Transitioning from business to medicine advice.

[304_lidocaine]

Hi everyone, I'm new here and I would greatly appreciate any advice you all have to offer!

I’m a non-traditional applicant currently transitioning from a background in business (accounting and finance) to medicine, and I wanted to share my journey and seek some advice as I move forward in this exciting (and admittedly, daunting) career shift.
I completed my undergraduate degree in accounting and finance, where I earned a 3.6 GPA. I later pursued an MBA to further my career, but along the way, I realized that my true calling lies in healthcare. This led me to make the decision to change paths and pursue medicine.
Currently, my science GPA is 4.0, and I’ve completed several basic prerequisite courses for multiple schools, including:

• 8 hours of biology and labs
• 8 hours of chemistry and labs
• Anatomy 1
• Medical Terminology
• Psychology
• Sociology
• English and Literature

I’m scheduled to take Organic Chemistry 1, Physics 1 and 2, and Biochemistry in the upcoming semesters, with plans to take Cell/Microbiology and Organic Chemistry 2 afterward.
One of the pivotal moments in my decision to pursue medicine came during my shadowing experience in an OB/GYN clinic. I’ve accumulated 20 hours of shadowing, observing this particular doctor interact with patients ranging in age from 22 to 80. The doctor-patient relationships, particularly in an area of healthcare where empathy and care are so deeply needed, really shifted my perspective. I realized I want to dedicate my career to providing compassionate care to those who need it most.
Additionally, I’ve volunteered over 500 hours through campus activities and fraternity involvement of which I was the president. Healthcare volunteering, and hospital work in various departments, has also given me more exposure to the healthcare environment and affirmed my decision.

In terms of work, I currently work at a Big 4 accounting firm. Thankfully, most of my work is remote, so I have some flexibility with time. When I’m in the office, there’s a local school next to my building offering upper-level science courses at night, which I plan to utilize to complete the remainder of my prerequisites. Balancing a full-time job with preparing for medical school applications and taking science courses is a bit overwhelming at times, but I’m committed to this transition and confident that with a solid plan, I can manage.

I have not yet taken the MCAT, but I’m starting to prepare for it. I’m considering Kaplan books for studying, as well as Khan Academy and various MCAT-related podcasts. My biggest concern is ensuring that I have a strong foundation in certain concepts—especially in subjects like intro-biology and biochemistry. While I’m confident in my memorization abilities and tend to do well with that, I’ve noticed that my arithmetic skills need some improvement. I’m planning to focus heavily on practice problems to strengthen this area.

One worry I have is that I may begin my MCAT review but not necessarily have a solid enough foundation in some of the concepts, especially with the heavy workload of prerequisite courses and my job. If anyone has advice on how to structure MCAT prep to ensure that I'm covering gaps in foundational knowledge without burning out, I would really appreciate it.

At the heart of my desire to become a physician is my drive to help others. I’ve seen members of my family work in healthcare, and I grew up with a sense of compassion and service instilled in me through Catholic values. I’ve also had friends who have struggled. Suicide and drug overdoses are no stranger to me unfortunately. This has deeply impacted me and shaped my commitment to providing care to vulnerable populations. My home state, a huge part of me, is also the most ridiculed for opioids and it brings me to tears at times. This is also a huge motivating factor. I feel that medicine is the right field for me to channel my desire to serve and make a tangible impact.

Although I’ll be a first-generation physician, I’m determined to pursue this path. I’m looking at state schools as well as DO programs, and I’m hoping to find a school that values both academic excellence and a deep commitment to serving diverse communities.

I’m excited to continue this journey, but I know it will require a lot of focus and determination. I’m reaching out to this community because I value the insight and wisdom here and would love any advice or recommendations as I prepare for the next steps in the process.

Thank you in advance for your support! Im open to any questions and I appreciate your time reading this post! I look forward to hearing from you, have a blessed day!

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[LunaOri]

It sounds as though you are very motivated! I suggest not rushing things: start studying for the MCAT after you have finished all the course material that will be covered on the MCAT.

 

[Hollow Knight]

it’s not like studying for your prereqs is a waste. The better you do, the better off you’ll be for the MCAT. Unfortunately the prep courses don’t prepare you as well as doing chemistry and physics at a real live institution.

I went to an engineering school for my bio degree and I think that’s a huge part of why my MCAT was so high

Oh, and also the fact that I didn’t cheat my way through undergrad like so many people I know…….

 

[Goro]

Hi everyone, I'm new here and I would greatly appreciate any advice you all have to offer!

