I mentioned in a prior post that i am finally taking steps towards med school. I am married with a baby and a very supportive husband. I am trying to figure out how this would all work. Is it common or unheard of for people to take a year off during med school or residency (eg. to have a child) and is this looked down upon by programs?
Another concern is geography. If my spouse, although supportive, can not move out of the area because of his life/work committments, am i setting myself up for failure? Is it possible to find a good residency in a limited area or do you usually apply all over the country? I know that I would be severely limiting myself with med school apps by staying in the area but my husbands career has no flexibility plus we are happy here (great support network, family is close to help with the baby if i did ever get in). I am in the NYC area-from what i have been told, there are 2 less competetive schools and a bunch of big name schools.
In PT school, there were 2 couples that moved for the sake of school and both were divorced before graduation-it scared me a little! I think, for me, one major life change at a time is sufficient!
Thanks in advance.
If you are a competitive, read above average, applicant, (current undergraduate GPA 3.6 and MCAT average) with an otherwise excellent application, you can apply to a lesser number of medical schools with better success. The hurdle is to get your numbers above the average for the schools that interest you.
The perceived "competitiveness" of the school isn't going to make much difference as all medical schools in this country are competitive regardless of reputation. If a school with lower undergraduate GPA/MCAT averages has 3,000+ applicants for 100 slots, it's going to be an uphill battle regardless of your stats. With those odds, you really have to stand out regardless of "tier".
The second thing that you have to look at is that it might take you more than one year to gain admission to medical school if you are very geographically limited. If you know this up front, you can do some planning and keep your head together.
How competitive you are for residency depends on how you perform in medical school and which specialty interests you. Even if you are first in your class, if you have your heart set on dermatology, you are going to need to apply broadly because you will be against some of the most competitive medical school graduates across the country for a limited number of slots.
On the other hand, if you are interested in Internal Medicine, Peds or Family Medicine, you have more slots in more areas and you can be less competitive because the numbers are in your favor. There are simply more slots than applicants and you stand a better chance of matching. Most people who enter the lesser competitive specialties can pick a smaller geographical area and successfully match.
Do realize that what happened to the couples in your PT school is not the future for you. Keep their experiences in the back of your mind as something to avoid but you have to realistically deal with your situation. If you have decided that you cannot relocate, then prepare yourself for making sure that you are successful without relocating. This means good and realistic research so that you can meet and exceed the requirements for the schools in your area. This also means that you need to be very aware of the implications of being geographically limited and prepared to make the necessary adjustments.
None of the women in my medical school class or residency (general surgery) took a year off to have a child. All of them were able to continue with their studies/work in addition to giving birth. During residency, this meant scheduling their vacation months around the birth of their child in addition to doing some research months before getting back to clinical duties. In medical school, this meant relying on fellow classmates for notes and help with assignments but very doable. One of my classmates give birth five days before Match Day which meant that she was on residency interviews while quite pregnant and still matched very successfully.
Speak with some women who are IN medical school/residency with children or who have given birth during school and ask them how they put everything together. Figure out what will work and what will not work out for you. Don't compare yourself to anyone or any other situation but obtain as much info as you can and make any adjustments that you can but be as realistic as possible. Medicine is a demanding career and depending on your needs, may not work out for you at this time. Again, you have to decide what is best for you.
Finally, if you cannot work out a process that will enable you to attend medical school and take care of your family's needs, either look into other careers (Physician Assistant comes to mind) that would place less demands on your family life and provide a very rewarding career or delay your plans until you can be more flexible. There is no age limit on attending medical school or entering medicine if that is your dream. (One of my classmates was a grandmother, aged 53, when she started medical school). Dream delayed does not mean the same thing as dream denied.
