working as a lab tech through COVID. I did well in nursing school (MSN GPA 3.89), and I’ve been working as a Labor and Delivery RN for two years now.

I originally planned to go back for my Midwifery NP within the next year or so, but now that NPs can no longer qualify for federal academic student loans, I cannot justify the financial cost and eventual salary cap, along with the time commitment away from working. However, I also do not want to continue at my current scope of practice without the possibility clinical advancement. I can always advance professionally in my role, eventually become a nurse manager or something of the sort, but that doesn’t really interest me.

Instead, the longer I work at the bedside, the more interested I am in the doctors’ roles. I want to understand the whole clinical picture. I want to diagnose and develop the treatment plan. I want to delivery the babies and perform the c-sections. And yes, I could do all of those as a midwife, but I know it would bother me to only be a mid-level practitioner instead of working at the top level where I know I could succeed.

Additionally, the financial aspect of an MD versus an NP is attractive given that I’m currently going through IVF as a single mom. I know the kind of life I want to be able to provide for my kids, and I don’t think I can do that from my current position or as an NP with no federal financial aid.

If you made it this far, thank you! My questions are: I’ll be 31 with a toddler if I manage to get into med school on the first try to start in 2028. Is that too old? Should I try to get in for 2027? I’ve taken all the pre-reqs and then some, but it’s been a while for gen chem, o chem, physics, etc since I graduated undergrad in 2019 and nursing school in 2023. I’ve also been working as a travel nurse, so I don’t have strong relationships with leadership or MDs to rely on for recommendation letters at this point, but there’s still people I could ask. I also haven’t had any volunteer hours since I was an EMT in college. Should I do more? Should I be asking a doc if I can shadow them?

Ideally I only want to apply once, to my hometown public university where I attended nursing school. What do I need to do to make sure my application is successful and competitive? Are there any former nurses in this forum who have gone on a similar journey? What about single parents? I’ll have family support nearby, but I’m still looking at several very challenging years. Can anyone who’s done this say if it’s worth it? Do I have a shot? I’m sure there’s other questions I haven’t thought of, but truly any advice would be appreciated. Thank you in advance!

 

[AJ25]

My honest advice is to stick with nursing.

 

[olofmeister]

31 definitely isn't too old to start med school, but it will be very difficult (to say the least) to raise a child as a single mother while spending 7+ years in school and residency. I honestly can't even imagine how much that would suck.

I haven't experienced anything remotely similar to your journey so hopefully someone else can chime in too. Good luck ! 🙂

 

[wysdoc]

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for some advice on my med school journey. Some background:

I’m 28 years old. I have my BA in Chemistry (GPA 3.65), and I worked as an EMT during my undergraduate career. I originally wanted to apply to med school right out of undergrad, but I burned out so spectacularly in my senior year that I had to step away. Instead, I took the summer after graduation off to do some soul searching and felt nursing was an honorable career that I’d be interested in and could be good at. I immediately started taking the remainder of the pre-reps I’d need for nursing school while working as a lab tech through COVID. I did well in nursing school (MSN GPA 3.89), and I’ve been working as a Labor and Delivery RN for two years now.

I originally planned to go back for my Midwifery NP within the next year or so, but now that NPs can no longer qualify for federal academic student loans, I cannot justify the financial cost and eventual salary cap, along with the time commitment away from working. However, I also do not want to continue at my current scope of practice without the possibility clinical advancement. I can always advance professionally in my role, eventually become a nurse manager or something of the sort, but that doesn’t really interest me.

Instead, the longer I work at the bedside, the more interested I am in the doctors’ roles. I want to understand the whole clinical picture. I want to diagnose and develop the treatment plan. I want to delivery the babies and perform the c-sections. And yes, I could do all of those as a midwife, but I know it would bother me to only be a mid-level practitioner instead of working at the top level where I know I could succeed.

Additionally, the financial aspect of an MD versus an NP is attractive given that I’m currently going through IVF as a single mom. I know the kind of life I want to be able to provide for my kids, and I don’t think I can do that from my current position or as an NP with no federal financial aid.

If you made it this far, thank you! My questions are: I’ll be 31 with a toddler if I manage to get into med school on the first try to start in 2028. Is that too old? Should I try to get in for 2027? I’ve taken all the pre-reqs and then some, but it’s been a while for gen chem, o chem, physics, etc since I graduated undergrad in 2019 and nursing school in 2023. I’ve also been working as a travel nurse, so I don’t have strong relationships with leadership or MDs to rely on for recommendation letters at this point, but there’s still people I could ask. I also haven’t had any volunteer hours since I was an EMT in college. Should I do more? Should I be asking a doc if I can shadow them?

Ideally I only want to apply once, to my hometown public university where I attended nursing school. What do I need to do to make sure my application is successful and competitive? Are there any former nurses in this forum who have gone on a similar journey? What about single parents? I’ll have family support nearby, but I’m still looking at several very challenging years. Can anyone who’s done this say if it’s worth it? Do I have a shot? I’m sure there’s other questions I haven’t thought of, but truly any advice would be appreciated. Thank you in advance!

@mckiswi scroll down towards the bottom of this page and see “similar threads”
There have been many RN to MD people before you and you can read what they say about it

 

[AJ25]

@mckiswi scroll down towards the bottom of this page and see “similar threads”
There have been many RN to MD people before you and you can read what they say about it

Additionally, the financial aspect of an MD versus an NP is attractive given that I’m currently going through IVF as a single mom. I know the kind of life I want to be able to provide for my kids, and I don’t think I can do that from my current position or as an NP with no federal financial aid.

Lol, where is your common sense man. If someone gave me this as a reason to go to medical school I would advise them to do some soul searching first.

