Why do you all want to be doctors?

[LadyJubilee8_18]

I know in an interview I am going to have to come up with a good reason for wanting to be a doctor, but there are no spectacular or inspiring reasons why I want to. I just think it's the best career fit. Why do you all want to become doctors?

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[donnap86]

To take care of people and save lives and...... make some $$$.

 

[SteelEyes]

I suggest you reflect more on why it is you want to become a physician. Maybe the reason you're having trouble is because you don't know enough about the profession.
I strongly recommend formulating your own answer to this question now. Picking up the old cliches of posters from SDN won't help you at all in interviews. If you are using this thread to genuinely learn more about the profession and why others have chosen it, then that's different of course. You say you feel it is the best career choice. What is your basis for that statement?

 

[shahalam]

Is it just me, or is this question asked waaaaaaay too many times on SDN? Almost every time someone asks it, there are all these stupid responses to it as well. Btw, I have a small penis so I need to be a doctor too. 😉

 

[Shaz]

You guys better know the answer to this question by the time interviews roll around.

 

[LJoo83]

steel eyes has a very good point. when the going gets tough, you're going to need some internal conviction on why you want to dedicate your life to this noble profession.

i think it is important you know why you truly want to be a doctor besides it just "fits". list specific reasons. do some major soul searching. ask yourself your motives for wanting to be a doctor. is it because you need to feed your insecurities or because it's something you can wake up to everyday, feeling a true sense of purpose?

medicine is too high of a calling to be tossed around carelessly.

 

[synapse lapse]

money, ho's, and rims

 

[~~premed82~~]

money, ho's, and rims

WOW! I never thought about it like that, thanks!

 

[thirdunity]

Me?

OK, I'll answer this honestly, because I'm still clarifying this point myself. I keep having to edit this post because I have exactly the opposite problem of "can't think of an answer to this question".

I definitely have an answer to this question, I just don't know if it's the *right* answer.

Why? Because my interest in medicine is completely, utterly and shamelessly selfish.

It isn't "to help people" or any of that because there are easier ways to do something that helps people. There are too many easier "helpful" jobs to get into, to justify becoming a doctor to do it. And it's not worth it for the money considering how much money you lose due to malpractice insurance, taxes, paying off student loans, etc. I'm also not doing this because I just really love and crave patient contact, because if that were *all* I wanted, I could become a nurse and get that. Realistically, I know that I could do a low-contact type of job, or go the MD/PhD route and do research, if I hated the contact.

Here's the deal: I keep having to edit this post over and over because I just can't write this and not make it a *novel*.

Basically it boils down to, I'm just a person with an eccentric, bizarre lifelong clinical interest in humans, their bodies, and what makes those humans and their bodies tick. I want to know more. I need to know more.

I crave this knowledge like some people crave sex or crack cocaine, and the more I know, the more I want to know. I want to know so badly it keeps me up all night reading and finding out more. I want to know so badly that I'm willing to torture myself going through all this crap to *get* that knowledge. Some people are willing to sell their bodies for crack or smack. I lived around those people, growing up. I've seen their cravings, their desparation.

I crave this knowledge almost like *that*. Just as someone might get some high-grade heroin to mainline if only they sell their body on a street corner just one more night, I feel that perhaps if I stay up all night every night doing math (which is torture for some people; and remember, I'm a high school dropout, and all my life, people said I "couldn't learn"), I'll be able to get this knowledge in the most direct way possible. Becoming a doctor is the way I will get the "mainline" of the knowledge of the human body and how it ticks.

I've been passionately obsessed with medicine (and bioscience in general) all of my life. Insanely, eccentrically obsessed to the point of being "that weird kid" (there's one in every classroom...) growing up.

I am a non-traditional student transitioning over from being a computer person.

It may be that I am too eccentric to be a doctor. I have a bit of the "eccentric scientist" or "obsessed detective" personality, except that I am too extraverted to be either a pure scientist. I like being around people. But I will regret it the rest of my life if I don't give medicine a shot. I'd rather try and say "I tried it and didn't like it" or "I tried it and failed" than say that I didn't try, I won't respect myself if I don't try.

If I don't end up becoming a doctor, then I'll be associated with scientific research or public health in some form. I'm going after my EMT-B certificate this summer, so we'll see how I like being around body fluids and stress in real life. Med school or not, I'm still getting out of here with a bio degree, and probably doing something related to the academic study of medicine if not the practice of it.

