<p>Hi,
I'm stuck. A couple of months ago I was for sure on what my career path was.. now in two days everything has changed. I wanted to become a doctor.. or better yet a pediatric oncologist (I know it's a depressing job.. but someone's going to have to become one). I wanted to become a doctor because I like being in charge, and making a difference. And also pediatric oncologists hold a spot in my heart. </p>
<p>BUT NOW... I've had talks with my counselor, and experienced friends, and nursing looks really good. One, because it is definitely cheaper to pay for. Two, it's a less stressful job. Three, less school. And four, I can still try to make a difference. </p>
<p>So my question is which path do you suggest I should go down? and what are some good undergraduate nursing schools?</p>
<p>My info:
-Asian
-SAT: 1900 (taking it again so hopefully higher)
-GPA:3.5/4.0 (at a very tough high school)
-I'm hoping for good financial aid b/c I don't want my parents to spend over 28,000.
-I'm open to anywhere in the US.. except maybe Montana, Alaska.</p>
<p>Did you finish your thoughts? I think we cross posted.
Pre med and nursing are very different fields and you may like to be “in charge”, but this is very different within each career. If you check the nursing forum, there are many posts to browse through, that might help you.</p>
<p>Start with a career in nursing. If you love it you can stay in it and have the choice to continue on to earn a Nurse Practitioner degree so you can treat and prescribe. There are also many nursing jobs to be had, many with good pay. You can also apply to Med school if you want (and have the pre-reqs)</p>
<p>Pre-med is not an undergrad degree and you can have any major you want as long as you have the pre-requistites needed for Med School. The down side is that you may not have a degree in a field you want to be in or can find a job easily if you decide not to go to Med school, or can’t get in!!</p>
<p>Schools- For lowest cost, see which of your instate schools offer a degree in nursing. Check the stats to get in. Nursing schools are known to be pretty competitive. Those I am aware of are Catholic U (in DC), Quiniepeac (CT), Delaware, Binghamton (NY, Buffalo (NY) StonyBrook (NY). I am sure you can google a list of them.</p>
<p>@mom2collegekids Well, it would be a really really long stretch for them to pay 30,000. I actually didn’t know what I was talking about when I said 30,000. My brother goes to University of California (I live in California) and that’s about 11,000 tuition and 13,000 for room and board (24,000 all together). That’s already a stretch for parents. So to add me on to that… I guess I mean good FA. My M+CR is 1,320. Thank you for responding! </p>
<p>@marybee333 Thank you! I entered an incomplete thought but I edited.</p>
<p>@crazed The thing about instate schools is that unless I get into a very good UC (University of California) school, my mom would not consider a state school as a choice. I know it’s based on how hard I work, and not the school, but my mom is old fashion and state school is not very ideal in her opinion. Thank you!</p>
<p>^Your mom needs to take a realistic view of your stats vs. competitive/selective programs. She might change her mind. There are many 4.0’s with high scores who are happy to attend state publics. Everybody has their reasons. But UG does not determine your success, more so in health related careers. It is very much up to a student, how they spend their 4 years in UG, taking care of their academics and personal growth. One note about Med. School, if it is still under consideration. You will have to aim at higher college GPA than 3.5, no matter what UG you end up attending and no matter what major you choose. This is not to put your down but to give you a realistic assessment.</p>
<p>Crazed, the only limiting part about starting with nursing is the bio and chemistry classes are not at the same level as those needed for the MCAT. You will have to retake those classes if you really want medical school. It might be better trying one year as a bio major to see if a high enough GPA can be achieved. Then decide if DO or nursing is better suited.</p>