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[CF84]

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Hello everybody I am wondering if anybody is in or has been in a similar position as myself.

I am 28 years old and considering applying to med school. My situation is a little unique and I am not sure if medical school is the best option for me.

I attended a well respected university where I majored in engineering. I was an average student who cared more about partying than my grades. I ended up graduating with a 3.0 GPA with a very similar science GPA. My goal was medical school but I was immature and didn't take my studies seriously. Well, I graduated in 2008 right when everything crashed and was unable to get a job. I ended up working crappy jobs and struggle to make payments on a small undergraduate loan I had. Around this time I took the MCAT 3 times (study like crazy) and scored a 28 each time.

I got serious and enrolled in a medical masters program through a medical school and did very well. I applied to medical school following my first semester and received interviews at a few DO schools but they would not accept my fall grades (because they came in after the interview) and I was rejected. I ended up panicking and decided to write off medical school. I decided that I was getting too old and the masters already put me in too much debt and I would never pay it off.

By this time I did a 180 and was a great student but I made the biggest mistake of my life and went to law school. It was very easy to get in and I was offered a lot of scholarship money to go to a respectable school. Law school application were the complete opposite of medical school. They were very easy and I was accepted to most places I applied. I felt lost with not being able to get a job and worried that everything I was working for would end up worthless. So I talked myself into going and boy do I regret it.

Two months in I realized this was a mistake. I noticed that they seemed to let everybody in, you never had to study, and it was flat out not challenging. Every class got curved (strange curve) to a B so pretty much everybody ended up with a B in each class except a few people. Also, the tuition prices changed right before I entered making my scholarship offer not nearly as helpful I originally planned.

Well two months in I decided to start applying for jobs and immediately after my first year I landed a great job in the medical field making a lot of money. I left school after completing just over a 1/3rd for this job and from the outside in everything seems great.

I like my job, I make good money, I can payoff my loans and still have cash left over but there are many things I don't like. Some of the co-workers are difficult to deal with and basic things like that. But the real thing that bothers me is that I still want to be a doctor. Unfortunately, I also have around 100K in debt and this job is making it possible to pay back and still live a decent life. So, I should be happy but I am not.

The truth is I honestly never gave up on the med school idea and recently I have considered applying for fall of 2014.

I guess my main question is should someone with my student loan debt and current career even consider medical school at my age?

If I do apply I will probably be applying to DO schools just because I am in such a weird position.

So what do you guys think am I crazy to be considering this?

 

[CF84]

Sorry if my story is hard to read. I have been up for over 14 hours and I am really tired and stressed.

 

[Lnsean]

Sorry if my story is hard to read. I have been up for over 14 hours and I am really tired and stressed.

IF IT IS YOUR DREAM...then do it. You only live once.

 

[CF84]

Thanks a lot!

I am really leaning towards retaking the MCAT's this summer and applying to DO schools for Fall 2014.

The only (guess not only) thing is I am a bit older (28), already have 100K in debt, will probably take on an additional 200K, and I will be leaving a good job.

 

[katiemaude]

Because you are in a good position right now (having a well paying job that doesn't make you miserable is nothing to sneeze at), I would recommend paying down the loans and/or saving as much as you can for a few years. In the meantime, get in volunteering, shadowing and research to bolster your application and to help you make sure that this dream is worth the $300-500K investment to you. Study hard for the MCAT and see how it goes. In a few years, you will have an awesome application if you are ready to go for it, and if not, you will have taken a huge stab at your debt, still have a decent job (coworkers have the potential to be annoying everywhere, sorry to say) and know that you did your best to consider making this dream a reality.

 

[BuddyTheElf]

Just wanted to point out that you are far from "old" when talking about DO schools. There are many students who are 30+ and some even 40+ at my school. If it's your dream, you're never too old. I also know of others with significant debt like yours.. it's still possible, it'll just take longer to pay off all your loans once you're an attending. Also, there's nothing wrong with a 28 MCAT if you're applying DO. As long as that score was in the last 3 years, I'd say don't bother re-taking. It's a good score for almost all DO schools.
Good luck!

 

[NTF]

Assuming you're able to pull A's in post-bacc coursework and do better on the MCAT, then the questions are:

1)How bad do you really want this?
The investment that is going to be required to make you a reasonably competitive applicant isn't small in terms of effort, time or money. Only you can figure out whether you want it bad enough to endure all that or even if what you really want is what a medical career actually entails (versus an abstraction in your head). It's sounds to me like you're making good money and have a reasonably good career, so you have a large opportunity cost in switching careers. I'd suggest doing some extensive shadowing of MD/DO's, NP/PA's or other mid-level providers to see if being a physician is what you really want. The fact that you're 28 isn't really a big factor in this decision. I started medical school at 36. Many of the posters in this forum started older than me.