I don't know if these are the right reasons. It could be that I'm exactly the *wrong* person for the job, that I would be too clinical or curious to be a compassionate person.

 

[SD Skunk]

to make up for my small penis.

HAHAHAHA that is funny as s h i t

i want to be a doctor so that i can wear a long white lab coat to help hide my colossal penis

 

[BeBlessedMD]

I want to be a doctor because I want to be from maryland and its the only way I can have MD behind my name without actually havind residence there.

 

[BeBlessedMD]

I want to be a doctor because I want to be from maryland and its the only way I can have MD behind my name without actually havind residence there.

having

 

[humuhumu]

Me?

OK, I'll answer this honestly, because I'm still clarifying this point myself. I keep having to edit this post because I have exactly the opposite problem of "can't think of an answer to this question".

I definitely have an answer to this question, I just don't know if it's the *right* answer.

Why? Because my interest in medicine is completely, utterly and shamelessly selfish.

It isn't "to help people" or any of that because there are easier ways to do something that helps people. There are too many easier "helpful" jobs to get into, to justify becoming a doctor to do it. And it's not worth it for the money considering how much money you lose due to malpractice insurance, taxes, paying off student loans, etc. I'm also not doing this because I just really love and crave patient contact, because if that were *all* I wanted, I could become a nurse and get that. Realistically, I know that I could do a low-contact type of job, or go the MD/PhD route and do research, if I hated the contact.

Here's the deal: I keep having to edit this post over and over because I just can't write this and not make it a *novel*.

Basically it boils down to, I'm just a person with an eccentric, bizarre lifelong clinical interest in humans, their bodies, and what makes those humans and their bodies tick. I want to know more. I need to know more.

I crave this knowledge like some people crave sex or crack cocaine, and the more I know, the more I want to know. I want to know so badly it keeps me up all night reading and finding out more. I want to know so badly that I'm willing to torture myself going through all this crap to *get* that knowledge. Some people are willing to sell their bodies for crack or smack. I lived around those people, growing up. I've seen their cravings, their desparation.

I crave this knowledge almost like *that*. Just as someone might get some high-grade heroin to mainline if only they sell their body on a street corner just one more night, I feel that perhaps if I stay up all night every night doing math (which is torture for some people; and remember, I'm a high school dropout, and all my life, people said I "couldn't learn"), I'll be able to get this knowledge in the most direct way possible. Becoming a doctor is the way I will get the "mainline" of the knowledge of the human body and how it ticks.

I've been passionately obsessed with medicine (and bioscience in general) all of my life. Insanely, eccentrically obsessed to the point of being "that weird kid" (there's one in every classroom...) growing up.

I am a non-traditional student transitioning over from being a computer person.

It may be that I am too eccentric to be a doctor. I have a bit of the "eccentric scientist" or "obsessed detective" personality, except that I am too extraverted to be either a pure scientist. I like being around people. But I will regret it the rest of my life if I don't give medicine a shot. I'd rather try and say "I tried it and didn't like it" or "I tried it and failed" than say that I didn't try, I won't respect myself if I don't try.

If I don't end up becoming a doctor, then I'll be associated with scientific research or public health in some form. I'm going after my EMT-B certificate this summer, so we'll see how I like being around body fluids and stress in real life. Med school or not, I'm still getting out of here with a bio degree, and probably doing something related to the academic study of medicine if not the practice of it.

I don't know if these are the right reasons. It could be that I'm exactly the *wrong* person for the job, that I would be too clinical or curious to be a compassionate person.

I like it. I'm not sure if the admissions committees will think it's enough, but it's a good honest start. You'd probably be a great pathologist, obsessed with gathering data and solving puzzles, or maybe a radiologist, scanning hundreds of images a day for anomalies. You might like biomedical research, too, and the money isn't bad if you play your cards right....

 

[Sainttpk]

I know in an interview I am going to have to come up with a good reason for wanting to be a doctor, but there are no spectacular or inspiring reasons why I want to. I just think it's the best career fit. Why do you all want to become doctors?

