Should I CHOOSE to be Non-Trad?

[Freckles9]

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I apologize in advance if I’ve included too much in my post (this is my first one). Here is my backstory to preemptively answer some questions:

I am a pre-med student that recently graduated in May with my B.S in biomedical science. I went to a community college for financial reasons before transferring to a university my junior year, so I planned on taking 1-2 gap years instead of taking the MCAT my junior year. I worked nights throughout school, so my academics are just okay (Community college GPA was a 3.69 and university GPA was a 3.61, but I had a couple retakes that I assume will drop the GPA a little). I have a few thousand clinical hours from working EMS/at the hospital, worked as an ED scribe for job shadowing, have 3 years experience as a non-medical lab tech, and did undergrad psych research (but no publications with my name on them).
I was scheduled to take the MCAT in June, but my test date was cancelled due to COVID. To avoid another cancelled date, I decided to postpone and reschedule my new test date for the next cycle in early March (I admittedly wasn’t feeling confident about the MCAT anyway). Studying recently has been impossible with family at home full time, and I quite literally cannot go somewhere else since businesses shut down again in my state. I also live somewhere that is cold/snowy now, so studying outside/in parks is pretty much out of the question. I have been working part-time as a phlebotomist to make time for studying (which clearly isn’t going well for above reasons). I have also been looking for long term volunteering options (because I have next to none and I know I need them), but have not had much luck with business restrictions.

This week a recruiter reached out to me about a Scientist role with Pfizer pharmaceuticals in my area. I would be making significantly more money than I am right now, but I’d work long hours with a lengthy commute that would make MCAT studying pretty difficult. I am considering accepting the position to pay off my student loans and save up some money for living expenses in medical school. I’m also wondering if working in drug research as a scientist for a company that has made recent headlines for their vaccine would make my application more unique/interesting. I would also have more time to find volunteering opportunities when businesses reopen. However, the dilemma is that this would either force me to delay medical school for another 1-2 years or would require me to chip away at studying over a long period of time. The appeal to the job is evident, but I’m nervous about setting aside my dream to practice medicine.

So, my questions are: Should I accept the Scientist position and temporarily postpone medical school?

Would having this job “set my application apart” from others enough to compensate for my subpar grades? Or would I seem indecisive?

Are there any benefits to entering medical school as a non-traditional student?

I apologize for the lengthy post, but would really appreciate any advice from other individuals who faced tough decisions between working and medical school. Thank you in advance for all of the advice!

 

[Crayola227]

I think if medicine is what you want to do, this is an awful idea.

You are getting older and have no idea what 2 years will mean for your life and completing the 7 yr stretch to be BC (board certified).

Plus, given what medical school costs and the need for loans for many people, I don't think what you'll make and save in just a year or two really justifies putting it off. Your LORs and medical experience/etc also become less recent for your app. Don't get me wrong, I'm the first one to point out that there are a lot of things not included in your COL calc and loan amounts that you'll need to figure out paying for.

OTOH, I had a gap year and don't think it's a deal-breaker or anything if there's good reasoning behind it and you use it well.

My concern is it sounds like maybe you are having ambivalent feelings about medical school, and that's fine, it's quite the undertaking. But sometimes when people wimp out on the MCAT and then go for a job with instant gratification (money) and it's a lot easier than med school, they get comfortable and never get back on track. Which is fine, that's probably better for some.

Also, the more your earnings the less public financial aid you qualify for, at least for that first year. It's one reason people go straight through or don't take higher income jobs as they prepare to go in.

Also, if you can't figure out studying for the MCAT in your current shoes, maybe none of this is for you. Doctors for their entire careers have to figure out how to slip studying into a long busy day of full time work, family, and whatever other less optimal circumstances for studying. Believe me there comes a point for everyone where the convenience of an office or library or Starbucks is not happening.

This is why God invented closets, earplugs/earphones, laptops, smartphones. Hang a curtain in a corner of the house to create a study space if you have to, hide in a closet and take mini-breaks to knockout MCAT questions. If public transport is open and affordable, I've known people to just endlessly ride to study. People who want it bad enough figure it out.

 

[deleted367183]

If I had an offer of a good job, I would work for a couple of years just to get some life experience as a human before entering the weird self-contained world of medicine. I would even advise you to work for a year or two if your option was Starbucks, but ESPECIALLY if you have a good (challenging, medically relevant) job offer.

 

[Freckles9]

I think if medicine is what you want to do, this is an awful idea.

You are getting older and have no idea what 2 years will mean for your life and completing the 7 yr stretch to be BC (board certified).

Plus, given what medical school costs and the need for loans for many people, I don't think what you'll make and save in just a year or two really justifies putting it off. Your LORs and medical experience/etc also become less recent for your app. Don't get me wrong, I'm the first one to point out that there are a lot of things not included in your COL calc and loan amounts that you'll need to figure out paying for.

OTOH, I had a gap year and don't think it's a deal-breaker or anything if there's good reasoning behind it and you use it well.

My concern is it sounds like maybe you are having ambivalent feelings about medical school, and that's fine, it's quite the undertaking. But sometimes when people wimp out on the MCAT and then go for a job with instant gratification (money) and it's a lot easier than med school, they get comfortable and never get back on track. Which is fine, that's probably better for some.

Also, the more your earnings the less public financial aid you qualify for, at least for that first year. It's one reason people go straight through or don't take higher income jobs as they prepare to go in.

Also, if you can't figure out studying for the MCAT in your current shoes, maybe none of this is for you. Doctors for their entire careers have to figure out how to slip studying into a long busy day of full time work, family, and whatever other less optimal circumstances for studying. Believe me there comes a point for everyone where the convenience of an office or library or Starbucks is not happening.

