Too Old?

[Startingover123]

Is 38 too old to start podiatry school?

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[DexterMorganSK]

No, I don't think it is. We had a few students in my class in their 40s and are doing just fine right now in residency. If you have time-management skills and are physically/mentally fit, I do not see an issue. I started at 32, and it's been well so far.

 

[Startingover123]

No, I don't think it is. We had a few students in my class in their 40s and are doing just fine right now in residency. If you have time-management skills and are physically/mentally fit, I do not see an issue. I started at 32, and it's been well so far.

Thanks for the kind words.

 

[NobodyDPM]

Is 38 too old to start podiatry school?

That's not too old!

The biggest crutch for "mature" students is getting back into the "school" mind set. Classes, studying, labs. And the time investment. If you have been at a regular "job" all these years, and have a family, you will have to adjust your priorities and your family will have to be on board. It is grueling, but very doable. Best of luck!

 

[MidnightSun32]

Being older has only been helpful tbh, especially during clerkships. First year was harder-- had to get in the swing of things, like @NobodyDPM mentioned. I had been out of school for quite a long time. The longer hours, the social aspects of meeting a new team every month (clerkships), and the general ups and downs of 3rd/4th year were much easier to deal with. My classmates were pretty accepting so the first 2 years weren't weird either. Good luck to you @Startingover123

 

[air bud]

Is 38 too old to start podiatry school?

any savings from before? spouse that works? If you are starting with no savings, at this age it is a bad idea. MD/DO or nothing. With podiatry you will take on too much debt and have too much risk of low pay that you will not be able to recoup things and actually get ahead. Put in the extra work or do whatever for MD/DO have to increase the chance of financial success. Otherwise if interested in medicine do PA school.

I started pod school at 28. Those 10 years I have on you are going to make all the difference when it comes to compounding interest and stuff like that.

 

[NobodyDPM]

any savings from before? spouse that works? If you are starting with no savings, at this age it is a bad idea. MD/DO or nothing. With podiatry you will take on too much debt and have too much risk of low pay that you will not be able to recoup things and actually get ahead. Put in the extra work or do whatever for MD/DO have to increase the chance of financial success. Otherwise if interested in medicine do PA school.

I started pod school at 28. Those 10 years I have on you are going to make all the difference when it comes to compounding interest and stuff like that.

I have to agree with this. Amassing $300K of debt, especially if you have a young family, will be brutal to overcome.

 

[air bud]

shorter version of what I said - school is easy as an older student. But you are on a time crunch. And the debt/likely outcomes makes for a poor financial decision.

 

[Startingover123]

shorter version of what I said - school is easy as an older student. But you are on a time crunch. And the debt/likely outcomes makes for a poor financial decision.

At 45 one could practice 20-25 years or so? If you can make 150k plus for 20 years or so I don’t think 300k is terrible? Am I way off base here?

Forgot to mention thank you for the advice. I greatly appreciate it.

 

[GreenHousePub]

If this is an early mid-life crises I would recommend what most guys do: buy a corvette, start skydiving, cheat on your wife, etc.

 

[Dochopeful13]

If this is an early mid-life crises I would recommend what most guys do: buy a corvette, start skydiving, cheat on your wife, etc.

That’s a bit harsh. Nothing wrong with starting a career later in life. I know several people who started med school at 40. As someone who started a professional school in their mid thirties I do not think 38 is too old. However, there are financial considerations to take into account.

 

[SouthPod7]

You just have to be realistic with your goals and what you’re trying to achieve. Podiatry school does not have the same guaranteed return on investment that you get from MD/DO programs. There is a very real chance that, when you graduate, your first (and maybe second) jobs will pay you less than 100k.

Do you have a spouse? Children? Podiatry school and residency are very demanding, just like MD/DO school. Are you willing to take that relationship/emotional hit for 7 years for a real chance to make less than 100k on the other side after taking out 300k in student loans (plus the lost income over that time that you could make doing something else).

I also had people in my class who were much older than the traditional matriculated (age 40+). I still personally would not recommend starting Podiatry school after the age of 30 or so. The only major exception I can think of is if you had some significant savings from your previous career and could cash flow your way through school until residency. But starting at age 38? Finishing residency when your 45 and then spending a couple years paying off your loans and then what, enjoying the fruits of your labor at almost 50? Just doesn’t seem worth it to me. My two cents.