While interviewing Bill Clinton, Oprah asked "Why did you cheat with Monica Lewinsky?" Bill Clinton Replied: "For the worst reason, because I could"

I like this quote alot... Just because you can do something, does not mean you should do it. That is great that you are getting your EMT certificate, maybe it will show you why you really want to be a doctor, however if you need to ask other people why you want to go into medicine then maybe its not right for you?

 

[on_the_fence]

however if you need to ask other people why you want to go into medicine then maybe its not right for you?

I don't agree with this, though I understand the comment's relevancy to this particular post. I know why *I* want to be a doctor, but I still ask other people why they want to go into medicine -- it's curioisity and comparison. Do they want it for the same reasons I want it? Do they have some perspective that I haven't discovered yet?

 

[Loco Loki]

I dunno, but I think the motives are pretty much universal. It has a clear-cut dichotomy: on one side science and technology, and on the other helping your fellow man. Medicine, unlike other fields, blends the two, and you can directly apply bleeding edge science to help others in their time of need. Really, what else is there? You get to learn cool things, the ability to see direct results of scientific research, while helping people to boot.

You can have one or both of these sides as motivators. Like thirdunity is science based (fascinated by the human body). And the others who travel to underserved areas to give care, they favor the humanitarian aspect.

That is the why, the how varies from person to person.

 

[jvphd]

Me?

OK, I'll answer this honestly, because I'm still clarifying this point myself. I keep having to edit this post because I have exactly the opposite problem of "can't think of an answer to this question".

I definitely have an answer to this question, I just don't know if it's the *right* answer.

Why? Because my interest in medicine is completely, utterly and shamelessly selfish.

It isn't "to help people" or any of that because there are easier ways to do something that helps people. There are too many easier "helpful" jobs to get into, to justify becoming a doctor to do it. And it's not worth it for the money considering how much money you lose due to malpractice insurance, taxes, paying off student loans, etc. I'm also not doing this because I just really love and crave patient contact, because if that were *all* I wanted, I could become a nurse and get that. Realistically, I know that I could do a low-contact type of job, or go the MD/PhD route and do research, if I hated the contact.

Here's the deal: I keep having to edit this post over and over because I just can't write this and not make it a *novel*.

Basically it boils down to, I'm just a person with an eccentric, bizarre lifelong clinical interest in humans, their bodies, and what makes those humans and their bodies tick. I want to know more. I need to know more.

I crave this knowledge like some people crave sex or crack cocaine, and the more I know, the more I want to know. I want to know so badly it keeps me up all night reading and finding out more. I want to know so badly that I'm willing to torture myself going through all this crap to *get* that knowledge. Some people are willing to sell their bodies for crack or smack. I lived around those people, growing up. I've seen their cravings, their desparation.

I crave this knowledge almost like *that*. Just as someone might get some high-grade heroin to mainline if only they sell their body on a street corner just one more night, I feel that perhaps if I stay up all night every night doing math (which is torture for some people; and remember, I'm a high school dropout, and all my life, people said I "couldn't learn"), I'll be able to get this knowledge in the most direct way possible. Becoming a doctor is the way I will get the "mainline" of the knowledge of the human body and how it ticks.

I've been passionately obsessed with medicine (and bioscience in general) all of my life. Insanely, eccentrically obsessed to the point of being "that weird kid" (there's one in every classroom...) growing up.

I am a non-traditional student transitioning over from being a computer person.

It may be that I am too eccentric to be a doctor. I have a bit of the "eccentric scientist" or "obsessed detective" personality, except that I am too extraverted to be either a pure scientist. I like being around people. But I will regret it the rest of my life if I don't give medicine a shot. I'd rather try and say "I tried it and didn't like it" or "I tried it and failed" than say that I didn't try, I won't respect myself if I don't try.

If I don't end up becoming a doctor, then I'll be associated with scientific research or public health in some form. I'm going after my EMT-B certificate this summer, so we'll see how I like being around body fluids and stress in real life. Med school or not, I'm still getting out of here with a bio degree, and probably doing something related to the academic study of medicine if not the practice of it.

I don't know if these are the right reasons. It could be that I'm exactly the *wrong* person for the job, that I would be too clinical or curious to be a compassionate person.

