Women, Re-applying

[Tre Cool]

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I want to ask all the women out there who are re-applicants this:

If you kept getting rejected from US med schools, would you keep reapplying and pushing back starting your career when you also want to have a family and hopefully at least one child before 35 years of age? I'd appreciate your thoughts.

 

[BaylorGuy]

My sister is a doctor who is currently practicing family medicine in the houston medical center. She's been out of residency for 4 years and actually just got married this past year and is having her first baby in july. She is also 34, so yes, it is very possible...even if you get rejected from med schools once or twice. Hopefuly this wont be the case though.

 

[Tre Cool]

thanks. but i can't tell...she got rejected once or twice? another concern of mine is that i'm already 3 years out of college. i'm improving my application but is waiting 4 (possibly 5) years out of college doable? at most i'd be 26 when i start. 30 when i'm done with med school. and then residency (tough to have a kid then, depending on specialty of course).

just curious...women who are reapplicants...how old were/are you entering med school? those still in the midst of applying, what age will you stop reapplying (if so...i'm not trying to discourage) and go to any med school (including caribbean ones)?

 

[BlueMagpie]

thanks. but i can't tell...she got rejected once or twice? another concern of mine is that i'm already 3 years out of college. i'm improving my application but is waiting 4 (possibly 5) years out of college doable? at most i'd be 26 when i start. 30 when i'm done with med school. and then residency (tough to have a kid then, depending on specialty of course).

just curious...women who are reapplicants...how old were/are you entering med school? those still in the midst of applying, what age will you stop reapplying (if so...i'm not trying to discourage) and go to any med school (including caribbean ones)?

There's a thread about this in the allopathic forum if you want to do a search. Also check out the Nontrad forum.

I'm almost 26 and heading into med school. I'm not particularly worried anymore about when I'll have kids...(I'm not even dating anyone right now). I figure it will happen sometime and hopefully I'll have a *very* supportive husband.

 

[MaLiKha]

thanks. but i can't tell...she got rejected once or twice? another concern of mine is that i'm already 3 years out of college. i'm improving my application but is waiting 4 (possibly 5) years out of college doable? at most i'd be 26 when i start. 30 when i'm done with med school. and then residency (tough to have a kid then, depending on specialty of course).

just curious...women who are reapplicants...how old were/are you entering med school? those still in the midst of applying, what age will you stop reapplying (if so...i'm not trying to discourage) and go to any med school (including caribbean ones)?

I am 26 yr old and i applied last year and this year. I got reject letters last year and this year. I am now decided to go to carribean school. I been out of school for 2 year since 2003 and I don't think it will be nice to be out more than 3 year unless you have something to show them. I got an interview for this year and the interviewer asked me what science courses I took after I finished my school. I took only 2 science classes because i was working 2 jobs full time. But he didn't like that answer. I got reject letter anyway. I asked my advisor what i should do: reapply or carribean. She said if I am reapplying, I might need to take more science courses to improve my application and also to show some school work. I don't want to waste another year of waiting and wasting money (for tuition and application fees) and I decided to apply SGU. I think it is up to you to decide whether you should go on with your carreer or you should go to foreign school.

In my opinion, I don't want to spend more time on application. I done it for 2 years. There is no assurance that I will get into med school for next year if I reapply while taking some courses. Also MCAT only last for 2 years, right? If you want a child before 35, you should decide soon what you want to do. Do you really want to become a physician? If you are, do whatever it takes for you to do, even consider DO or carribean school. For me if i get into med school for this year, I will be 30 when I finish med school and I will be about 34 when I finish residency. I don't want to wait any longer because the time doesn't wait for me to become a doctor.

I hope it helps.

 

[ma-bas]

Hi,

I was a re-applicant and am starting this fall. I applied last year and didn't get in and was successful this year. I am 30. Of course I feel the pressure of thinking about when I will start a family. I already married, so it is just a matter of finding the right balance between school/work and family.

