What do you think the perception...

[blh53]

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of how hard it really is to get into med school is among non-premeds? In other words: when you tell somebody who is a business major that you got into medical school, how impressed are they? I seem to find that most people really do not appreciate the sheer amount of work (studying, volunteering, etc.), talent, and organization it requires. What are your thoughts?

Yes, I realize that it looks like this thread is a result of my ego not getting stroked enough. No, it's not why I was reflecting on this topic (well maybe it was, idk).

 

[cowme]

get over yourself

Nobody cares how hard you work as an undergrad.

Getting a good job on wall street is just as impressive as getting into a top medical school to the non-premeds (maybe more so..cuz they can at least afford to take you out on the town). They are both impressive, but don't expect the B-schooler to bow down to you for logging 100 hours at UChildrens Hopsital.

 

[iniquus]

Yes, I realize that it looks like this thread is a result of my ego not getting stroked enough. No, it's not why I was reflecting on this topic (well maybe it was, idk).

Just because you're aware that your statement may be interpreted as arrogance, doesn't make you any less arrogant.

 

[Bravetown]

of how hard it really is to get into med school is among non-premeds? In other words: when you tell somebody who is a business major that you got into medical school, how impressed are they? I seem to find that most people really do not appreciate the sheer amount of work (studying, volunteering, etc.), talent, and organization it requires. What are your thoughts?

Yes, I realize that it looks like this thread is a result of my ego not getting stroked enough. No, it's not why I was reflecting on this topic (well maybe it was, idk).

Here's a device that will let you satisfy your ego

 

[rhesuspieces]

Getting a good job on wall street is just as impressive as getting into a top medical school to the non-premeds

Agreed.

If anything, I think people tend to overestimate how hard it is to get into medical school. From what I understand, it's actually being in med school that's the hard part.

I don't think I worked any harder during ugrad than my business major friends who had internships, volunteered, participated in the hundred million different business clubs on campus, etc.

 

[blh53]

For the record, I never said that it's not hard to make it as a business major. In fact, I've admitted in the past that some of my business major and law school friends are a lot smarter than myself. I have a lot of respect for the amount of work they put in to become succesful.

 

[rhesuspieces]

For the record, I never said that it's not hard to make it as a business major. In fact, I've admitted in the past that some of my business major and law school friends are a lot smarter than myself. I have a lot of respect for the amount of work they put in to become succesful.

I think most of us were just piggybacking off of your example and showing why other undergrads don't have much of a reason to be impressed by accepted pre-meds.

 

[Adaggiote]

I am not in medical school yet...or even in college, but when I tell people my major they clap and throw flowers.

 

[wlee43]

op u might be developing a god complex

 

[RelicLTD]

Pre-meds are louder than accepted students. The process is humbling, and I don't think many people are all that impressed.

 

[rhesuspieces]

Pre-meds are louder than accepted students. The process is humbling

👍 This is especially true when you consider that a lot of pre-meds have never been rejected for anything in their entire lives.

 

[fahimaz7]

Agreed.

If anything, I think people tend to overestimate how hard it is to get into medical school. From what I understand, it's actually being in med school that's the hard part.

I don't think I worked any harder during ugrad than my business major friends who had internships, volunteered, participated in the hundred million different business clubs on campus, etc.

It's not that damn hard. Lets be serious, if you have a 3.75 and a 30+ MCAT, you are going to get into medical school somewhere in the US.

Pre-meds have some of the largest ego's that I've ever met, and for the most part it's completely un-merited. For every single person who's on this forum, there's someone younger, smarter, more motivated, and more qualified for anything that you are doing.

What's really interesting is when I find myself at a party or something and there's a couple of pre-meds talking it up like their hot ****. I lay low, blend in, find out how far along they are in the process, and offer some vague/general information without saying that I'm in medical school. Most of the time I never tell them that I'm in school, I just listen to them talk **** about how cool they are. Last semester at a halloween party though, my wife came in and heard the conversation, then spilled the beans that I was medical student. Not so good, I was enjoying being incognito. Either way, they stopped bragging about their A in O-chem and got humble fast.