Thank god I'm not the only person like this! I used to read Taber's med dictionary for fun. Really! I'm non-trad also, thought getting a phd would satisfy me. I'm nearly finished and I'm not satisfied. Research is painfully slow and often discouraging. Ultimately my research may never impact another human being (of course I hope it will). I worked as a surgical technologist for many years and for a couple of years it was enough. I am applying for med school this summer and have also been trying to formulate my answer. Saying I would be an excellent physician and that I want to and need to be a dr is definately not enough.

With regards to the OPs question, I think finding out how others have verbalized their desire is a good thing to do. Seeing the responses may help to clarify the OPs own desires. Good luck.

 

[bmcgilligan]

Is it just me, or is this question asked waaaaaaay too many times on SDN? Almost every time someone asks it, there are all these stupid responses to it as well. Btw, I have a small penis so I need to be a doctor too. 😉

I don't even have a penis. Maybe that's why I am going to be a doctor.

 

[NubianPrincess]

It just seems like the "in" thing to do, doesn't it? 😕

 

[LadyJubilee8_18]

It just seems like the "in" thing to do, doesn't it? 😕

Ok, maybe I should clarify my desire to be a doctor a little more. I have always been very involved in science- especially the biological sciences. Since My parents always sent me to math and science camps in middle school and encouraged me to take AP classes in sciences and do whatever I could to be involved. Because of this, I developed an interest in the field, but I am not sure that this interest started with me (though I do enjoy the course work). I have been able to do well as a pre-med and I find the course work interesting, but on a certain level it feels artificial. Maybe I just think about it too much, but I will never know what I would have taken interest in naturally, without that push from my parents.
Consequently, I spent a lot of time changing my major when I first got to college. I tried psychology and found too few definite answers; I tried political science and found that in involved too little science; I even tried geophysics (what the hell was I thinking?) nothing seemed to work well. I spent time over the summer volunteering at an elderly home and I really enjoyed helping out there. Finally, I realized that I wanted to be involved with the biological sciences but I also needed person to person contact. I never actually volunteered at a hospital (though I really need to I guess). I am now training with a program here in Houston to work with autistic children in an effort to teach them social skills so that they can attend normal schools.
I am “pretty sure” that I would like to be a doctor, but one thing I’ve learned about pre-med is that it does not train you to be a clinician, it trains you to be a scientist. This is the root of the bulk of my confusion. Bottom line, I guess, is that medicine effectively allows you to remain “on the fence” you kind of get the best aspects of multiple professions. I will be able to help others like a social worker, but I will be better appreciated (and safer). I will be involved in professional science like a researcher without having to retire to some stuffy lab every day. It seems like a good idea, but is that good enough for admissions committees? I doubt it.

 

[wendywellesley]

It just seems like the "in" thing to do, doesn't it? 😕

it does. i also hear it's the best way to meet future dermatologist and plastic surgeons. can we say bling bling?

 

[thirdunity]

Consequently, I spent a lot of time changing my major when I first got to college. I tried psychology and found too few definite answers; I tried political science and found that in involved too little science; I even tried geophysics (what the hell was I thinking?) nothing seemed to work well. I spent time over the summer volunteering at an elderly home and I really enjoyed helping out there. Finally, I realized that I wanted to be involved with the biological sciences but I also needed person to person contact. I never actually volunteered at a hospital (though I really need to I guess). I am now training with a program here in Houston to work with autistic children in an effort to teach them social skills so that they can attend normal schools.
Bottom line, I guess, is that medicine effectively allows you to remain “on the fence” you kind of get the best aspects of multiple professions. I will be able to help others like a social worker, but I will be better appreciated (and safer). I will be involved in professional science like a researcher without having to retire to some stuffy lab every day.

This is a lot of it for me, too. Here's more.

I'm passionate about the sciences, but medicine appeals more to me for a couple of reasons:
* it's interdisciplinary... focusing exclusively on any one science would bore me.
* I need lots of human contact, anything w/o much human contact bores me stiff.
* I like interacting with people from all walks of life - I worked in computers and all I ever met, was other computer people. I enjoy interacting with people from different cultures, too, and think I could be sensitive to cultural issues.
* I need to be able to move around and not sit at a desk all the time.
* I'd get to be on the front lines where science is *happening*, instead of stuck in a room by myself with test tubes, microscope slides, computers and petri dishes.