Anyways, good luck with whichever path you choose.

 

[Feli]

any savings from before? spouse that works? If you are starting with no savings, at this age it is a bad idea. MD/DO or nothing. With podiatry you will take on too much debt and have too much risk of low pay that you will not be able to recoup things and actually get ahead. Put in the extra work or do whatever for MD/DO have to increase the chance of financial success. Otherwise if interested in medicine do PA school.

I started pod school at 28. Those 10 years I have on you are going to make all the difference when it comes to compounding interest and stuff like that.

Agree... I would be thinking RN if starting school in my 40s. Heck, it is a very good choice at 18 too.
Get done fast, minimal loans by comparison, good income, great job flexibility, easier licensing, easier boards, etc. It is a much quicker road to being out of debt, investing, cleaning up credit, buying a home, etc. Then, if your ego or your control inner person ever wants to, you can always do Crit care, NP, CRNA, etc later on also.

...As was mentioned, the compound student loan interest works against you, and then once you finally right the ship, you need time (at least a decade, probably multiple) for the investments to work for you. Any job speedbumps with gaps, divorce, dumb moves, etc will set you back even further. It is a young person's game (if it's anyone's?) to borrow massively. And yes, there are a good amount of people struggling in podiatry (not as many as you hear... but still a large number, as in any non MD/DO field).

Another thing to consider is your own health. Only you know this factor. Some people in podiatry school are 25 but poor health and habits (so physiologically 35+) while others are fit and 30 going on 20. Any medical prof grad school and residency will tax you a bit with midterms, all-nighters, interviews, residency call, fast food, boards, etc. I tolerated bad sleep and parties and cramming for exams a lot better in my 20s than I do now 🙂

 

[Dochopeful13]

Agree... I would be thinking RN if starting school in my 40s. Heck, it is a very good choice at 18 too.
Get done fast, minimal loans by comparison, good income, great job flexibility, easier licensing, easier boards, etc. It is a much quicker road to being out of debt, investing, cleaning up credit, buying a home, etc. Then, if your ego or your control inner person ever wants to, you can always do Crit care, NP, CRNA, etc later on also.

...As was mentioned, the compound student loan interest works against you, and then once you finally right the ship, you need time (at least a decade, probably multiple) for the investments to work for you. Any job speedbumps with gaps, divorce, dumb moves, etc will set you back even further. It is a young person's game (if it's anyone's?) to borrow massively. And yes, there are a good amount of people struggling in podiatry (not as many as you hear... but still a large number, as in any non MD/DO field).

Another thing to consider is your own health. Only you know this factor. Some people in podiatry school are 25 but poor health and habits (so physiologically 35+) while others are fit and 30 going on 20. Any medical prof grad school and residency will tax you a bit with midterms, all-nighters, interviews, residency call, fast food, boards, etc. I tolerated bad sleep and parties and cramming for exams a lot better in my 20s than I do now 🙂

Isn’t crna a rough several year program as well though?

 

[heybrother]

There's a big difference between choosing to work to 65 and having to work to 65. The unfortunate truth is people do have health problems. People have back and hand pain. People have to move around and start over. The younger you start the more leeway you have to modulate your behavior and to finesse out the lost years. You have more compounding time for assets. You can go part time. A lot of MD/DO specialities to me seem tailor made for working forever as long as you keep your acuity. That said - should doctors be working till they fall down from old age. Hell no. Have they historically - yeah, cause a lot of doctors made poor choices. But if you truly work to 65 you may be surprised to find your classmates bowing out a decade before you because they could.

Its very easy to borrow $300K. Its much, much harder to pay it back. I'll give you a recent experience of mine. I'm buying into my practice. Earlier this year I was looking at a paycheck and saw my net pay ie. the amount that went into my back account after 401k/tax/health insurance/etc. I remember that moment because I thought - wow, my buy in is every $ I received up to that moment in the year. I probably should be grateful that my buy-in is captured by a single year of work. Many people are offered a much larger number. Student loan repayment is just as painful. Imagine your net take home is $100K after 401k/taxes/health insurance etc. You'd have to give the entirety of every $ you kept for 3+ years to pay off your loan. They gave you that number for your signature. You paid them back with 250 days x 8 hours x 3 years in my imaginary story. Borrowed with ease, paid back in sweat.

