Seeking Advice post-grad: possibly switching from Pre-Vet

[hopefuldogtor23]

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Hi everyone!

I'm currently a Pre-Vet senior who is having a career crisis. I was wondering what people have done after graduating college? Has anyone switched from pre-vet to a
different medical profession, and if so, why?

I have been seriously considering my career options and was hoping to hear back from other individuals on their experiences after college.
I have always loved the medical profession and have recently began considering switching to a health career like PA, and was wondering if anyone else
has a similar experience. Would love to hear any and all feedback! 🙂

 

[kritten]

Vet and med are quite different, what's causing you to think about the switch?

 

[Blueprint Med School]

If you're serious about switching, there are career switcher programs out there that will let you take the required courses to go into the professional school you wish.

Kevin W, MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

 

[TheDataKing]

Hi everyone!

I'm currently a Pre-Vet senior who is having a career crisis. I was wondering what people have done after graduating college? Has anyone switched from pre-vet to a
different medical profession, and if so, why?

I have been seriously considering my career options and was hoping to hear back from other individuals on their experiences after college.
I have always loved the medical profession and have recently began considering switching to a health career like PA, and was wondering if anyone else
has a similar experience. Would love to hear any and all feedback! 🙂

I think a lot of people question what they're going to do with their lives and wonder about the "what ifs" (eg: What if I went to business school and went into consulting instead of medicine? What if I went to dental school? etc) At the end of the day, it comes down to what you're most passionate about. You make like more than one thing and that's perfectly normal but you have to choose one and run with it. Luckily, the pre-vet and pre-med course prereqs are likely very similar so that should be helpful. I'm sure there are plenty of people who have switched from one profession to another because they discover the passion they have for it or something else clicks for them. I'd look into getting some clinical experience to see if medicine is what you want to do and if so, you'll need to get some volunteering, shadowing, clinical experiences, and take the MCAT 🙂

 

[that redhead]

Have you shadowed either? In general, the recommendation is to pursue things other than vet med if they appeal to you, mostly because vet med has a terrible debt to income ratio and a lot of stagnant people holding the reins of the profession right now.

 

[hopefuldogtor23]

Have you shadowed either? In general, the recommendation is to pursue things other than vet med if they appeal to you, mostly because vet med has a terrible debt to income ratio and a lot of stagnant people holding the reins of the profession right now.

That was one of my major concerns. I'm paying for vet school on my own, and the debt/income ratio is not looking promising. I was considering looking into PA school because I do have a passion for medicine, and with 2 years of schooling, I would come out with less debt and making good pay, while still being in a health care field.

 

[hopefuldogtor23]

Vet and med are quite different, what's causing you to think about the switch?

The pay for vets isn't that great and it's alot of debt. I know that if I'm passionate I could make it work, but it's something that's just been in the back of my mind.

 

[kritten]

The pay for vets isn't that great and it's alot of debt. I know that if I'm passionate I could make it work, but it's something that's just been in the back of my mind.

Haha that's not that different from medicine... either way lots of debt and whether its animals or humans, you want to have the passion that will sustain you beyond just financial motives. i love animals but i could never do vet because i wouldnt be able to see them as patients, and i would hate the constant smell and hair all over.
Have you had much exposure to human medicine? Maybe look into shadowing or something to get more exposure

 

[that redhead]

Haha that's not that different from medicine... either way lots of debt and whether its animals or humans, you want to have the passion that will sustain you beyond just financial motives. i love animals but i could never do vet because i wouldnt be able to see them as patients, and i would hate the constant smell and hair all over.
Have you had much exposure to human medicine? Maybe look into shadowing or something to get more exposure

Human medical students take on a similar debt load but the eventual pay off is FAR higher than vet med. I’ve people on the human side of the forums lamenting “only” $200k per year as a family medicine physician in a rural area, whereas a small animal general practitioner in a busy area may never make that much even after years of experience.

@hopefuldogtor23 it sounds Ike the PA route would be a great option for you. Major kudos to looking into these things now as opposed to later. You can always spend time with animals outside of work, either volunteering or with your own pets 🙂

 

[hopefuldogtor23]

Human medical students take on a similar debt load but the eventual pay off is FAR higher than vet med. I’ve people on the human side of the forums lamenting “only” $200k per year as a family medicine physician in a rural area, whereas a small animal general practitioner in a busy area may never make that much even after years of experience.

@hopefuldogtor23 it sounds Ike the PA route would be a great option for you. Major kudos to looking into these things now as opposed to later. You can always spend time with animals outside of work, either volunteering or with your own pets 🙂

Thanks for your response! 🙂 I think I might try to shadow some PA's and see how I like it compared to vet med.