 

[Flightfire]

I know how you feel LadyJubilee8_18. I am going absolutely nuts right now trying to figure out if I actually want to be a doctor or not. I came out of high school and thought that I wanted to be a commercial pilot. I got my pilot's license in high school, but to be an airline pilot, you have to have a college degree. I decided that I didn't want to go to an aviation program because I wanted the "college experience" so I enrolled at the state University.

I had taken AP Biology in school and did really well and liked it a lot, so I decided to major in that. I wasn't interested in the ecological aspect of biology. I was interested in the nitty, gritty, molecular machines that make it work. I took the required coursework for my major which included lots of chemisty, biology, physics, and biochemistry, basically everything you need to get into med school. I had thought about being a doc after my freshman year (because that's where everybody in my major was headed), so I worked at a hospital for the summer and didn't hate it, but wasn't really inspried by it.

After that, I was determined to be a pilot, so I kinda slacked off on my coursework (lots of B's that year. O-chem hurts) and started working on my instrument rating and taking some weather courses. I got my instrument rating in the summer. I don't know exactly what happened that summer, but I tried to get jobs with the aviation industry and nothing really worked out, so I volunteered a lot and just kinda hung out. I kinda fell off of flying in the next year.

The next year, I was starting to really enjoy college (not that I hadn't before). I was on an accelerated track because I had a bunch of AP credit coming in, and I was going to graduate that year (3 year program). I was working as a tutor about 20 hrs a week, and I started and ran the intramural dodgeball program. I was on campus 12 hrs a day 5 days a week, and loving it. I was also taking biochemistry and really enjoying learing about the stuff I was in the major for. I enjoyed studying with my friends, and was thinking to myself, "Hell, if this is what med school is like, I could really love it."

Then...I graduated. By now I was thoroughly confused about what I wanted to do with my life. I had all the prerequistes to go to med school, but I don't think I really want to be a doctor, but what do I want to do? Pilot is still on the table, but now I have significant problems with it: like no people interaction, no biological science, fossil fuel use (I'm a liberal-hippie), and no aspect of nobility that is associated with scientic, medical, and academic professions. I love flying, but I think I want to do it as a hobby in order to keep the wonder in it.

Following the pattern of my life, I kept my options open. I went to work at a biotech firm in town to see what that was like, and then studied for the MCAT that summer. I hated my job (sitting in front of a computer) and decided that the business track was definitely out. I did mediocre on the MCAT, and decided that I was sick of worrying about it and I wanted to be a ski bum for a season. It was great until I tore my ACL and had to move back home for surgery and recovery. So now I'm back in the postion I was when I graduated, deciding whether or not I want to be a doctor.

I know I didn't answer you question very well LadyJubilee8_18, but it might give you some perspective on why I am thinking about being a doctor. I love biological science. I think biology is the coolest thing that our world has ever seen. I love interacting with and helping people, my tutoring experience showed me that. I hate desk jobs, and I'm going to need a fair chunk of change if I want to have flying as a hobby. I want to be able to choose where I live and have a skill that can help people in the community. So medicine is not my overwhelming passion, but I can't think of another career that combines all those aspects and fits as well as medicine does.

 

[LSU-Tech]

I know in an interview I am going to have to come up with a good reason for wanting to be a doctor, but there are no spectacular or inspiring reasons why I want to. I just think it's the best career fit. Why do you all want to become doctors?

I have a book that entitled "Essays that will get you into medical school". It contains a chapter devoted to the topic of med school interviews. It says the number one thing that the committee hears, when they ask a student why they want to be a doctor, is "So I can help people". Don't say that! How are you supposed to stand out if you say the same thing 90% of all the other students say? Be unique. This is not a question you should ask others on a forum. It's something you need to figure out on your own. Don't say money either. The way I see it, wanting to help people is an understatement. All doctors should want to help people. It's like a welder saying the reason he wanted to be a welder was because he wanted to weld. Think about this a little. Inspiration is a good topic. Be sure you tell what inspired you to be a doctor, but try not to be dramatic about it. Short concise answers are the best, when it comes to answering a question you are unsure about. However, your reason for pursuing a medical degree should not be something you are unsure about.

Best of Luck

 

[xadmin]

I want to be a doctor because I needed a job to support myself. Hell, if I win the lottery I wouldn't be working.

