What do you think?..Forensic's Postbacc

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RoxyKaur

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Hi, you guys.... I was wondering if it looks okay or adequate enough for me to be in a forenscis program...instead of a regular SMP program... i was thinkin forencis because i might want to be a medical examiner (like crossing jordan - if u didnt know what it is)....but i know i still want to get into med school and soforth.....But okay let me get to the point...is a forensics program enough to get me into med school or do i still need to go through SMP.

Thanks 😀
 
RoxyKaur said:
Hi, you guys.... I was wondering if it looks okay or adequate enough for me to be in a forenscis program...instead of a regular SMP program... i was thinkin forencis because i might want to be a medical examiner (like crossing jordan - if u didnt know what it is)....but i know i still want to get into med school and soforth.....But okay let me get to the point...is a forensics program enough to get me into med school or do i still need to go through SMP.

Thanks 😀


I may be off base bc I don't know much about the forensic postbac and haven't heard of one. I do know about getting a degree with an emphasis on forensics but haven't heard about the post-bac...But if you are thinking of being an ME you have to go to medical school which means you have to take the pre-med reqs...so if you're forensic postbac program covers the pre-med reqs then more power to you. Also, have you considered an internship to make sure you want to do forensics as it is no where near as pretty as they make it out to be on TV. Let me know what you find as I am curious to know more about a forensic postbac. Which one are you looking at? Also, why forensics? I'm always curious why people are interested in a field I am so passionate about.
 
adpitan said:
I may be off base bc I don't know much about the forensic postbac and haven't heard of one. I do know about getting a degree with an emphasis on forensics but haven't heard about the post-bac...But if you are thinking of being an ME you have to go to medical school which means you have to take the pre-med reqs...so if you're forensic postbac program covers the pre-med reqs then more power to you. Also, have you considered an internship to make sure you want to do forensics as it is no where near as pretty as they make it out to be on TV. Let me know what you find as I am curious to know more about a forensic postbac. Which one are you looking at? Also, why forensics? I'm always curious why people are interested in a field I am so passionate about.

well, i have already have my pre req's done...i am currently doing reserach in forensic's...that is what kinda led me to do somthing like a ME....well anway i talked to my reserach advisor and she suggested me this website www.aafs.org thats where i can find master degree programs dealing with foresnic science...anyway i hope this helps : )
 
RoxyKaur said:
well, i have already have my pre req's done...i am currently doing reserach in forensic's...that is what kinda led me to do somthing like a ME....well anway i talked to my reserach advisor and she suggested me this website www.aafs.org thats where i can find master degree programs dealing with foresnic science...anyway i hope this helps : )


OK, that makes sense. I know that website and several others. I would say if you haven't seen it/smelled it/touched it and spent many hours with that you do that before embarking on a trail leading to being an ME. I have had to get rid of shoes that had brain matter on them, and get rid of clothes because I couldn't get the smell of decomp out of them. What is your undergrad in? Also, have you looked @ GW for their masters? I just would hate to see you or anyone for that matter waste time and money pursuing something and then discovering it is not for them. For example, one agency out here in Cali went through 4 people on their hire list before having to start over because the 1 year was up. The 4 people they tried all quit, deciding it was too many hours, they couldn't handle the smell, couldn't handle the notifications, child deaths, etc. It's just such a shame to me to spend so much time and money to get to the end and decide "nah, this isn't for me" and have to start over. You know what I mean? best of luck to you and let me know if you take an internship or when you see your first autopsy.
 
Hmmm you bring a very interesting point about not having much hands on expericene....well i know i am goin to have a meeting with a chick that works in a crime lab...when my school starts... i was thinkin about askin her if she knows any ME...so i can atleast get my hands dirty...But even at the end of my forenscis program ..and if i dont like it... i can always do something else...in the MD field...i know for sure i want to be an MD but..i was thinkin whta kind of specialty i want to get my hands into...but formost importantly i know i need to show med schools i can handle the course work...my main concern is if i get into a forensics program will they give it some kind of calaber some respect compared to regular SMP ...this is where i am stuck at..but anyway thanks
 
RoxyKaur said:
Hmmm you bring a very interesting point about not having much hands on expericene....well i know i am goin to have a meeting with a chick that works in a crime lab...when my school starts... i was thinkin about askin her if she knows any ME...so i can atleast get my hands dirty...But even at the end of my forenscis program ..and if i dont like it... i can always do something else...in the MD field...i know for sure i want to be an MD but..i was thinkin whta kind of specialty i want to get my hands into...but formost importantly i know i need to show med schools i can handle the course work...my main concern is if i get into a forensics program will they give it some kind of calaber some respect compared to regular SMP ...this is where i am stuck at..but anyway thanks

You don't have to go into med school knowing what specialty, it would be nice but remember a lot of ppl go through rotations and find another passion.
 
i think, if you're looking to boost your credentials for med school, you should definitely do an smp and then, hopefully you can maybe shadow a ME or a forensic pathologist at some point during the year.

i'm basing this on my med school interview experience - i think it's better to have an open mind about medicine in general when interviewing. if you say you want to be a medical examiner, the interviewers might ask you a lot of questions like, why don't you just become a coroner (doesn't always require an MD) and skip all the medical school mumbo-jumbo, etc. in other words, you're setting yourself up to need a really good explanation about why you specifically want the MD when there are a lot of other similar avenues in forensics. i think it's really interesting, but i would just be careful about narrowing your vision just yet. not much can demonstrate your worth to medical school adcoms than good grades in a special masters program. that's just my opinion/advice though. good luck.
 
I was nearly in your same boat. I was working at a forensic toxicology lab and knew I wanted to go to med school. My GPA is pretty low though so that isn't happening anytime soon. They were going to pay for a masters in forensic toxicology, but I declined and decided to quit and go back and take classes at the univesity I graduated. This involved moving away giving up a stable job, potential career and free education. Why? because I know I want to be a doctor more than anything else. If you do decide to pursue a masters in anything that could serve as a "back up plan" it may not illustrate a complete desire to risk it all and go to med school. Just a suggestion.
 
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