<p>I recently started to seriously think about medical school as an option, but I'm not sure if I really want to go into that field. I think I'd have an awesome time helping others and doing stuff for others. </p>
<p>My question is, for all you pre-meds, how and when did you know you wanted to go to med school? What made you think, "Ahh, yes. That's what I want to do." What made it click? Just curious is all. I'd love any insight and experience so I can form a better opinion for myself. Much thanks!</p>
<p>D1 is finishing her first year of med school next week. Off and on she thought she was interested in medicine. (Took a year of A&P in high school, for example) But when she got to college, thought she didn’t have the right stuff (got some B’s as a freshman) so was serious about her physics & math majors. She looked at the people around her who were applying to medical school her senior year and decided if they can get in so can I. Turned down a top 10 biophysics grad program to prep for med school (EMT-I cert, volunteering locally and overseas, taking pre-reqs, etc) while working to support herself. She applied 2 years after graduation and was accepted.</p>
<p>D2 has always been a compassionate person who wants to help others. Started hospital volunteering in middle school. Got interested in neuroscience in high school (thru a philosophy class!) and decide the best way to help patients was to becomes a neurologist. (What she actually said is “I want to be Oliver Sacks.”) Majored in neuro & math, did intense human-based research (cognition and brain cancer) in college, is now working at a med school full time doing more human brain research (mood disorders) and is applying to med school next cycle.</p>
<p>This is the second-worst reason for wanting to be a doctor. Garbage men help others by collecting trash. Teachers help others by teaching them. Civil engineers help others by planning new roads. Wanting to help others is noble, but not so noble that you should want to be a doctor solely for that reason.</p>
<p>(The worst reason for wanting to be a doctor? Wanting a high-income job. If you are capable of planning ahead and hard-working enough to get into medical school, you could plan and work your way into a high-paying job in many fields where you’d start earning money sooner and take on less debt to get there.)</p>
<p>If you want to be a doctor, I think you should be willing and able to do the following well:</p>
<ul>
<li>take tests</li>
<li>delay gratification for years</li>
<li>be a good team player</li>
<li>lead a team</li>
<li>shoulder the responsibility for life-and-death decisions</li>
<li>guide patients and families through some of the most difficult and complicated times in their lives</li>
<li>juggle competing priorities in your professional and personal lives</li>
<li>understand the science of medicine, the art of medicine, where the two intersect, and where one ends and the other begins</li>
<li>communicate with others in person, spoken, and written word</li>
</ul>
<p>And that’s just for starters. Are you interested in doing all that?</p>
<p>@WayOutWestMom: Thank you for your response. I have a question, though. How did D1 finish her prereqs as a physics/math major? I’m a math major as well (a transfer) and I don’t have any biology and only some chem done. </p>
<p>@shades: Thanks for being blunt with me. Really like how you didn’t sugar coat anything.</p>
<p>Also, thank you for the list. Gives me more perspective and a better idea of what I should be thinking about.</p>
<p>Anyone else have opinions? It’d be much appreciated.</p>
<p>D1 did her bio, OChem, PChem, A&P, and biochem (the latter 2 are required by state med school) part-time at the local state U after completing her UG physics & math degree. (Remember she only decided midway thru senior year to try for medicine.)</p>
<p>D2 often took semesters with 4 or 5 math/science classes at a time to complete her double BS in math/bio in 4 years. No summer classes–she was working/volunteering.researching.) Brutal schedule! </p>
<p>Given the math degree, and no other pre-reqs completed, you basically have 3 options:</p>
<p>1) complete math degree, go back to school post-graduation to pick up pre-reqs (what D1 did)</p>
<p>2) take a grueling, probably overload schedule of nothing but major and pre-reqs for the next 2 years (what D2 did) Apply summer after graduation and do a slide year while working and interviewing.</p>
<p>3) spend an extra year in undergrad completing pre-reqs and major requirements in more leisurely fashion. Finish pre-reqs in next 2 years, apply while completing your major requirements your 5th year. (However, this is the most expensive option since it would require an extra full year of room/board/tuition.)</p>
<p>My kid who is a 2nd year med student has wanted to be a doctor and was volunteering at hospitals from the age of 12. There has never been any other career that she has considered.</p>
<p>My D. wanted to be a Marine Biologist sometime in middle school. A great swimmer with many records still standing and numerous snorkeling vacations in Mexico led her to this. We investigated and discovered that there are no jobs for Marine Biologists. So, the logical step was to think about MD. She is very outgoing and always helping everybody particularly with academics, which has resulted in the best job in UG as SI to Chem. prof.<br>
Volunteering, Research labs, shadowing, all multi-year commitments were just the way of life, nothing special, just like everybody else. Her specialty is ability to connect to people. Once patient told her that she was the best Medical Student that she has ever met, that really made her day, she was so full of joy when she called me.</p>