I think we will try while in school, but if not I'll be 35 when I graduate, a little later than I would like to start, but not unreasonable, and pretty much the norm amongst people I know.

I really did not want to do a past-bacc, so when I applied this time I applied to a wider range of schools. Last time I only applied to schools in my immediate geographic area. This time I got into 2 schools, one allo and one osteo.

I would have not gone the carib route b/c I am married. I don't know the OP is married or in a committed relationship, b/c this might influence your school location choice. If you are just asking hypothetically, I would suggest you just make getting into school your first priority. I imagine finding a suitable mate would be much more difficult than having a baby in med school or residency.

I was 6 years out of school when I first began applying. Time out of school is less of an issue, if that time is well spent, doing something meaningful and relevant. I think some of the work that I did in the past year alone, helped put me over the edge this year.

Feel free to PM if you want more details. And good luck!

 

[t33sg1rl]

I'm 24 now, no acceptances for this fall. (A couple waitlists, but I'm preparing to reapply). I'm disappointed at the additional year, but one thing that I've learned through this past application cycle is that I can have a child in school... but it really depends on the school. Out of the schools that I applied to, I would rate two as extremely baby-friendly-Case Western Reserve and Ohio State. Case puts ALL lectures online immediately for your viewing pleasure-not only lecture notes, but actual video recordings of the lectures, drastically cutting the need to go to class. Ohio State offers an independent study pathway (which is not TOO independent-you still get a lot of guidance and help) but like Case, you end up spending only a few hours a week in lecture.
Anyway, this is a major concern for me, because although I'm only 24, my partner is 38. I'm fine with waiting until 30, but that makes my partner 44. We've been together for five years now, and while she's perfectly happy to wait for my career, we've both had baby fever for a while now. I know we'll have to borrow a little more than if we're childless, but I'm not going to school to get rich. I'm happy to maintain our current standard of living well after I'm a 'real' doctor in order to get out of eyeball-level debt-we own a modest suburban home and could live on my partner's salary if we didn't have any extras-gym memberships, cell phones, 2 cars, etc.
I guess my overall feeling is that if you want a child badly enough, you'll accept the sacrifices-you won't get as much time with the baby as your partner/spouse will, and your financial outlook will be in debt for years to come.

 

[AlaskaGirl]

thanks. but i can't tell...she got rejected once or twice? another concern of mine is that i'm already 3 years out of college. i'm improving my application but is waiting 4 (possibly 5) years out of college doable? at most i'd be 26 when i start. 30 when i'm done with med school. and then residency (tough to have a kid then, depending on specialty of course).

just curious...women who are reapplicants...how old were/are you entering med school? those still in the midst of applying, what age will you stop reapplying (if so...i'm not trying to discourage) and go to any med school (including caribbean ones)?

I am not a reapplicant, but will be entering med school when I am 26...this fall. As it goes now I probably won't be looking at starting a family until I am in my early thirties...but it is very doable and I don't see any problems with it.

 

[NSMedStudent]

I think you should check out www.mommd.com. You will find a whole ton of women in similar situations (and all kinds of other situations!) at every level from pre-med to physician. They are all mothers or want to be someday, or just women who want to be physicians. Check out the forums for very similar threads, or else register and start your own. Only thing to be wary of is that you are not allowed to post in a forum that is only for a certain group of people (i.e. you can't post in the physicians-only or med students-only forums, etc., but I think you can reply). Bottom line, if you want to be a doctor, don't give up! Children will fit in - you can always make it work (and tons of people are having kids during med school these days! turns out it's one of the easiest times to do it!). Good luck! 🙂

 

[Frogmed]

I'm not a reapplicant, but I started my undergrad at 29. I'm now 35 and starting med school! Your never to old and believe me there is never a perfect time to start a family. Just do it. Life always works out for the best!

