Starting residency at 31

[lightblueelephant]

Assuming everything goes according to plan I will start residency at age 31. After shadowing and clinical experience I want to be a surgeon and the days I was on an OR were the best of my life. I know everyone says 31 isn't too late for that but, for those starting residency later do you feel older or is it a non-issue?

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[vhawk]

It will only be an issue for you. No one else will care, and you can still have a long and meaningful career, can still accomplish whatever you want.

You just have to decide if it will be an issue for you. It may be hard to be at the bottom of the totem pole as an intern, where your "senior" residents are sometimes-very-immature 27 year olds, without the same life experience as you (no idea what you did in the interim that has you starting late but assuming it was "working a job"). Its a lot of hours, its a lot of work. One of our PGY4s is about 5 years older than me, and I have a lot of respect for that, sometimes I think it must be hard.

 

[Sarr]

I started my second surgical residency at 35, starting my fellowship on 41, staring the second fellowship on 42... 10 years of residency and 3 years of fellowship never been a problem for anyone except my back (sometimes).

 

[Winged Scapula]

As @vhawk notes, its only a problem if you let it be. There is not a significant difference between 26/27 and 31 physically so most of your colleagues won't know you're older unless you tell them.

 

[vhawk]

There is not a significant difference between 26/27 and 31 physically

ugh if only that were true

 

[dpmd]

I was 30 when i started, and my co-chief was close to or maybe even past 40. I didn't really have any issues, but my co-chief did feel like the old lady of the group. She didn't hang out with us as much but got to be good friends with some of the nurses so had people to hang out with and go on trips with. As far as work stuff was concerned it never seemed to be an issue (if anything she worked harder than me or the younger folks)

 

[Winged Scapula]

ugh if only that were true

LOL -- speak for yourself.

 

[DermatoFIGHT]

I started my second surgical residency at 35, starting my fellowship on 41, staring the second fellowship on 42... 10 years of residency and 3 years of fellowship never been a problem for anyone except my back (sometimes).

2nd surgical residency?! what ones did you do? that is impresive

 

[doc05]

starting at 31 is not an issue. More of an issue is the 5-8 years of training ahead of you, and then a few years in practice means you won't be established until you're about 45 years old!

Given the way the current healthcare system is going, It's just not worth it. Good luck.

 

[funshi baba]

One of my med sch classmate was 44 when we started with three kids. Had 4th one during second year. Graduated at the 48 and match neurosurgery.

Yeah..... take that 31 yr old Gen surg intern. Lol

 

[Apollyon]

To some degree I'm all for the "do whatever you love, don't worry about your age" pathway.

But 48 yrs old matching into neurosurgery means you have ~10-15 yrs of attending level earnings. With a pretty tough stretch of workload : pay ratio in your mid-fifties as a resident. I'd be thinking loooonnng and hard before considering that pathway.

Yeah, but do the spine fellowship, don't get sued too badly, and even 10 years is enough to finance the retirement, and handily at that.

 

[Dash2021]

Will be 32 at graduation and it's honestly a large deterrent for doing anything surg. related, even though it's my primary interest. For me, I do "feel old". As in I have mild-moderate Osteo Arth in my right wrist, possible osteoA in my left knee (PM&R says it could just be alignment, won't X-ray) and sciatica. All courtesy of working in factories for 6 years before deciding I didn't want to be crippled when I turned 50.

That's really the only meaning of "feeling old" that's going to matter. Outside of that do what you want.