First, I worked at Chevron to try to support myself, but I didn't like my lifestyle. Then I moved on to working for Pizza Hut, but again, the job was so boring. Next I worked at Office Depot and it was a decent job with good pay and I was making 25k a year. I was happy at this job for awhile until my store closed down. After this, I ponder what other career I could pursue that would be easy to tackle and rewarding. So I figured a physician would be it. I took the MCAT, applied and got in. Simple as that.

 

[housecleaning]

Me?
Some people are willing to sell their bodies for crack or smack.

ohhhh*h*h*h*h, the crack/smack combo...does it get any better?

sorry. carry on.

 

[getunconcsious]

I want to do it because I'm a glutton for punishment. I enjoy suffering, and I'd have no personality without something to whine incessantly about. Premed, med school, and residency are all easy to complain about. Woe is me!

 

[SteelEyes]

It seems to me like the OP is making her decision about being a doctor with a "diagnosis of exclusion" type of thought process. This is not necessarily good or bad, provided the differential diagnosis is complete.
In this situation, I propose that a unique personal statement idea might be to construct the statement in a framework mimicking an H & P (history and physical) utilizing background information, motives, inspirations, aptitudes and eventually formulating a "differential diagnosis" of careers and ruling them out logically. I would of course make every attempt to solidify my diagnosis in my "assessment" in the closing paragraph and then to lay out my "plan" for med school and beyond. This could be a unique, albeit edgy, kind of personal statement that if written well, could impress some adcoms. In the very least it would show the thought process they are looking for, with logic and decision-making skills.
Any thoughts?

 

[Ross434]

It seems to me like the OP is making her decision about being a doctor with a "diagnosis of exclusion" type of thought process. This is not necessarily good or bad, provided the differential diagnosis is complete.
In this situation, I propose that a unique personal statement idea might be to construct the statement in a framework mimicking an H & P (history and physical) utilizing background information, motives, inspirations, aptitudes and eventually formulating a "differential diagnosis" of careers and ruling them out logically. I would of course make every attempt to solidify my diagnosis in my "assessment" in the closing paragraph and then to lay out my "plan" for med school and beyond. This could be a unique, albeit edgy, kind of personal statement that if written well, could impress some adcoms. In the very least it would show the thought process they are looking for, with logic and decision-making skills.
Any thoughts?

this is a pretty sweet idea 👍

 

[Orth2006]

I think this question is an awkward one with no right or wrong answer. All the adcoms are looking for is uniqueness and creativity like someone mentioned. But then how unique or creative can you get without overlapping with other peoples reasons for being a doctor? I think the real hidden question is "you want to be doctor, so you can make money - right?". The insinuation that one desires to be a doctor for no other reason but money is what makes it a hard question to answer. You have to answer convincingly that your motives are more than financial.

But if you really think about it I dont even see how your motive could be financial anyway. There are much easier ways to make money and faster than being a doctor. Plus you dont even start making the big bucks till about 10 - 11 years. I am non-trad and will be taking a huge pay cut when i start in 2006. Thats gonna be for 4 years then for residency the pay is so so. And all this not including 100K - 200K or so loans to pay back. I think the key is to be real and honest.

 

[illiniTJ]

its easy.... babes, Money, Power, & more babes!!



J/k - that was an answer I heard from a friend and thought it was pretty funny.


(in Peter Griffin voice) but really... come oooooon....... come ooooooooon......... Come oooooon.....



-

 

[getunconcsious]

its easy.... babes, Money, Power, & more babes!!



-

I hope that everyone who thinks being a doctor will be fun has that hope crushed and becomes miserable and bitter like me.

 

[Hoberto]

because then when I call my husband doctor he will have to call me doctor doctor. Well, I'll let him call me doctors if he wants, but doctor doctor is better!


hehehe, j/k

 

[LadyJubilee8_18]

It seems to me like the OP is making her decision about being a doctor with a "diagnosis of exclusion" type of thought process. This is not necessarily good or bad, provided the differential diagnosis is complete.
In this situation, I propose that a unique personal statement idea might be to construct the statement in a framework mimicking an H & P (history and physical) utilizing background information, motives, inspirations, aptitudes and eventually formulating a "differential diagnosis" of careers and ruling them out logically. I would of course make every attempt to solidify my diagnosis in my "assessment" in the closing paragraph and then to lay out my "plan" for med school and beyond. This could be a unique, albeit edgy, kind of personal statement that if written well, could impress some adcoms. In the very least it would show the thought process they are looking for, with logic and decision-making skills.
Any thoughts?

