Taking the Plunge, MAYBE

[TheLongRoad87]

So after a long discussion with my wife I am leaning toward the route of either seperating from the Air Force completely or going reserve to have a chance to finish my degree and pre-reqs. We are moving to Colorado in Feb and will be there till Feb 2013, this is a true crossroads in my life and im confident but petrified if that makes any sense. This could be the fastest three years of my life.

The plan is for me to go to school full time and maybe a part time job while my wife works full time (shes going for dental tech) , pref. EMT or something Medical so I may continue to get hands on training and at least shortening the need for an outrageous amount of shadowing and volunteering, combining what I can may be best for me so i can still make time for my family too.

My current status is this: 18 Creds in a BS in Psych(Online) through Park U, I can put face to face courses toward this degree however thus far online has been more convienient while going through a minefield of deployments, moves, etc. My current GPA is right around 3.8. I understand the neccessity to become a convential student for a while to complete my degree and thats why im thinking of seperation. Keeping at current pace I should have right around half my BS done by the time im done in CO in 2013, at which point I would be searching for a 2 yr degree completion program that would include Pre-Req type classes.

What is the best plan of attack for my situation? During my upcoming assignment in CO should I just continue to focus on my normal online classes within my degree program or should I start taking classes that will count toward pre-reqs on top of that, maybe at Pikes Peak Community college or something, or just save those for the degree completion??... What are some schools that may have programs of interest for me to jump into in a few years? are there programs like this that include degree completion and pre med courses or can I pretty much expect to just finish my BS and then start a Post-BS pre med regimine of courses?

I have a Preference of schools on the east coast to finish my BS as its where I grew up and if all comes to fruition where I have an interest in practicing someday, if I was applying today I would probably be applying to Drexel, Temple, Univ. SC, NJ-DO, NY,Univ. new England DO, etc etc, I live in utah and moving to Colorado but this doesnt feel like home out here .


Now that my decision is starting to pan out I just have a ton of questions...mostly related to what classes I should take in the near future and how to go about finding the right school to both complete my BS and fulfill pre-med requirements. As always, I appreciate all advice.

Also what are some good readings for folks interested in D.O?., I myself am interested after having worked with quite a few and learning quite a bit. im reading "The DO's " by Norman Gevitz currently...

As always, I appreciate all advice.

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[Richardh]

So after a long discussion with my wife I am leaning toward the route of either seperating from the Air Force completely or going reserve to have a chance to finish my degree and pre-reqs. We are moving to Colorado in Feb and will be there till Feb 2013, this is a true crossroads in my life and im confident but petrified if that makes any sense. This could be the fastest three years of my life.

The plan is for me to go to school full time and maybe a part time job while my wife works full time (shes going for dental tech) , pref. EMT or something Medical so I may continue to get hands on training and at least shortening the need for an outrageous amount of shadowing and volunteering, combining what I can may be best for me so i can still make time for my family too.

My current status is this: 18 Creds in a BS in Psych(Online) through Park U, I can put face to face courses toward this degree however thus far online has been more convienient while going through a minefield of deployments, moves, etc. My current GPA is right around 3.8. I understand the neccessity to become a convential student for a while to complete my degree and thats why im thinking of seperation. Keeping at current pace I should have right around half my BS done by the time im done in CO in 2013, at which point I would be searching for a 2 yr degree completion program that would include Pre-Req type classes.

What is the best plan of attack for my situation? During my upcoming assignment in CO should I just continue to focus on my normal online classes within my degree program or should I start taking classes that will count toward pre-reqs on top of that, maybe at Pikes Peak Community college or something, or just save those for the degree completion??...
I would recommend for you to start completing your pre-reqs as soon as possible. So taking them at Pikes Peak Community College is a good idea

What are some schools that may have programs of interest for me to jump into in a few years? are there programs like this that include degree completion and pre med courses or can I pretty much expect to just finish my BS and then start a Post-BS pre med regimine of courses?
If you had been majoring in say biological sciences you will be completing your BS as well as completing the pre-reqs. But you're majoring in psych so I might be misunderstanding when answering this question. The best thing is for you to start on your pre-reqs like I mentioned previously.

I have a Preference of schools on the east coast to finish my BS as its where I grew up and if all comes to fruition where I have an interest in practicing someday, if I was applying today I would probably be applying to Drexel, Temple, Univ. SC, NJ-DO, NY,Univ. new England DO, etc etc, I live in utah and moving to Colorado but this doesnt feel like home out here .

Now that my decision is starting to pan out I just have a ton of questions...mostly related to what classes I should take in the near future and how to go about finding the right school to both complete my BS and fulfill pre-med requirements. As always, I appreciate all advice.

Also what are some good readings for folks interested in D.O?., I myself am interested after having worked with quite a few and learning quite a bit. im reading "The DO's " by Norman Gevitz currently...
Check the aacom website for good readings
http://www.aacom.org/resources/amazon/Pages/OsteopathicMedicineBooks.aspx

As always, I appreciate all advice.

Good luck, and I hope the Air Force will accept your decision!

 

[ShyRem]

You are the total flip side of me. I was in Colorado, and that was my home. Went to UNE for med school and the entire east coast is most definitely NOT home. At all. Now I'm back midwest and much happier. Not quite Colorado, but definitely feels more like home.

Now, I would definitely start on pre-reqs. They take 2+ years to complete, especially if you're thinking of UNE which requires biochem. This will space your labs out in a nice reasonable fashion. You should also be aware that several schools want you to have your basic pre-reqs done at a 4 year university, not a community college. Not saying I agree with this, not saying it's all med schools, but there are more than a few that think this way.

 

[EdLongshanks]

Now that my decision is starting to pan out I just have a ton of questions...mostly related to what classes I should take in the near future and how to go about finding the right school to both complete my BS and fulfill pre-med requirements. As always, I appreciate all advice.

Also what are some good readings for folks interested in D.O?., I myself am interested after having worked with quite a few and learning quite a bit. im reading "The DO's " by Norman Gevitz currently...

As always, I appreciate all advice.

Here's what I would do, if I were your age. I'm writing in the imperative voice, but understand that this is all just one of many different ways.

I'd stop the online stuff now. You had a reason for them then, but don't do them anymore. From now on, do one or two classes each semester. I assume that you are working at Cheyenne Mountain, the people there will know a lot about how to take classes and your bosses will help with flexibility.

As the end of your certainty approaches, transfer to the guard (I say the guard, because the guard gets free tuition, instead of tuition support, also their deployments are more predictable.) Move to a state that has Guard free tuition, good medical state colleges, and cheap living expenses. Some of the Southern states are best here. Texas would be ideal. You can still apply to the eastern sea-board colleges, but the Texas medical schools are your safety plan. Belonging to the guard and living there gives you automatic residency.

With good scholastics and a reasonable MCAT you are sure to be a doctor this way. It won't be fast, but you are going to be a doctor for decades, why sweat a couple of years?