<p>Okay. So, my current plan is to be an International Health Major on a premed track at Georgetown. I've been kinda worried about my courseload, and it seems like a lot-especially because I have a ton of other interests.</p>
<p>I'm concerned because I'm not completely set on being a physician. A law or government public health career seems just as alluring, and it wouldn't come with all the premed classes and no social life. I'm just having a hard time committing to premed when I literally have no room in my schedule to consider other career options or take courses in my other interests (government, language, economics, and psych/anthropology).</p>
<p>How many courses do you actually have to take to be admitted to medical school? Surely it’d leave you with enough free space for some electives.</p>
<p>I’m not sure what courses are required for a public health degree but maybe you could do that and also take the med school prereqs? You could even just do that, then maybe get an MPH. You probably won’t make as much money as a doctor at a private practice but that’s a decision you have to make. We can’t really choose what your life path should be, that comes down to your own priorities.</p>
<p>Trust me, nowadays you don’t want to even consider med school unless you want to LITERALLY devote your life to medicine. I don’t feel like typing out paragraphs explaining myself, but just know that it is SO demanding that you literally have to love your schoolwork to survive.</p>
<p>Well, I have recently been considering law school with an international health degree. I have a huge interest in economics, political science, and law in general, and I’ve been involved in debate/speech for a long time and loved it. I’m just torn about what to do.</p>
<p>As for financials, I really think that either career would be fine for me. I’d love a higher salary position, but I want to do what I love as a priority.</p>
<p>That’s a good start. I can’t speak from personal experience, but a lot of people I know who are successful and happy ended up that way because they pursued something they loved. </p>
<p>I’d just take some courses in each. I know at UMD for a public health degree one needs to take some biology courses including A&P, so that’s a good thing… get stuff out of the way regardless of pre-med or public health. </p>
<p>Just judging from that post though, I think you’d thrive studying with a focus on just that. Econ or government or public health or some combination thereof. Go to law school or grad school or both (my physician is an MD and an MPH).</p>
<p>Well that’s totally normal. You haven’t even started college, trust me that confusion takes a while to go away for most people. Just start taking the pre-med courses if you think that’s the best course of action, see how they go, then stick with it or switch.</p>
<p>Would I be at a disadvantage if I dropped the premed courses to begin with, took biochem first semester and calculus, and then made a determination if law/mph/med school was right for me?</p>
<p>Have you thought about becoming a physician assistant, or a PA? Most programs require bio 1 and 2, chem 1 and 2, anatomy and physiology, microbiology and a semester of orgo. Some programs require other classes, or less than this - it really just depends. No MCAT, you take the GRE for acceptance. So you don’t have to take physics, or calculus - this is a great option, not to mention less schooling and no residency.</p>
<p>I’d recommend you do what most students in your shoes do: start taking pre-med classes and re-evaluate each semester if you want to stay on that path. </p>
<p>I’d just like to throw out there that you can finish up the pre-med requirements after you are done with college, if necessary. There are formal post-baccalaureate pre-med programs that allow you to complete all pre-med courses in one year. If you are only missing a few courses, you could take them “cheaply” at your favorite public college or university.</p>
<p>Even if you don’t go premed, with an international health degree you will probably have to take the classes required for med school (I’m not familiar with your program, but check it out online to see exactly what you’ll need to take).</p>
<p>And remember, for law school, it’s very much about your LSAT score and your GPA. Lawyers who graduate from so-so schools have a lot of difficulty finding well-paying jobs, which you’ll need to pay for all that schooling. If you want law school to be a viable option, you’ll need to study quite a bit and get upwards of a 3.7, and your LSAT score should be no lower than 165. Aim for 172+.</p>
<p>If I were you, I’d start checking out the law school and pre-med forums. And keep an open mind! College is a great place to explore your interests. And, of course, have some fun too!</p>