 

[Hifey]

I was lucky enough in college to maintain a very diverse group of friends (pre-vet, pre-law, pre-dent, pre-PsyD, pre-Business etc.) in addition to the pre-meds and they were all generally supportive and did understand the amount of work and effort it took. Although I often had to log in more hours than some of them ( b/c of labs/research etc.) I was also blown away by how hard ALL of them worked. Even though I was busy with my own stuff, they all had jobs (sometimes more than one at a time), internships, research etc. If anything I learned that med school isn't the hardest path at all, its just the one with the most pre-reqs before you can apply. I should say though that all of them are currently or are in the process of applying for grad school so none of them are working with their B.S./B.A either.

p.s. the real work starts in med school.

 

[Bravetown]

Pre-meds are louder than accepted students. The process is humbling, and I don't think many people are all that impressed.

Seriously now that I look back it wasn't all that hard 😎

 

[Negrodamus]

Here's a device that will let you satisfy your ego

 

[amberkas11309]

Pre-meds are louder than accepted students. The process is humbling, and I don't think many people are all that impressed.

👍 so true! it's actually a pet peeve of mine when people declare pre-med...don't kno why, maybe im weird. I just have seemed to notice that people expect a certain response from people when they say they are pre-med.

 

[blh53]

Okay clearly my intention with this post has been grossly misinterpreted. I was at work, thinking about this topic for no particular reason that I can recall. Then I thought it might start up some interesting conversation on this board. I was NOT complaining about a lack of adoration being showered over me (I have in fact gotten a good amount of congratulations). However, that is not to say that I don't have an ego, and I don't like hearing praise from other people. It is my personal belief that most people who are academically accomplished have moderate sized to giant egos - it is just a matter of how much they are able to hide it. And you can't sit there and tell me it doesn't feel good when somebody congratulates you. I have gotten into medical school and in 5 months I have told all of three people without being prompted, two were my parents. I am pretty proud of what I've accomplished, as I'm sure you are too. So forgive me for thinking that we all deserve some recognition. I realize that in the grand scheme of things getting into med school is just a stepping stone into an accomplished career, but why not allow yourself some gratification along the way?

 

[BionicMan]

There's nothing impressive about being a "premed." As a matter of fact, I think it says more negative things than positive things about a person if they are too open about their plans to become a doctor.

By the way, people have been way more impressed by my engineering degree than the fact that I'm planning on going into medicine. For those of you who claim that the real work starts in medical school, please exclude that to your limited undergraduate experiences.

 

[rhesuspieces]

Okay clearly my intention with this post has been grossly misinterpreted. I was at work, thinking about this topic for no particular reason that I can recall. Then I thought it might start up some interesting conversation on this board. I was NOT complaining about a lack of adoration being showered over me (I have in fact gotten a good amount of congratulations). However, that is not to say that I don't have an ego, and I don't like hearing praise from other people. It is my personal belief that most people who are academically accomplished have moderate sized to giant egos - it is just a matter of how much they are able to hide it. And you can't sit there and tell me it doesn't feel good when somebody congratulates you. I have gotten into medical school and in 5 months I have told all of three people without being prompted, two were my parents. I am pretty proud of what I've accomplished, as I'm sure you are too. So forgive me for thinking that we all deserve some recognition. I realize that in the grand scheme of things getting into med school is just a stepping stone into an accomplished career, but why not allow yourself some gratification along the way?

Why did you ask us our thoughts on the matter if you didn't actually want to hear our thoughts? We're supposed to agree with you that the rest of the undergrads just don't understand "the sheer amount of work, talent, and organization it requires"? Sorry, but I like to think that my peers work as hard as I do, and though they may not understand what it takes to get into medical school...well, I don't really understand what it takes to get a job on Wall Street.

You'll find that most people on SDN who have actually gotten into medical school are far more focused on the difficulties that the next four years have in store for us than we are interested in "recognition" from those who aren't pursuing the same path that we are.

 

[PingPongPro]

Getting into med school isn't that difficult.

