Too young for med school?

[lostdot]

I am applying right now and I am 19 years old. I will be 20 entering med school fall 2013. Is this bad or good for my app? Texas schools in particular

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[mmmcdowe]

I am applying right now and I am 19 years old. I will be 20 entering med school fall 2013. Is this bad or good for my app? Texas schools in particular

Schools can't technically discriminate by age, but they can by "maturity". You will have to demonstrate that you are mature enough to them, but you aren't super crazy young so you should be okay.

 

[Gigantron]

So long as your experiences are on par with the typical applicant's and that your choices and interview demonstrated maturity, you would not be at a disadvantage in the med school application process.

 

[Lil Mick]

We had a few 20-year-olds in my MS1 class. Make sure you have clinical experience and good grades/scores, as well as maturity. Also look at the average age of the incoming classes of potential schools to see which schools seem to take older students vs. younger students. Some schools are known for taking a lot of older students; some have BS/MD programs in which many students will be fairly young.

 

[jesse120]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sho_Yano

 

[Black Mamba24]

I am applying right now and I am 19 years old. I will be 20 entering med school fall 2013. Is this bad or good for my app? Texas schools in particular

I'm in the same position as you are (applying at 19 hoping to enter at 20) due to AP credits (to maybe answer the Guess Who's question). I asked this question during my pre-med committee interview and all of my interviewers seemed to agree that "If you're ready, you're ready." With that said, I'm still preparing for my maturity to be questioned. But if you have the stats and ECs, then I don't believe that you will be at a severe disadvantage (I hope).

 

[pfaction]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sho_Yano

After scoring 1500 out of 1600

 

[Revolver1045]

That's great that you have the option of applying at 19. if that's what you want go for it. I'm not in medical school, I'm applying this year too. The only advice I could give you is that my years from age 19 (24 now) have been great and tons of fun. I don't know if I could have done everything I have if I was in medical school. Medical school will always be there (some may disagree) especially if you're already competitive at age 19, but don't grow up before its your time. Enjoy being young, you won't be again. Go out and have fun, travel and make some poor decisions (not too bad though )Some may disagree, and again I'm not in med school (but I'm sure you can find a plethora of stories about how difficult it is). Im just offering you a different perspective. Good luck with everything.

 

[pre med 2014]

wow kudos to you, when I was 19...

 

[ccfman1991]

That's great that you have the option of applying at 19. if that's what you want go for it. I'm not in medical school, I'm applying this year too. The only advice I could give you is that my years from age 19 (24 now) have been great and tons of fun. I don't know if I could have done everything I have if I was in medical school. Medical school will always be there (some may disagree) especially if you're already competitive at age 19, but don't grow up before its your time. Enjoy being young, you won't be again. Go out and have fun, travel and make some poor decisions (not too bad though )Some may disagree, and again I'm not in med school (but I'm sure you can find a plethora of stories about how difficult it is). Im just offering you a different perspective. Good luck with everything.

I totally agree with this. The last 3-4 years of my life have been an absolute blast, and idk if I could've done nearly as much with my life if I had given those years to med school.

 

[Smachadams]

So long as your experiences are on par with the typical applicant's and that your choices and interview demonstrated maturity, you would not be at a disadvantage in the med school application process.

I agree.. I was 19 when going through the whole application process and turned 20 just now before I start M1 this August. As long as your scores, EC's are in line and you demonstrate a solid understanding of why you want to study medicine you'll be fine.

 

[kexy]

I was 20 when I applied and will be 21 during M1. Your age won't necessarily hurt you, provided that you seem mature and motivated, but it definitely won't help you, so don't bring it up.

 

[minerva3121]

Check out the mdapps of paul411, who applied to TX schools as a 20-year-old: http://www.mdapplicants.com/profile.php?id=20784. He comments on which schools seem to discriminate against younger applicants.

 

[SnarkyPedsWannaBe]

I'm wondering how this went for you. I'll be 19 when I apply and 20 when I start, hoping I won't be discriminated against as I am a strong applicant.

 

[CherryRedDracul]

Two of my classmates started MS1 as 20-year-olds.

 

[plumazul]

I'm in the same position as you are (applying at 19 hoping to enter at 20) due to AP credits (to maybe answer the Guess Who's question). I asked this question during my pre-med committee interview and all of my interviewers seemed to agree that "If you're ready, you're ready." With that said, I'm still preparing for my maturity to be questioned. But if you have the stats and ECs, then I don't believe that you will be at a severe disadvantage (I hope).

What do you mean "due to AP credits"? I applied this previous year as a 19 yo, but I attended university for a full 4 years. If you are ready for medical school, age should not matter, however, if you are cutting your time in college short, that opens a totally different set of questions.

 

[Cyberdyne 101]

An 18 year old can be empathetic, mature, able to work with others, open-minded while a 40 year old can be none of the above.

 

[incandesce]

I applied at 19 and will be an MS1 entering at 20 at NYU this fall, and I think you'll be fine! I chose to graduate from college a year early. My only regret is that I was never 21 in college..

 

[Optimus-Prime]

I'm officially a grandpa

 

[type12]

What ever happened to Sho Yano? I see he went into Pediatric Neurology, but I remember a while back there was buzz he was going to make significant discoveries that would revolutionize medicine during his residency.

