<p>Pros
A sense of significance and purpose
A comfortable income
Getting the oppurtunities to help others in need
Doing/studying what you enjoy
Fair working hours at a typical clinic from 9 am to 5 pm for residents and doctors.
Obtaining skills that could save people's lives in almost any circumstance.
The job availability
The ability to open your own practice, and keep incredibly flexible working hours.
At least two hours a day, everyday, for leisure.</p>
<p>Cons
Being on call every once in a while, which interferes with sleep. (postdoc of course)
Potentially constant phone calls made by patients with questions. (postdoc as well)
Chances of getting sued for malpractice for a wrong prescription or other "misconduct" (same)
Ease of having your work consume you (by choice really)
Eternal disgust from any taboos you've learned or experienced in your field of medicine
Fear and potential guilt of a patient dieing because your mistakes
Difficulty of keeping a committed, "sparked" relationship to a girlfriend or spouse</p>
<p>
[quote]
Fair working hours at a typical clinic from 9 am to 5 pm for residents and doctors.
Obtaining skills that could save people's lives in almost any circumstance.
The ability to open your own practice, and keep incredibly flexible working hours.
At least two hours a day, everyday, for leisure.
<p>I have been thinking about a job in the medical field for a little while recently and was curious to know if there is an all around doctor, doing surgeries on things such as the cardiovascular and neuro systems. I would also like to get some information on college. To become a doctor, you have to attend four years of a regular college, four years of medical college, and a combined four years of internship and residency?</p>
<p>So what type of doctor would you have to become to be able to perform surgeries such as those above a Neuro Surgeon or a CT? Can you attend a community college for the first two years and then transfer to a regular four year college to finish the remaining two years and then go to a medical school, or is this just a very imaginative thought? Who would I talk to about all this?</p>
<p>If you want to do neurosurgery, you become a neurosurgeon.</p>
<p>If you want to do cardiothoracic surgery, you become (surprise!) a cardiothoracic surgeon.</p>
<p>Many medical schools do not accept credit towards their prerequisites from a community college, so if you do take that path, you should not take premedical coursework there. Second, however, that should tell you something about how medical schools perceive CC's: even if there's no official rule against it, you can imagine that they wouldn't be favorably inclined towards such an applicant.</p>
<p>EDIT: I missed the word "above". (Thanks, NCG.) I have no idea what you're talking about. Above neurosurgery?</p>
<p>haha These HS kids just keep shooting higher and higher. First it's wanting to be a neurosurgeon or a CT surgeon from Johns Hopkins and now we have one wanting to be "above" a neurosurgeon.</p>
<p>i wish i read this forum earlier.
i turned down to 2 fullrides + 2 years of grad school at in state school and a private LAC. </p>
<p>I chosed however to go to ND and pay about 15-18k in loans at the end of four years because it has a strong premed program. Now i'm wondering if that was the right choice and that i've made worst decision of my life. i'll be far away from home and without my childhood friends.</p>
<p>getting into medical school is great but i want to live my life as well. enjoy friends, have a loved one, be with family. after reading this.. it's money this money that and the countless hours.</p>
<p>maybe being a doctor isn't for me. i like caring for people and i have a big heart to do so. but i also want to care for my own happiness and enjoyment.</p>
<p>its not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. i kno a bunch of doctors who are enjoying their lives fully. at WORST you will be working 7-9 monday-friday and on call every other weekend. that still gives u plenty of time to have fun. remember 7-9 is the worst case scenario. id say the average doctor works 8-6</p>
<p>^^^In reference to above post. When my husband began private practice in 1988, we socialized some with 7 other medical couples who began practice in the same year in our town. Of the 8 couples, only 2 of us are still married. I have no idea how medicine affected the marriages and maybe the divorce rate is as high in other fields--but it has made me think.</p>
<p>A US education will (probably?) help no matter where you want to go, but training in the country you eventually want to practice in should be fine.</p>
<p>Hi! I am a junior in college and I was thinking of going into medicine instead. My current major is Finance. With a MD, I want to work in another country for a few years because I believe that there are many people in less developed countries, who need doctors. I know that I won't get paid as much, but it gives me an opportunity to help others. Do you think it would be too late to change my major or should I just double major? thanks a lot in advance.</p>