2)How do you make yourself competitive?
You have significant redflags on your application already that you'll have to address. As I see it, they are:
- Poor GPA
- Multiple mediocre scores on the MCAT
- Career hopping (indicative of a lack commitment, lack of focus)

GPA and MCAT are straightforward fixes. Take post-bacc undergrad classes in science to boost that GPA. A string of A's will do a lot to reassure adcoms that your past poor academics are really in the past. Do whatever it takes to do better on the MCAT. 10 on each section at a minimum, preferably 11+ on each section. Don't underestimate the uneasiness of adcoms when they see career hopping or perceived lack of focus in your history. You're going to have to do significant legwork to relieve that uneasiness. This means lots of shadowing to prove you know what you're getting into. Lots of clinical volunteering to show altruism and dedication. Biomedical or clinical research would also help to show dedication to the field. I just matched into residency and I still got grilled about my zig-zag career trajectory in my twenties (How do we know you'll actually finish the residency you started?). Also you'll need stellar LOR's from at lesat one academic professor from your coursework and at least one person (preferably a physician) who can evaluate you in a clinical setting.

I wouldn't look at this as a quick 1 to 1.5yr, take some classes and apply trajectory. If you want to give yourself the best shot you're looking at a 2-3yr (or longer) process of GPA repair and application building.

Use your current earning power to divest yourself of all unsecured debt (CCs, car loans, mortgages) prior to matriculating. Your prior school loans (assuming they're federal) can be deferred while in school.

Best of luck. I decided I wanted to go to medical school when I was about 33. I didn't matriculate until I was 36.

 

[Goro]

Yours is a hard one to assess. I trust that you did med in your medical master's program? If so, and, and that you got a 28 on the MCAT is a good sign.

However, I see some troubling signs. Firstly, you show a distinct lack of commitment. The first question you'll get in any interview is "How do we know you won't bail on us like you did in law school"?

If you still have doubts, I suggest doing some patient volunteer work. If you have the calling, you'll know it.

There are ways of paying down debt...look for scholarships, like military or Public Health Service one.

Overall, I think you can pull this off. You can always apply, and if accepted, defer matriculation for one year, and keep working at your current job to pay down your current debt.

In the mean time, go find some DO's to shadow too.

Hello everybody I am wondering if anybody is in or has been in a similar position as myself.

I am 28 years old and considering applying to med school. My situation is a little unique and I am not sure if medical school is the best option for me.

I attended a well respected university where I majored in engineering. I was an average student who cared more about partying than my grades. I ended up graduating with a 3.0 GPA with a very similar science GPA. My goal was medical school but I was immature and didn't take my studies seriously. Well, I graduated in 2008 right when everything crashed and was unable to get a job. I ended up working crappy jobs and struggle to make payments on a small undergraduate loan I had. Around this time I took the MCAT 3 times (study like crazy) and scored a 28 each time.

I got serious and enrolled in a medical masters program through a medical school and did very well. I applied to medical school following my first semester and received interviews at a few DO schools but they would not accept my fall grades (because they came in after the interview) and I was rejected. I ended up panicking and decided to write off medical school. I decided that I was getting too old and the masters already put me in too much debt and I would never pay it off.

By this time I did a 180 and was a great student but I made the biggest mistake of my life and went to law school. It was very easy to get in and I was offered a lot of scholarship money to go to a respectable school. Law school application were the complete opposite of medical school. They were very easy and I was accepted to most places I applied. I felt lost with not being able to get a job and worried that everything I was working for would end up worthless. So I talked myself into going and boy do I regret it.

Two months in I realized this was a mistake. I noticed that they seemed to let everybody in, you never had to study, and it was flat out not challenging. Every class got curved (strange curve) to a B so pretty much everybody ended up with a B in each class except a few people. Also, the tuition prices changed right before I entered making my scholarship offer not nearly as helpful I originally planned.

Well two months in I decided to start applying for jobs and immediately after my first year I landed a great job in the medical field making a lot of money. I left school after completing just over a 1/3rd for this job and from the outside in everything seems great.

I like my job, I make good money, I can payoff my loans and still have cash left over but there are many things I don't like. Some of the co-workers are difficult to deal with and basic things like that. But the real thing that bothers me is that I still want to be a doctor. Unfortunately, I also have around 100K in debt and this job is making it possible to pay back and still live a decent life. So, I should be happy but I am not.