That is a REALLY good ideal! Thanks for the post, its really helpful.

 

[oompa loompa]

I have a bit of the "eccentric scientist" or "obsessed detective" personality, except that I am too extraverted to be either a pure scientist. I like being around people.

If I don't end up becoming a doctor, then I'll be associated with scientific research or public health in some form. I'm going after my EMT-B certificate this summer, so we'll see how I like being around body fluids and stress in real life. Med school or not, I'm still getting out of here with a bio degree, and probably doing something related to the academic study of medicine if not the practice of it.

I don't know if these are the right reasons. It could be that I'm exactly the *wrong* person for the job, that I would be too clinical or curious to be a compassionate person.

Sounds like you should go into research, not healthcare. Unless you're pursuing an MDPhD, I have a hard time understanding why your "obsession" w/ knowing more about human physiology requires that you become a doctor.

And as a researcher, you would get plenty of interaction w/ others to satisfy your "extravert" needs.

 

[oompa loompa]

This is a lot of it for me, too. Here's more.

I'm passionate about the sciences, but medicine appeals more to me for a couple of reasons:
* it's interdisciplinary... focusing exclusively on any one science would bore me.
* I need lots of human contact, anything w/o much human contact bores me stiff.
* I like interacting with people from all walks of life - I worked in computers and all I ever met, was other computer people. I enjoy interacting with people from different cultures, too, and think I could be sensitive to cultural issues.
* I need to be able to move around and not sit at a desk all the time.
* I'd get to be on the front lines where science is *happening*, instead of stuck in a room by myself with test tubes, microscope slides, computers and petri dishes.

Right, so you think science is not *happening* in the lab, but in the doctor's clinic?

 

[Flightfire]

I asked my pre-med buddy about this too and he said he wanted to be a doctor because it was one of the only jobs in our society where you have knowledge-based power. He's a philosphy major, so I thought he was being a little too deep for his own good. I also would NOT use this answer in an interview.

 

[Sophie]

In this situation, I propose that a unique personal statement idea might be to construct the statement in a framework mimicking an H & P (history and physical) utilizing background information, motives, inspirations, aptitudes and eventually formulating a "differential diagnosis" of careers and ruling them out logically. I would of course make every attempt to solidify my diagnosis in my "assessment" in the closing paragraph and then to lay out my "plan" for med school and beyond. This could be a unique, albeit edgy, kind of personal statement that if written well, could impress some adcoms. In the very least it would show the thought process they are looking for, with logic and decision-making skills.
Any thoughts?

That's the formula I used for my personal statement, and I think it worked pretty well.

To the OP: I'm in a fairly similar situation. I KNOW I want to be a doctor, and I definitely have a passion for it, but it's very difficult to explain why. I graduated from college thinking I wanted to do research and that research was the most amazing, incredible thing in the world, but after doing it for a while I realized I NEED to be around people. I was confused and lost, and had no clue as to what career to pursue, so I did what I was best at: I researched. I wrote down everything I liked about research, my hobbies, classes, etc, and everything I disliked. I took that list and started brainstorming as many careers as I could that fit the qualities I liked, and then I learned as much as I possibly could about those careers. Once I knew a lot about each it was easy to narrow down the list, and the last career left standing was doctor.

Once I had logically chosen my career, I had to make sure it fit emotionally as well. I volunteered at a hospital, which was a waste of time, and then shadowed a doctor. During shadowing was when everything clicked. I found I didn't want to leave at the end of the day, and couldn't wait until the next time I'd get to go back. I was fascinated by everything I saw, and asked tons of questions. I could easily see myself doing what the doctor did every day for the rest of my life. I was still shadowing six months later, and it was still just as amazing as it was at the beginning, so I knew it wasn't just one of those things that you like at first and then get bored of.

My problem is, this shows how I arrived at my decision to be a doctor, but doesn't truly explain why. Part of the why is that it combines research, human contact, getting to keep learning throughout life, making a difference in peoples' lives/feeling like what I'm spending my life doing is worthwhile, and science. That's just a list, though, and doesn't go into the excitement and passion and all the other feelings that come with it - and those are the things I just can't explain in words, and are most likely the answers the ADCOMS are most looking for. It's very frustrating.