Don't go into this thinking I'm some sort of depressed anti-pod. I'm past that 😉. I have positive encounters. I get along with other doctors. Hell - I'm going to ortho rounds with a smile on my face. I make decent enough money and I'm making changes to my practice, getting faster at surgery every week. Destroyed my 1st MPJ time the other day.

You can't compare yourself or your situation to others. I had classmates graduate with zero debt. I had a classmate cry when they saw their loan repayment schedule. You assuredly will be making sacrifices walking this path. I have 1 less child than I thought I would have - delayed due to podiatry school and when the time came we ultimately found ourselves grateful to have 2. I've had worse jobs than this but every day is work. Good luck.

 

[Feli]

Isn’t crna a rough several year program as well though?

It is tough to achieve CRNA. You have to be at the top of your BSRN class, do a few years of crit care nursing (which pays very well), then 2-3yrs of intensive grad school where you can't work much/any.
They still end up with MUCH less time and $ into school than any MD/DO/DPM, and most "just a nurse" anesthetists will generally use job offers paying any less than $80/hr as toilet paper as they shoot for $100+/hr in most areas. It is a very good gig and lifestyle, but you can't do average in your nursing school and think it'll happen. They also have to be fairly business savvy and make connections afterwards to get best contracts, but the ones who don't and just work for a single location or facility still do pretty amazing as far as investment return. I have a few close personal friends from high school who did that CRNA route and had their loans paid off and a house most/all paid before I was done with residency. No joke. They are pretty good at the 1099 thing the way some ER docs are and probably 90th percentile nationwide, but it is a great field to work in... hours quite reasonable, demand is high, pay is solid.
...the nicest part of nursing is that it is stepwise. Unlike medicine MD/PA/DPM/DDS/etc paths, nurses have significant earning power even after the early steps. You can take time off to work, travel, pay bills, save up, etc while still getting ahead. Nobody will hire a locums BS biology pre-med grad for $60 or $80 per hour, lol. RNs can always just be content with the associate degree RN (pays the bills... definitely for a single person and even for a moderate lifestyle family), the BSRN with more options, the crit care RN making $50+/hr in many areas or possibly much more locums... or move on to NP (not wise in my view, typically worsens hours and doesn't make much more than high functioning RN can) or CRNA (very wise if you like that work and can get accepted). 👍

 

[GreenHousePub]

...the nicest part of nursing is that it is stepwise.

and the worst part about it is working with nurses. Hard pass.

 

[shezadeh]

It is tough to achieve CRNA. You have to be at the top of your BSRN class, do a few years of crit care nursing (which pays very well), then 2-3yrs of intensive grad school where you can't work much/any.
They still end up with MUCH less time and $ into school than any MD/DO/DPM, and most "just a nurse" anesthetists will generally use job offers paying any less than $80/hr as toilet paper as they shoot for $100+/hr in most areas. It is a very good gig and lifestyle, but you can't do average in your nursing school and think it'll happen. They also have to be fairly business savvy and make connections afterwards to get best contracts, but the ones who don't and just work for a single location or facility still do pretty amazing as far as investment return. I have a few close personal friends from high school who did that CRNA route and had their loans paid off and a house most/all paid before I was done with residency. No joke. They are pretty good at the 1099 thing the way some ER docs are and probably 90th percentile nationwide, but it is a great field to work in... hours quite reasonable, demand is high, pay is solid.
...the nicest part of nursing is that it is stepwise. Unlike medicine MD/PA/DPM/DDS/etc paths, nurses have significant earning power even after the early steps. You can take time off to work, travel, pay bills, save up, etc while still getting ahead. Nobody will hire a locums BS biology pre-med grad for $60 or $80 per hour, lol. RNs can always just be content with the associate degree RN (pays the bills... definitely for a single person and even for a moderate lifestyle family), the BSRN with more options, the crit care RN making $50+/hr in many areas or possibly much more locums... or move on to NP (not wise in my view, typically worsens hours and doesn't make much more than high functioning RN can) or CRNA (very wise if you like that work and can get accepted). 👍

I know of a person who did an associate degree in nursing (which allowed them to become an RN) at a community college (so no debt). This person worked for a few years, went back for a BSN, worked for a few years, and now has an MSN and is an inpatient NP (who does not think that NPs > Doctors). So yeah, just wanted to throw my two cents in about how it can work out.

 

[CutsWithFury]

Don’t do podiatry. Be a nurse. Get experience then try to become a CRNA. You will thank me.