This is why God invented closets, earplugs/earphones, laptops, smartphones. Hang a curtain in a corner of the house to create a study space if you have to, hide in a closet and take mini-breaks to knockout MCAT questions. If public transport is open and affordable, I've known people to just endlessly ride to study. People who want it bad enough figure it out.

Medical school has been my only goal for a long time, but being financially insecure throughout this whole process does indeed make the monetary gratification of the job offer especially enticing.

Your mention of how much financial aid I will qualify for based on earnings is great insight; I hadn’t thought of that.

My main goals if I were to accept the position would be to 1) Improve my application (and therefore improve my odds of entering medical school), and 2) to make the financial uncertainties of medical school less cumbersome.

If accepting the job jeopardizes either of those goals, I likely will not accept the offer.

Endlessly riding the bus to study is a wonderful idea. This may be my ticket for getting a few hours of solitude each day.

I appreciate the reply, thank you.

 

[Grogu]

One of the enormous benefits of being a non-trad is the experiences you'll have that can help your application to stand out, AND give you plenty of things to discuss in your interviews that can be unique.

That being said, If you're even considering the scientist position that might indicate you're having either mixed feelings about medicine or you're just not sure if its right for you at the time being. That certainly was my position many years ago, and I have zero regrets about pursing other interests before I made the commitment to medicine. You can take time for family, travel, finances, etc, and you'll still have plenty of time to enjoy the field of medicine if you come back to apply in the future. Best of luck in your decision!

 

[Dave1980]

I apologize in advance if I’ve included too much in my post (this is my first one). Here is my backstory to preemptively answer some questions:

I am a pre-med student that recently graduated in May with my B.S in biomedical science. I went to a community college for financial reasons before transferring to a university my junior year, so I planned on taking 1-2 gap years instead of taking the MCAT my junior year. I worked nights throughout school, so my academics are just okay (Community college GPA was a 3.69 and university GPA was a 3.61, but I had a couple retakes that I assume will drop the GPA a little). I have a few thousand clinical hours from working EMS/at the hospital, worked as an ED scribe for job shadowing, have 3 years experience as a non-medical lab tech, and did undergrad psych research (but no publications with my name on them).
I was scheduled to take the MCAT in June, but my test date was cancelled due to COVID. To avoid another cancelled date, I decided to postpone and reschedule my new test date for the next cycle in early March (I admittedly wasn’t feeling confident about the MCAT anyway). Studying recently has been impossible with family at home full time, and I quite literally cannot go somewhere else since businesses shut down again in my state. I also live somewhere that is cold/snowy now, so studying outside/in parks is pretty much out of the question. I have been working part-time as a phlebotomist to make time for studying (which clearly isn’t going well for above reasons). I have also been looking for long term volunteering options (because I have next to none and I know I need them), but have not had much luck with business restrictions.

This week a recruiter reached out to me about a Scientist role with Pfizer pharmaceuticals in my area. I would be making significantly more money than I am right now, but I’d work long hours with a lengthy commute that would make MCAT studying pretty difficult. I am considering accepting the position to pay off my student loans and save up some money for living expenses in medical school. I’m also wondering if working in drug research as a scientist for a company that has made recent headlines for their vaccine would make my application more unique/interesting. I would also have more time to find volunteering opportunities when businesses reopen. However, the dilemma is that this would either force me to delay medical school for another 1-2 years or would require me to chip away at studying over a long period of time. The appeal to the job is evident, but I’m nervous about setting aside my dream to practice medicine.

So, my questions are: Should I accept the Scientist position and temporarily postpone medical school?

Would having this job “set my application apart” from others enough to compensate for my subpar grades? Or would I seem indecisive?

Are there any benefits to entering medical school as a non-traditional student?

I apologize for the lengthy post, but would really appreciate any advice from other individuals who faced tough decisions between working and medical school. Thank you in advance for all of the advice!

From a financial standpoint the sooner you get into med school the better.

 

[Darrow O'Lykos]

So, my questions are: Should I accept the Scientist position and temporarily postpone medical school?

No, for the reasons I'll elaborate on (as someone who was a non-trad applicant a couple times over).

Would having this job “set my application apart” from others enough to compensate for my subpar grades? Or would I seem indecisive?

I thought my 4 years of being a published clinical research coordinator at a top medical school would help me stand out/make up for subpar GPA that I had due to some hardships I had in college.

It didn't make a lick of difference/didn't make up for my average GPA.

The only thing you can do to make up for subpar grades is to go out and get better grades. Full stop. Periodt. AdComs don't care about anything else if you leave this hole unresolved. Not having a solid MCAT. Not curing cancer. Address any weakness in your GPA by either enrolling in a SMP or rack up 20-30 hours of high level science coursework and ace it. You won't get a USMD acceptance otherwise. I wish I had understood this 2 or 3 app cycles sooner.

Are there any benefits to entering medical school as a non-traditional student?

Outside of growing more as a person and gaining some real-life experiences that will make you more relatable to your future patients, not really. It may make it easier for you to manage your time with gained professional experience, but nothing that couldn't easily be overcome otherwise with the adjustment everyone makes to medical school. That being said, given the hardships I had in college, I enjoyed my mid-20s making a good salary and living in a fun city that allowed me to grow more socially as an individually and afforded me a degree of freedom from school at a fun time in my life that going straight into medical school and residency for 7+ years straight wouldn't allow.

For these, among other reasons already listed, it is not worth purposely going the non-trad route if you know you ultimately want to become a doctor. Financially, each year you put off between now and finishing residency is delaying another year of an attending's salary. Admission-wise, a job will not put your application over the top to garner an acceptance somewhere.