This was from newscasters, so obviously "grain of salt" and all that. But can't find anything about him after 2012.

 

[elektroshok]

I applied at 19 and will be an MS1 entering at 20 at NYU this fall, and I think you'll be fine! I chose to graduate from college a year early. My only regret is that I was never 21 in college..

God that sounds awful

 

[kyamh]

When I was 19, I wanted to be a Supreme Court Justice....only slightly kidding. Why rush through life? As someone who has been working in a place where most people are 5-10 years older than me, I find there are certain drawbacks. Thing one, everyone is already married Not everything is about maturity, life stage matters too. Just because we are all in medical school doesn't mean we are all at the same place in life. While these differences add richness to the class, being on the far end of either side may be isolating.

 

[plumazul]

When I was 19, I wanted to be a Supreme Court Justice....only slightly kidding. Why rush through life? As someone who has been working in a place where most people are 5-10 years older than me, I find there are certain drawbacks. Thing one, everyone is already married Not everything is about maturity, life stage matters too. Just because we are all in medical school doesn't mean we are all at the same place in life. While these differences add richness to the class, being on the far end of either side may be isolating.

Based on my experiences during college and at interviews/revisits, seniors in college generally tend to be at about the same stage in life. Whether you're 19 or 23 you have plenty of relatable life experiences and can get along just fine. Since a very significant portion of medical students come straight from undergrad, I don't see why being able to relate to your classmates at 19 or 20 is a concern at all.

 

[plumazul]

What ever happened to Sho Yano? I see he went into Pediatric Neurology, but I remember a while back there was buzz he was going to make significant discoveries that would revolutionize medicine during his residency.

This was from newscasters, so obviously "grain of salt" and all that. But can't find anything about him after 2012.

Got two hits. Hey, science is hard!

 

[kyamh]

Based on my experiences during college and at interviews/revisits, seniors in college generally tend to be at about the same stage in life. Whether you're 19 or 23 you have plenty of relatable life experiences and can get along just fine. Since a very significant portion of medical students come straight from undergrad, I don't see why being able to relate to your classmates at 19 or 20 is a concern at all.

19 or 20 wouldn't make a difference, sure, but I would argue that 19/23 is a pretty big difference. The difference gets more pronounced when you compare college senior to a student living on their own for a year and working, or when you compare that senior to someone who is one year into a program like the Peace Corps or Teach for America. That 19 year old could take 2-3 years off, do something really cool that's a once-in-a-lifetime post-college opportunity, and still be "on track" afterwards.

 

[plumazul]

19 or 20 wouldn't make a difference, sure, but I would argue that 19/23 is a pretty big difference. The difference gets more pronounced when you compare college senior to a student living on their own for a year and working, or when you compare that senior to someone who is one year into a program like the Peace Corps or Teach for America.

I'm not sure what you mean here (perhaps you misunderstood what I wrote?) Students who attended 4 years of college together, graduate within the same sphere of reference. (be they 19 or 25) What they do after that is a personal choice.

That 19 year old could take 2-3 years off, do something really cool that's a once-in-a-lifetime post-college opportunity, and still be "on track" afterwards.

This "19 yo" will be studying and doing research at arguably the best cancer hospital/research center in the world. I consider that really cool. Everyone has their their own dreams to pursue. One size does not fit all.

 

[kyamh]

Students who attended 4 years of college together, graduate within the same sphere of reference. (be they 19 or 25)

This is the part I disagree with. Two people going through the same college will not have the same sphere of reference just by virtue of having completed the same "stage". My school has a special program for non traditional students - students who enter undergrad at 22+ - my first year roommate was 16...I saw a wide range of ages in college. If 19 yo, 23 yo, and 27 yo college graduates all ought to have the same spheres of reference then there's something off.

This "19 yo" will be studying and doing research at arguably the best cancer hospital/research center in the world. I consider that really cool. Everyone has their their own dreams to pursue. One size does not fit all.

Not saying that one size fits all, in fact your "size" matches mine perfectly

 

[SnarkyPedsWannaBe]

I'm 19 and applying this cycle. I have worked hard, live on my own, financially support myself. I don't feel the need to change the direction of my life because I am "too young" or need to "not be in a rush". I've been working towards a goal for the past 5 years and there is no reason that my choice to pursue the next step towards that goal is less valid than someone who is years older than me and has more "life expirience" (which I believe to be a very subjective term)

 

[PreciousHamburgers]

I'm officially a grandpa

Mazel tov!

 

[Goro]

Teaching moment! If you act mature, you'll be fine. We've rejected younger interviewees because they seemed immature at interviews.

I am applying right now and I am 19 years old. I will be 20 entering med school fall 2013. Is this bad or good for my app? Texas schools in particular

 

[keepSwimmingNemo]

Seeing this soon to be 20 year old get accepted into Boston makes me feel like ****. She did undergrad in 2 years etc . She wasn't so amazing that no one can't do but she just did it quick where I am retaking classes

 

[oOKawaiiOo]

Seeing this soon to be 20 year old get accepted into Boston makes me feel like ****. She did undergrad in 2 years etc . She wasn't so amazing that no one can't do but she just did it quick where I am retaking classes

LOL. If youre going to compare, do it to inspire yourself.

All of my pre-med friends made it to med school before I did, and they were younger than me!