 

[Oluchi]

I think you should check out www.mommd.com. You will find a whole ton of women in similar situations (and all kinds of other situations!) at every level from pre-med to physician. They are all mothers or want to be someday, or just women who want to be physicians. Check out the forums for very similar threads, or else register and start your own. Only thing to be wary of is that you are not allowed to post in a forum that is only for a certain group of people (i.e. you can't post in the physicians-only or med students-only forums, etc., but I think you can reply). Bottom line, if you want to be a doctor, don't give up! Children will fit in - you can always make it work (and tons of people are having kids during med school these days! turns out it's one of the easiest times to do it!). Good luck! 🙂

MedStudent, i luv the mommd site. Im a female premed, wondering how it would all happen. Ive just resigned myself to taking one step at a time and doing my best! Ladies, we can do it, despite our ages.

 

[CRY2STAL]

thanks. but i can't tell...she got rejected once or twice? another concern of mine is that i'm already 3 years out of college. i'm improving my application but is waiting 4 (possibly 5) years out of college doable? at most i'd be 26 when i start. 30 when i'm done with med school. and then residency (tough to have a kid then, depending on specialty of course).

just curious...women who are reapplicants...how old were/are you entering med school? those still in the midst of applying, what age will you stop reapplying (if so...i'm not trying to discourage) and go to any med school (including caribbean ones)?

Hi Medgirl:

I am 31, and will be 32 this fall when I finally start medical school. The fourt application was the charm for me. I applied in 95 and 96...took a temporary detour, applied in '03, and finally got it right in '05. In my mind, it is never too late to make a dream come true. I also applied to St. George's just in case the US route did not work out. I am engaged to be married, and my fiance will be sitting tight for four years while I realize my dream. I very much look forward to having children, and frankly am not sure when I plan to get started...God will take care of that...I figure the more secure I am with who I am, and where I am in life, the more life experience I will have to share with the little ones...we'll see what happens, but I know one thing, I am going to be doctor, and one day I look forward to being a Mom...one thing at a time.

 

[1Path]

Hi Medgirl:

I am 31, and will be 32 this fall when I finally start medical school. The fourt application was the charm for me. I applied in 95 and 96...took a temporary detour, applied in '03, and finally got it right in '05. In my mind, it is never too late to make a dream come true. I also applied to St. George's just in case the US route did not work out. I am engaged to be married, and my fiance will be sitting tight for four years while I realize my dream. I very much look forward to having children, and frankly am not sure when I plan to get started...God will take care of that...I figure the more secure I am with who I am, and where I am in life, the more life experience I will have to share with the little ones...we'll see what happens, but I know one thing, I am going to be doctor, and one day I look forward to being a Mom...one thing at a time.

From a MUCH older nontrad, great post!!!!

 

[Paws]

I'm not a reapplicant, but I started my undergrad at 29. I'm now 35 and starting med school! Your never to old and believe me there is never a perfect time to start a family. Just do it. Life always works out for the best!

👍

Also, Cry2stal is right on. Being 22-25 is a volitile and uncertain time and I think schools recognize that. We don't know who we are, what we're doing or how we're going to do it. We are like jello just out of the box, with the hot water poured in. We need some time to settle and firm up.

So, talk to your inner self, or your God or whomever, and then add to the equation the idea that time has a way of working things out. Including us. I was an older applicant and was lucky to get a couple of acceptances the first time out of the box. But, I didn't even start my postbacc work until my mid-thirties, so you do the math on where I am.

As for families and children, well, they are a random variable too. You just have to trust in whatever you believe in (God, etc) that the right things will happen in their own time.

If you don't feel ready for a US allopathic school, think about getting a job in a hospital or wherever and then just working for a few years. Your skills will improve, your confidence and then you may feel more settled in what you feel you want to do. School's will recognize that too. If we keep getting rejected for something, sometimes we need to step back and go in another direction and get things sorted out. If you are working, etc., you may begin to understand why you are being rejected from US schools. But I wouldn't worry about the time, or family crunch. Focus on yourself first, then the other stuff will work itself out.