Getting into a elite med school, thats a different story

 

[raginfly]

Okay clearly my intention with this post has been grossly misinterpreted. I was at work, thinking about this topic for no particular reason that I can recall. Then I thought it might start up some interesting conversation on this board. I was NOT complaining about a lack of adoration being showered over me (I have in fact gotten a good amount of congratulations). However, that is not to say that I don't have an ego, and I don't like hearing praise from other people. It is my personal belief that most people who are academically accomplished have moderate sized to giant egos - it is just a matter of how much they are able to hide it. And you can't sit there and tell me it doesn't feel good when somebody congratulates you. I have gotten into medical school and in 5 months I have told all of three people without being prompted, two were my parents. I am pretty proud of what I've accomplished, as I'm sure you are too. So forgive me for thinking that we all deserve some recognition. I realize that in the grand scheme of things getting into med school is just a stepping stone into an accomplished career, but why not allow yourself some gratification along the way?

hey man. people might be impressed but they might not openly show their thoughts especially if they don't know you that well. If someone from my classes told me they were going to Harvard Med I would know they have accomplished a lot and be impressed but I wouldn't just start praising them. I would just simply say, "that's awesome!" I say that to everyone who tells me their career paths. But if they are a close friend of mine I would stroke their ego for sure because i know they wouldn't get the wrong impression and that's what friends are for sometimes. just to make this life thing a little easier. at the end, we should strive to accomplish things for our own satisfaction and shouldn't need anyone to stroke our egos. it's always nice for someone to do it though.

 

[mitchlucker]

A business major who lands a job on wall street wont think twice about telling you asap...


you got into med school, so did thousands of other people in the country. difficult, yes. but don't expect today's average "college crowd" will bow down to you.

usually what I hear about medicine

"eww dude you have to look at d*cks all day congrats lolz"

"i'll make 6 figures doing ______ within 3 yrs outta UG anyways. have fun. "

"too much school"

"no hot girls are in med school"

 

[vivalavie]

Getting into med school isn't that difficult.

Getting into a elite med school, thats a different story

You're everything that's wrong with pre-meds. It's breathtaking.

 

[fahimaz7]

There's nothing impressive about being a "premed." As a matter of fact, I think it says more negative things than positive things about a person if they are too open about their plans to become a doctor.

By the way, people have been way more impressed by my engineering degree than the fact that I'm planning on going into medicine. For those of you who claim that the real work starts in medical school, please exclude that to your limited undergraduate experiences.

Says the guy who hasn't even stepped foot into his first day of medical school. Don't worry, the time is coming for you to eat your own words...

We have ~40 Ga Tech engineering students in my medical school class, and I don't know a single one who thinks the workload was harder at Tech than it is at medical school. The two fields are completely different, and medical school will require you to work infinitely more hours to reach the same level of academic excellence that you are used to being able to do.

Ps. You won't be able to apply several basic theories to any of the problems that you see on the test, unlike how you got through engineering school.

 

[fahimaz7]

You'll find that most people on SDN who have actually gotten into medical school are far more focused on the difficulties that the next four years have in store for us than we are interested in "recognition" from those who aren't pursuing the same path that we are.

Our dean said it best during orientation when he said....

"What you have done it the past doesn't matter at all know. You are starting from ground zero. You will work harder in the next 4 years than you have ever worked in the past, while reaching new heights and new lows in the process. You will write your feature during these few years, which will transform your thinking about medicine, humanity, and you're own strength"...

Something like that. Either way, medical students realize that they are starting over from scratch, and that they have a long ass road ahead of them before they get to experience any of the perks that go along with the field (monetarily).

Don't think for a second that anyone is blown away by your accomplishment, if anything a lot of your friends will feel sorry for you over the next few years, as you waste your life away in the library trying to master a language that has no end, and is constantly changing.

 

[jaspr]

Getting into med school isn't that difficult.

Getting into a elite med school, thats a different story

Neither is really meaningfully more difficult than landing a job at a bulge bracket investment bank or a Big 3 consultancy. Why does it really matter how impressed random people are with what you think you might do in the future?

 

[TooBright]

For the record, I never said that it's not hard to make it as a business major. In fact, I've admitted in the past that some of my business major and law school friends are a lot smarter than myself. I have a lot of respect for the amount of work they put in to become succesful.

You don't have to clarify or explain yourself just because a bunch of nerds on here are jumping all over you for asking a simple question.


