I would like to eventually go to medical school and become a doctor, and I’m now surveying my options during quarantine (idk why). I would like to know the shortest amount of time it can take, what colleges are best, etc. Harvard has always been my dream school, but now I’m kinda doubting it. Also, I’d love to be an OB/GYN.
Just get good grades in school and enjoy being a teenager. It doesn’t really matter what college you go to as long as you have a high GPA (so probably best to go to a college that doesn’t have grade deflation) and have taken the required classes for med school.
The shortest time it will take to become an OB-GYN:
4 years college
4 years medical school
4 years residency
then, if you want to specialize, 1-3 years fellowship training.
You start getting paid when you’re in residency training, but not a lot.
Thank you guys for the advice, I’ve always dreamed of graduating early but sometimes I’m not so sure. Tysm anyways
One issue is that premed classes are academically very challenging, and are full of very strong students. Universities understand that most premed students are never going to make it to medical school, and are able to set tests and exams to separate the “very strong” students from the “truly exceptional” students. The latter are the ones who have a good chance at medical school (and are the ones that I will want diagnosing my more difficult illnesses). This makes it difficult to graduate university in less than 4 years while completing the premed requirements with a “medical school worthy” GPA.
One piece of good news is that there are a LOT of universities in the US with very good premed programs. This means that you do not need to attend Harvard nor even Brown to get into medical school. Mostly you need to excel wherever you go to university.
“get good grades in school and enjoy being a teenager”
This sounds like good advice to me.
If you want to be a competitive applicant…
9th-10th grade:
Try many activities in and out of school to figure out which ones you like. Make friends.
Try to volunteer with a group of people who are different from yourself: refugees, the homeless, the elderly, people from another faith, etc.
Take English, Math, Foreign Language, Social Science/History, Science, and at least one more class.
Typically this would include: Honors English 1, Honors English 2; Foreign language 1 or 2, Foreign Language 2 or 3 (Honors); Geometry (Honors), Algebra2 (Honors); AP Human Geography and/or Global/World history and/or AP World History; Physics&Chemistry or Biology&Chemistry; classes of interest or required for graduation (PE, Health…)
Sleep 9 hours a night. Have time each day and each weekend for friends and family.
During the summer, do something with your family. Borrow books from the public library and READ. Get a very part time job. Learn something new that’s non competitive and non academic. Tinker around, ride your bike, do things with friends, go to the pool/beach/lake, have fun. DO NOT take classes (except perhaps the “community education” type such as “baking pies”). If you’re into a subject or an activity, go to camp. Did I mention, read?
Get a Princeton Review’s Best Colleges and find 20 colleges you’ve never heard of yet sound interesting. Also find 5-6 colleges within driving distance, preferably: one large public university, one smaller public university, one small private college, one religious college, one highly selective private college, one university in the city, one university in a college town (there may be overlap.) These DO NOT need to be universities you want to apply to. The idea is just to get an idea of the vibe, whether you want to get lost in a crowd or want to be surrounded by friends…
Prep for the PSAT.
11th grade:
Hopefully among the myriad activities you’ve tried as a freshman/sophomore, you’ve distinguished which ones are most important to you. Select a couple and focus on them. Show leadership and initiative in them. Enjoy.
Continue volunteering, show initiative there too.
Continue with all 5 core classes and add classes in subject you’re genuinely interested in. If aiming for CA universities, take Art (or play in the band or orchestra, sing in a choir, participate in photography or 3D art…)
A typical schedule would include AP English Lang, Foreign Language 3 or 4, Precalculus (Honors), US History Honors or APUSH, Physics Honors or AP Physics 1 or Biology, one or two more classes reflecting your interests (or Art+ personal pick).
Sleep 8-9 hours a night. Have time each day and each weekend for friends and family.
Take the PSAT in October, the SAT or the ACT in the Spring after preparing, 2 subject tests after the end of your school year (May or June) while the subject is still fresh in your mind.
Get Fiske Guide and run the NPC on all colleges that you like and look that you’d easily get in.
*and like, that you’d…
Don’t graduate early. Investigate dual enrollment with a nearby college if need be.
the only thing I would say may be different is history in 9th and 10th grade - here most high schools take US history 1 (cp/h) in 9th grade and US History 2 (cp, h) or APUSH in 10th grade - World history is 11th grade here - the order depends on your school so don’t worry if your school does it different then posted above - our school doesn’t even offer APHuman Geography.
Hi! I’m a seventeen year old, and I’m also a premed. I’m a junior in high school, and I’m also a sophomore in college. If you are academically advanced, and you manage your time well, I really recommend looking into any special programs your area may offer. I live in a very large city in the south, for reference. I was bored at the school I attended freshman and sophomore year, I wanted to be ahead (much like yourself), and I felt like the subjects I wanted to study were too hard to find in a traditional high school setting. Luckily, my city has a special school that allows juniors and seniors in high school to enroll at the local community college full time, while also still having high school classes (most at the AP level). In the morning, I go to college and take my dual enrollment classes, and in the afternoon, I go back to the high school and have normal high school classes. By the end of senior year, every student will have enough credits to have earned an AA degree, making us two years ahead of the traditional schedule (we can use these credits to transfer to high level universities, or test out of general ed classes). This flexibility has allowed me to take classes like organic chemistry, microbiology, and human anatomy, all while getting a traditional high school experience and taking AP classes. I really recommend doing some research to see if your city has any programs like this, it really helped me get ahead and be less bored 
if you need anything feel free to pm me
this whole issue really pisses me off. can a kid just be a kid, enjoy high school while studying hard and doing well, and get into a decent college, work hard there but still have a life, and get into med school? like I did? are my kids out of luck if they choose to be premed because they didn’t seek out internships and lab experience and college level coursework while they were in high school?
the pre-med experience should start in college, not before.