I’m a non-traditional applicant currently transitioning from a background in business (accounting and finance) to medicine, and I wanted to share my journey and seek some advice as I move forward in this exciting (and admittedly, daunting) career shift.
I completed my undergraduate degree in accounting and finance, where I earned a 3.6 GPA. I later pursued an MBA to further my career, but along the way, I realized that my true calling lies in healthcare. This led me to make the decision to change paths and pursue medicine.
Currently, my science GPA is 4.0, and I’ve completed several basic prerequisite courses for multiple schools, including:

• 8 hours of biology and labs
• 8 hours of chemistry and labs
• Anatomy 1
• Medical Terminology
• Psychology
• Sociology
• English and Literature

I’m scheduled to take Organic Chemistry 1, Physics 1 and 2, and Biochemistry in the upcoming semesters, with plans to take Cell/Microbiology and Organic Chemistry 2 afterward.
One of the pivotal moments in my decision to pursue medicine came during my shadowing experience in an OB/GYN clinic. I’ve accumulated 20 hours of shadowing, observing this particular doctor interact with patients ranging in age from 22 to 80. The doctor-patient relationships, particularly in an area of healthcare where empathy and care are so deeply needed, really shifted my perspective. I realized I want to dedicate my career to providing compassionate care to those who need it most.
Additionally, I’ve volunteered over 500 hours through campus activities and fraternity involvement of which I was the president. Healthcare volunteering, and hospital work in various departments, has also given me more exposure to the healthcare environment and affirmed my decision.

In terms of work, I currently work at a Big 4 accounting firm. Thankfully, most of my work is remote, so I have some flexibility with time. When I’m in the office, there’s a local school next to my building offering upper-level science courses at night, which I plan to utilize to complete the remainder of my prerequisites. Balancing a full-time job with preparing for medical school applications and taking science courses is a bit overwhelming at times, but I’m committed to this transition and confident that with a solid plan, I can manage.

I have not yet taken the MCAT, but I’m starting to prepare for it. I’m considering Kaplan books for studying, as well as Khan Academy and various MCAT-related podcasts. My biggest concern is ensuring that I have a strong foundation in certain concepts—especially in subjects like intro-biology and biochemistry. While I’m confident in my memorization abilities and tend to do well with that, I’ve noticed that my arithmetic skills need some improvement. I’m planning to focus heavily on practice problems to strengthen this area.

One worry I have is that I may begin my MCAT review but not necessarily have a solid enough foundation in some of the concepts, especially with the heavy workload of prerequisite courses and my job. If anyone has advice on how to structure MCAT prep to ensure that I'm covering gaps in foundational knowledge without burning out, I would really appreciate it.

At the heart of my desire to become a physician is my drive to help others. I’ve seen members of my family work in healthcare, and I grew up with a sense of compassion and service instilled in me through Catholic values. I’ve also had friends who have struggled. Suicide and drug overdoses are no stranger to me unfortunately. This has deeply impacted me and shaped my commitment to providing care to vulnerable populations. My home state, a huge part of me, is also the most ridiculed for opioids and it brings me to tears at times. This is also a huge motivating factor. I feel that medicine is the right field for me to channel my desire to serve and make a tangible impact.

Although I’ll be a first-generation physician, I’m determined to pursue this path. I’m looking at state schools as well as DO programs, and I’m hoping to find a school that values both academic excellence and a deep commitment to serving diverse communities.

I’m excited to continue this journey, but I know it will require a lot of focus and determination. I’m reaching out to this community because I value the insight and wisdom here and would love any advice or recommendations as I prepare for the next steps in the process.

Thank you in advance for your support! Im open to any questions and I appreciate your time reading this post! I look forward to hearing from you, have a blessed day!

So far, so good!

 

[KaiBuzz]

Consider taking a biostats class as well!

 

[304_lidocaine]

It sounds as though you are very motivated! I suggest not rushing things: start studying for the MCAT after you have finished all the course material that will be covered on the MCAT.

Thank you very much!!!

 

[304_lidocaine]

Consider taking a biostats class as well!

Absolutely, will do!!!!

 

[304_lidocaine]

it’s not like studying for your prereqs is a waste. The better you do, the better off you’ll be for the MCAT. Unfortunately the prep courses don’t prepare you as well as doing chemistry and physics at a real live institution.

I went to an engineering school for my bio degree and I think that’s a huge part of why my MCAT was so high

Oh, and also the fact that I didn’t cheat my way through undergrad like so many people I know…….