Like the person above said the undergraduate work required to get into medical school isn't even that hard. I looked up her Science GPA: 3.55. Her argument = invalid.


I think, in general, college students of any major understand it's difficult to get into a top medical school, although I'm sure they don't understand the finer factors like the ambiguity of admissions and exactly what the average matriculate has done as an undergraduate.

 

[deleted357625]

op u might be developing a god complex

"You ask if i have a god complex.....I am god"

 

[BionicMan]

Says the guy who hasn't even stepped foot into his first day of medical school. Don't worry, the time is coming for you to eat your own words...

We have ~40 Ga Tech engineering students in my medical school class, and I don't know a single one who thinks the workload was harder at Tech than it is at medical school. The two fields are completely different, and medical school will require you to work infinitely more hours to reach the same level of academic excellence that you are used to being able to do.

Ps. You won't be able to apply several basic theories to any of the problems that you see on the test, unlike how you got through engineering school.

My original point was that engineering is also a difficult profession requiring a lot of work in school, but you missed that completely.

 

[Elpenor]

People think it is way harder than it really is, imo.

 

[xisnotx]

First..nothing wrong with having arrogance...just be able to back it up.
Second...nerdy girls are hot..and I'm guessing there are plenty of nerds in med school.
Third..I know I am always impressed when I hear someone is doing pre med. It's like the holy grail of careers. Even if you can make more money doing other stuff..it is an ego thing.

 

[vballer]

I've thought about this in the past, and I've concluded I still don't know how I feel about it.

For full disclosure, I'm a senior at an Ivy where the two major outcomes are either med school or the corporate world (consulting, ibanking, PE, etc). For the most part, I have stayed away from other pre-meds as much as possible during my time at said school, and turns out many of my friends have done well and landed prestigious, high paying jobs in the corporate world for next year. Myself, I've gotten into a couple medical schools and will be matriculating at a pretty good one this August. We all have similar GPA's, and like my friends, I have always had some sort of internship during the summers. Yet, whenever we get to talking, they ALL recognize the fact that being a pre-med requires so much more...always being in lab, doing research, volunteering, shadowing, studying for/taking the MCAT's, getting 6 letters of recommendation, not to mention those pesky science pre-req's. Meanwhile, their GPA speaks for itself and they can simply use the alumni network to get interviews. That's it.

In the end, I have gotten my ego stroked for getting into med school just plenty. Now that I look back, I don't feel like I've worked all that hard and am not deserving of being praised 24/7. So I don't know, I suppose somewhere in the back of my mind I can recognize there is a difference, just not sure the extent of it.

 

[Hifey]

My original point was that engineering is also a difficult profession requiring a lot of work in school, but you missed that completely.

I believe you are correct in saying that engineering is a more difficult path to take to med school than say biology or chemistry. However, our point was that in med school it doesn't matter. You're all starting at the same place and its completely different from what you're used to no matter what your major was in college.

 

[BBender716]

Based on my experiences in both fields, getting into elite business fields (PE, IB, management consulting) is like a harder version of undergraduate admissions, where connections + school name + experiences are king. Medical school admissions are more test scores, grades, and the other ingredients we all know about here.

I'd be more impressed by someone from a public, mid-tier university getting into one of these business positions than into a Top 10 medical school. That barrier is just that difficult to break. At my university, which is a 31,000 undergraduate school, maybe 3-4 got into PE, IB bulge bracket, Big 4 management consulting combined in my grad year, and that's with a top 10 accounting program ranking.

That being said, both fields are difficult to gain entrance to just with different barriers. I admire people who accomplish either.

 

[rhesuspieces]

Like the person above said the undergraduate work required to get into medical school isn't even that hard. I looked up her Science GPA: 3.55. Her argument = invalid.

Self-quote time!

I don't think I worked any harder during ugrad than my business major friends who had internships, volunteered, participated in the hundred million different business clubs on campus, etc.

Sorry, but I like to think that my peers work as hard as I do

I NEVER said science classes aren't hard. Of course they're hard. I said that I don't think they're harder than the work many other ugrads do, and that I don't feel like I should be praised for completing pre-reqs and getting into medical school.

Thanks, though, for using my sGPA to make some kind of weird point regarding my subjective perception of the difficulty of my classes.