 

[olofmeister]

Lol, where is your common sense man. If someone gave me this as a reason to go to medical school I would advise them to do some soul searching first.

Did you just intentionally ignore the paragraph immediately before that or what

 

[AJ25]

Did you just intentionally ignore the paragraph immediately before that or what

Boss I have no idea what you are trying to say.

If you mean with what the OP wrote, yeah I read that whole response but the reasoning does not justify going down this path so I told them to stick to nursing. You would be doing them a disservice telling them to apply to medical school considering if I interviewed them, I would put an application like that in the shredder if they said they were motivated by money.

 

[olofmeister]

Boss I have no idea what you are trying to say.

If you mean with what the OP wrote, yeah I read that whole response but the reasoning does not justify going down this path so I told them to stick to nursing. You would be doing them a disservice telling them to apply to medical school considering if I interviewed them, I would put an application like that in the shredder if they said they were motivated by money.

I think you missed the main reasons right before that where she's dissatisfied with the possibility of career advancements and how she's interested in being a part of the entire clinical process.

And of course a single mother would be motivated by financial stability, why are you picking apart the smallest part of the entire post?

 

[AJ25]

I think you missed the main reasons right before that where she's dissatisfied with the possibility of career advancements and how she's interested in being a part of the entire clinical process.

And of course a single mother would be motivated by financial stability, why are you picking apart the smallest part of the entire post?

It's not picking apart, it's about seeing if this person is running to medicine or running away from something else. And the people who are the gatekeepers will see that better than anyone else.

 

[wao2221]

It's not picking apart, it's about seeing if this person is running to medicine or running away from something else. And the people who are the gatekeepers will see that better than anyone else.

OP is in a unique scenario that she can be both "running away from" and "running toward" something simultaneously.

Her reasons for wanting to go to med school are valid and are not all tied to money. You can't tell me that financial stability is not at least partially a reason a majority of people choose this path.

 

[AJ25]

OP is in a unique scenario that she can be both "running away from" and "running toward" something simultaneously.

Her reasons for wanting to go to med school are valid and are not all tied to money. You can't tell me that financial stability is not at least partially a reason a majority of people choose this path.

Financial stability is a MAJOR part of choosing this path lol. But you never tell anybody that. That is mistake #1.

Sure, OP has a reason but the question is if it's a good enough decision and I am saying it isn't. Why send them down a path where they will fail?

Any adcoms here that are going to admit OP? What do you think @Goro ?

 

[Goro]

Financial stability is a MAJOR part of choosing this path lol. But you never tell anybody that. That is mistake #1.

Sure, OP has a reason but the question is if it's a good enough decision and I am saying it isn't. Why send them down a path where they will fail?

Any adcoms here that are going to admit OP? What do you think @Goro ?

We all know that making bank is a major inducement for becoming a doctor.

BUT there has to be something more, and one of the quickest ways of getting rejected is to overtly admit you're in it for the money (and/or prestige).

 

[olofmeister]

Financial stability is a MAJOR part of choosing this path lol. But you never tell anybody that. That is mistake #1.

Sure, OP has a reason but the question is if it's a good enough decision and I am saying it isn't. Why send them down a path where they will fail?

Any adcoms here that are going to admit OP? What do you think @Goro ?

why are you just assuming shes going to write about that specific point in her application lol

 

[AJ25]

why are you just assuming shes going to write about that specific point in her application lol

Word to the wise, don't be difficult as a pre-med. This process does not like difficult people who ask too many questions.

 

[olofmeister]

Word to the wise, don't be difficult as a pre-med. This process does not like difficult people who ask too many questions.

aight bro lolllllll

 

[Mrs. Buzzy]

Do you wish you had immediately gone to medical school rather than nursing? I ask for my own perspective as I'm currently in nursing school (in a nursing class as I type this lol).
While taking prerequisites, I fell in love with anatomy, physiology, and micro. I am really missing the scientific depth in nursing school. It is all symptom recognition, tasks, and protocols. I don't want to recognize a disease by a symptom. I want to understand how the disease formed at the deepest level.

So, I guess if I stick with nursing, I will be where you are, wanting to return to medical school. Makes me wonder if it's worth it to just quit now, forget this career path, and pivot to medicine before delaying any further.

 

[wysdoc]

Do you wish you had immediately gone to medical school rather than nursing? I ask for my own perspective as I'm currently in nursing school (in a nursing class as I type this lol).
While taking prerequisites, I fell in love with anatomy, physiology, and micro. I am really missing the scientific depth in nursing school. It is all symptom recognition, tasks, and protocols. I don't want to recognize a disease by a symptom. I want to understand how the disease formed at the deepest level.

So, I guess if I stick with nursing, I will be where you are, wanting to return to medical school. Makes me wonder if it's worth it to just quit now, forget this career path, and pivot to medicine before delaying any further.

Or choice C continue with nursing school with the goal of pursuing a CRNA where you will use your knowledge of physiology all day every day

 

[Mrs. Buzzy]

Or choice C continue with nursing school with the goal of pursuing a CRNA where you will use your knowledge of physiology all day every day

Perhaps this is my own defect in logic but that just doesn't scratch the same itch for me; I want to go all the way, I want the entire medical experience, I want to taste a bit of the medical fields and choose one and I'm not sure I want it to be anesthesiology.

 

[A224B]

You can do it at 31 if you have good childcare arrangements in place (grandparents? relatives?). The way to market yourself is someone who is empirically devoted to clinical practice: this field is your passion and you want the leadership role and all the responsibility that entails. There are other 28-year olds who chose software or MBB or something considering med school: you chose to spend your 20s in the clinic every day and it's natural that you want to rise to the position of leadership in it.