Should I decide on the specialty as a pre-med or can I wait 'till med school?

[PTWOB02]

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Hello fellow non-trads!

I was wondering what your thoughts are on choosing medical specialty as a pre-med student? Whenever I explain to somebody that I am enrolled in the Post Bacc Pre-Med program, the first question I hear is, "oh great, what do you want to specialize in?" Then I have to explain to them that I'll decide on the specialty once I am enrolled in the medical school, preferably during my 3rd year once I rotate through all those specialties so I can get a greater understanding of each one. People give me a quizzical look afterwards, almost with a disapproving look of "shouldn't you know by now?"

Hence, my question to you guys. Should I know by now? As a pre-med, I am very interested in medicine, but I am very open at this point to all specialties. I want to see them first and decide later which one truly appeals to me. Do I put myself at disadvantage by doing so? Especially when competing with other pre-meds who have clear idea on their chosen specialty, like dermatology or surgery, and come out of the gates "guns blazing" through all 4 years of medical school so they can match into their competitive specialty later?

I've shadowed extensively before (around 100 hours), but it was primarily in the Emergency Medicine, both in the private clinic and in the hospital. I have researched other specialties online but I have never physically observed what those specialists do, so it is hard for me to say with confidence where I might *fit* the best. It is premature for me at this stage of the medical journey to decide on the specialty? Or, should I make a concentrated effort to shadow as many specialties as I can before I start medical school, which will be *hopefully* in 2 years for me?

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

 

[mauberley]

No, you do not need to have decided on a specialty. Unequivocally. However, you should have ideas as to what interests you and be able to speak intelligently about it (which it seems that you are capable of).

Who is this "somebody" you're talking to that is giving you this vibe? Other pre-meds? Don't worry about them or what they think. Non-physicians or non-medical faculty? They aren't familiar enough with the process for you to give any weight to any perceived disapproval.

 

[LifeTake2]

Then I have to explain to them that I'll decide on the specialty once I am enrolled in the medical school, preferably during my 3rd year once I rotate through all those specialties so I can get a greater understanding of each one.

This is why you do rotations; my understanding from talking with physicians I know is more people change during medical school than stick with what they think they are going to do when they start.

Sounds like you have a good feel; just tell other people you intend to be a neurosurgeon, they will be impressed and it won't make a bit of difference in your life

 

[NuttyEngDude]

Hello fellow non-trads!

I was wondering what your thoughts are on choosing medical specialty as a pre-med student? Whenever I explain to somebody that I am enrolled in the Post Bacc Pre-Med program, the first question I hear is, "oh great, what do you want to specialize in?" Then I have to explain to them that I'll decide on the specialty once I am enrolled in the medical school, preferably during my 3rd year once I rotate through all those specialties so I can get a greater understanding of each one. People give me a quizzical look afterwards, almost with a disapproving look of "shouldn't you know by now?"

I know exactly what you mean, I want to answer with "I am specializing in getting accepted to medical school." But it does feel like you're being what you want to be when you grow up, lol.

 

[Dzerzhinsky]

Hmmm. Am I odd among nontrads in that I have a relatively high degree of confidence in exactly what specialty I want to do?

Yes, I know that most people change multiple times. Yes, I know that there are some specialties you can't really tell if you're going to love until you try them. Yes, I have two others that I think I might like too (and one of those I won't be able to tell about until I rotate in it.) Yes, I know that people don't match into the specialty they really want to do sometimes (fortunately, my intended is not one of the hypercompetitive ones; it's not family medicine, but it's also not derm.) And if I wind up in something else, that's fine. Nor am I going to overemphasize this in my personal statement or at interviews, and I definitely won't be sharing it on rotations.

But from the start of this whole crazy plan back in summer 2009, it was always "I want to specialize in <specialty>," not "I want to be a physician." It seems like this is unusual from the responses so far.

To be clear, I definitely don't think you need to have that certainty (though, as mauberley said, it's good to be able to talk intelligently about what might attract you, and to have some idea.) But the trend in pre-allo tends to be towards deciding on a specialty early, and it seems that we're having the opposite trend here.