You hit the nail on the head with cheating!!Everyone around me was addicted to AI when I was going through undergrad. I immediately put a block on multiple AI websites for that reason LOL

 

[purpledoc1]

I’m scheduled to take Organic Chemistry 1, Physics 1 and 2, and Biochemistry in the upcoming semesters, with plans to take Cell/Microbiology and Organic Chemistry 2 afterward.
One of the pivotal moments in my decision to pursue medicine came during my shadowing experience in an OB/GYN clinic. I’ve accumulated 20 hours of shadowing, observing this particular doctor interact with patients ranging in age from 22 to 80. The doctor-patient relationships, particularly in an area of healthcare where empathy and care are so deeply needed, really shifted my perspective. I realized I want to dedicate my career to providing compassionate care to those who need it most.
Additionally, I’ve volunteered over 500 hours through campus activities and fraternity involvement of which I was the president. Healthcare volunteering, and hospital work in various departments, has also given me more exposure to the healthcare environment and affirmed my decision.

In terms of work, I currently work at a Big 4 accounting firm. Thankfully, most of my work is remote, so I have some flexibility with time. When I’m in the office, there’s a local school next to my building offering upper-level science courses at night, which I plan to utilize to complete the remainder of my prerequisites. Balancing a full-time job with preparing for medical school applications and taking science courses is a bit overwhelming at times, but I’m committed to this transition and confident that with a solid plan, I can manage.

I have not yet taken the MCAT, but I’m starting to prepare for it. I’m considering Kaplan books for studying, as well as Khan Academy and various MCAT-related podcasts. My biggest concern is ensuring that I have a strong foundation in certain concepts—especially in subjects like intro-biology and biochemistry. While I’m confident in my memorization abilities and tend to do well with that, I’ve noticed that my arithmetic skills need some improvement. I’m planning to focus heavily on practice problems to strengthen this area.

One worry I have is that I may begin my MCAT review but not necessarily have a solid enough foundation in some of the concepts, especially with the heavy workload of prerequisite courses and my job. If anyone has advice on how to structure MCAT prep to ensure that I'm covering gaps in foundational knowledge without burning out, I would really appreciate it.

I’m excited to continue this journey, but I know it will require a lot of focus and determination. I’m reaching out to this community because I value the insight and wisdom here and would love any advice or recommendations as I prepare for the next steps in the process.

Thank you in advance for your support! Im open to any questions and I appreciate your time reading this post! I look forward to hearing from you, have a blessed day!

Hi and welcome to SDN! Your app looks good so far.
Some ideas:

1) More breadth; less depth. I understand that you are working full-time while going to school right now and may not have enough time for more activites, but medicine is a big commitment and you will need to show that you ARE committed. Take a year off to build your application if you feel like you need more activities/volunteering/clinical experience/shadowing.
2) By campus activities/fraternity involvement, do you mean that you lived at a fraternity? 500 hours is a lot of hours and if I were an ADCOM, I would want to know how you accumulated so many hours.
3) Your GPA looks good.
4) Some people are touchy about subjects such as suicide and ODs. I would try to tie your reason for "why medicine" into your volunteering and shadowing experiences instead.
5) You will need some type of "hook" as well. Right now, your app looks good, but pretty generic. A lot of people with 3.6 GPAs, mediocre MCAT scores, and so-so activities do not get in, simply because they are outnumbered by people with OUTSTANDING apps and more ECs. Simple as that. It stinks, but that's the way that it is. You need to show that you can swim with the big fishes.
6) As far as MCAT prep goes, I annotated Kaplan with Examkrackers. You can't beat the content review in Examkrackers.
7) Don't take official practice tests until you are scoring in your target range. You can do this by obtaining practice tests from a test prep company such as Kaplan, Berkeley Review, The Princeton Review, etc. I think that there are even some free ones online.

Good luck and I hope that this helped. Most important thing to work is what makes you different from the other applicants.

 

[Nontrad_FL_LGBT]

4) Some people are touchy about subjects such as suicide and ODs. I would try to tie your reason for "why medicine" into your volunteering and shadowing experiences instead.
5) You will need some type of "hook" as well.

Disagree with #4 because #5. Very few people go to med school wanting to serve in an addiction sphere. If he gets some experiences working with this population it would be a great narrative to work from.

My med school does a ton of drug/suicide research and actively encouraged med students to participate. It shouldn't be a touchy topic for anyone on an adcom in 2024. And given his Catholic heritage, the Jesuits eat this stuff up.

 

[Member2223]

It sounds like you have a solid plan, and it’s great that you can work remotely while taking classes. In a way, your MCAT prep has already started with the classes you’re taking, so keep it up! I’m also making the shift from finance to medicine, and I’d love to hear your perspective on the differences you’ve noticed between the financial sector vs your exposure in medicine. It seems you have a good desire to leave business..but what made now specifically the right time to make the change?

 

[Entadus]

I'd forget MCAT for the time being. Don't use Kaplan. Just focus on your next set of pre-req classes. Physics and O-chemistry are no joke! Juggling your full time accounting job plus those classes will already be a handful. Once you get A's in those, you can move on to MCAT.