The truth is I honestly never gave up on the med school idea and recently I have considered applying for fall of 2014.

I guess my main question is should someone with my student loan debt and current career even consider medical school at my age?

If I do apply I will probably be applying to DO schools just because I am in such a weird position.

So what do you guys think am I crazy to be considering this?

 

[medmadness1911]

DO/MD is still medical school....HARD AS HELL...ask around..talk with both MDs and DOs and see what you get....you need to complete your law school degree, if feasible..they will ask you about that.. leaving law school and all...you need to ask around, see how they(med schools) view that situation/feel about that...pay off your loans..dave ramsey or complete the JD program....get a job and than pay off your loans...med school does have loan limits..ask around....you really need to find a medical program in your area/or school of choice and work with an adviser to get you in..network x3.....

 

[Chuchunezumis]

Do not rack up a ton more debt just to complete your law degree. That would be silly.

 

[CF84]

Thanks for all of the responses. They seem very straight forward and honest. To answer a few of the questions please see my responses below.

A) My masters was in the medical sciences and my grad GPA was pretty solid. It would be very difficult to raise my undergrad GPA because I graduated with over 160 credit hours.

B) I do have a history of jumping careers but honesty this was caused by the economy. I flat out couldn't get a job outside of $10/hr jobs. There is nothing wrong with a low paying job but I had a engineering degree and a medical masters and wanted more out of life. I literally graduated months after the collapse and couldn't get crap.

C) I have zero desire to finish law school. Right now law schools are getting hit with civil cases left and right for lying about employment opportunities and tuition. A lot of schools actually hire their grads for nine months after graduation just to pad their stats. It turns out that the average salary for a lawyer is based off of a double dip curve so the majority of lawyers are coming out of school making under 50K a year with close to 200K in debt.

Finishing law degree would set back my current career back and add a ton of debt for a degree that is honestly useless.

D) I have shadowed a fair amount of DO's and my current job does involve interacting with physicians. I don't do sales but my job is a hybrid of engineering and marketing so I have to meet with docs to figure out what we should be making.

E) I will have to retake the MCAT (last one just hit 3 years) and plan on studying but honestly I don't see myself scoring higher than a 29ish.


Once again thank you all

 

[CF84]

Goro,

Thanks and you brought up a very good point about deferring for a year. I would love to take apply this summer and if I got in defer for a year and save up.

Also, I have several letters from faculty members, physicians, and I can get another one from one of my law school professors. I left in good standing I had a great reputation in school.

 

[winterwarlock88]

OP, I had a similar undergraduate experience just like you. First off, your career hopping is water under the bridge. Case closed. All your past experiences make you who you are today. My advice is to make sure you show commitment from here on out. As others have said, this can be a 2-3 year process, you have to show the adcoms that you have what it takes because it is truly what you want to do (be sure it is). Be sure to volunteer and, more importantly, shadow.

 

[CF84]

Thanks a lot.

I plan on setting everything up over the next year or so. Still a little paranoid about retrying for med school. It was my goal for years but after everything that has happened in the last five years I pretty much gave up.

I have been at my current job just under an year and things are starting to finally look up.

Thanks guys but can I ask one more question? If I do apply and get in there is a possibility that I may owe close to 300K after graduation (pending I get in). Doesn't this seem kind of extreme? I remember freaking out about owing a 150K.

 

[NTF]

Thanks a lot.

I plan on setting everything up over the next year or so. Still a little paranoid about retrying for med school. It was my goal for years but after everything that has happened in the last five years I pretty much gave up.

I have been at my current job just under an year and things are starting to finally look up.

Thanks guys but can I ask one more question? If I do apply and get in there is a possibility that I may owe close to 300K after graduation (pending I get in). Doesn't this seem kind of extreme? I remember freaking out about owing a 150K.

There are many of my classmates who have >450k combined ugrad & med school debt. As long as all of your debt is federal student loans there are multiple income based repayment programs as well as the 10yr public service loan forgiveness. If you end up in primary care you can also qualify for loan repayor programs. The military is also an option either via the HPSP or FAP. Google IBR and PSLF programs.

 

[CF84]

Thanks I know about IBR but not the others.

 

[CF84]

I continued to think about this and I want to go for it. I have to retake the MCAT because my previous scores are over 3 years old. Im going to aim for taking it during July and applying for two DO's in my state and one maybe two MD's.

Last time I studied I used ExamKrackers and they seemed ok. Can anyone provide some feedback on whether they like EK or recommend another study guide?

Thanks