Anyway, OP, tangent over: You certainly don't need to decide early. Knowing what you want to do won't advantage you significantly until you're almost ready to start your clinical years. At that point, you're better off knowing, because you can time your rotations accordingly for LORs and such. (You can also try to make sure that your first rotation is not in the specialty you want to do, so that it's less high-stakes at a time when everything is going to be terrifying.)

 

[MT Headed]

I have no hard data to back me up, but the vibe I've gotten from SDN and other sources is that

(1) you ought to have a specialty in mind during the application process. It helps with the "why medicine" and "why us" interview questions. Coming in with no plan at all is a non-starter

(2) everybody knows that traditional students change their preferred specialty an average of twice while in medical school. My conclusion here is that the important thing isn't really the specialty, it's the coherent plan

(3) on the other hand, us non-traditionals actually do tend to stick to our original specialty. We know why we have chosen certain specialties, and often it's our additional life baggage (geography, no time for extended residencies, known job opportunities) that directs us to certain specialties.

 

[Enkidu]

I have no hard data to back me up, but the vibe I've gotten from SDN and other sources is that

(1) you ought to have a specialty in mind during the application process. It helps with the "why medicine" and "why us" interview questions. Coming in with no plan at all is a non-starter

(2) everybody knows that traditional students change their preferred specialty an average of twice while in medical school. My conclusion here is that the important thing isn't really the specialty, it's the coherent plan

(3) on the other hand, us non-traditionals actually do tend to stick to our original specialty. We know why we have chosen certain specialties, and often it's our additional life baggage (geography, no time for extended residencies, known job opportunities) that directs us to certain specialties.

1) This is probably not true. If you go to your interview talking about your great interest in pathology, psychiatry, radiation oncology, or any number of specialties that are not family practice, you will get a very mixed reaction. Most likely your interviewer won't know much about any specialty outside of their own, so I think it's best to stick to general platitudes like "I want to impact patients lives", or something like that.

3) FWIW, I'm nontraditional and I changed my mind twice.

 

[mauberley]

But the trend in pre-allo tends to be towards deciding on a specialty early, and it seems that we're having the opposite trend here.

I haven't seen this, nor would I take the posts in pre-allo as representative of premeds as a whole. There may be a high degree of exploration of specialties (this is only natural) but I would interpret the "decision-making" as "expressing a high degree of interest." You only really decide when you're applying for a residency, after all.

The key through all of this is to remember to keep an open mind. I was fairly dead-set on radiology owing to my work history but I'm pretty sure now that's the last thing I want to do. 😉

 

[QofQuimica]

Hence, my question to you guys. Should I know by now?

No, you shouldn't. And odds are good that the vast majority of your fellow premeds who "know" what they want to go into will wind up going into something else entirely anyway. That goes for both trads and nontrads.

As for what to tell people who ask you, tell them whatever you want. Heck, make up a specialty if you really want to impress these people. I mean, are they even going to ask you what an onychologist does? Probably not. But if they do, you can always point out how medicine is getting more and more specialized these days. 😉

 

[SisterDisco08]

one school asked me this in an interview, so I gave them an answer and they actually said "that's wrong." -_________-

My rule now is to say "I have an interest in X field, but I am undecided on a specialty within it, and will remain open-minded during my rotations"

 

[isoquin]

You should go with what's actually true. The correct answer during interview is not providing a specialty, it's providing a plan. You can accomplish that goal by showing you have thoroughly thought about many specialties, cite which aspects you enjoy, but that you are specifically waiting for third year to gain better insight and perspective on lifestyle and what it truly means to be in specific specialties. This shows maturity. What not to do: "no, I haven't really thought about it."

Honesty is the best policy. Just show your thought process.

 

[NuttyEngDude]

i'm agreeing with those saying "thought process" and "plan." this is the type of thing where having varied shadowing experiences would help. speaking with examples and experience is always the best way to go, no matter what you say you want to do (or not do) and it would also support you knowing what you're getting into.