Woman trying to get back on her feet!Can't decide Anesthesiologist or PA? NYC!

<p>Hey there! Ok, here's a little of my background. I'm 25 and just got my GED. Yay! It took me one try from being out of school for 10 years (I had a very very horrible life I had no control over from 13-24 and now I'm great!:) I've always been passionate about medical since I was 9. I've found RN and Med books in the street and read them back to forth and I feel optimistic about being in the Medical Field. I research different topics of medicine and it's a hobby that why not get paid for it?! All these years I never thought of what to become?! So now I'm here talking to you wonderful people:) my love of science and weakness of math I'm deeply afraid I can't be an asset as I want to be. Reading ,Writing and Science all a 600 my math a 450. If that helps. I'm not interested in vocational programs. I enrolled into college this year and I accidently put "Science" as a major I think I'm going to change it to "Health Sciences." Should I? Again, I'm so new with the prerequisite stuff :) My goals are to make a ton of money like an Anesthesiologist. Maybe a CRnA? I was told since I'm not a non-traditional student don't get my hopes high to be a PA or a Anesthesiologist. That's bogus! Please any info on your experience or what do you think I should get into or what it's "hot" I'm the market. I enrolled into BMCC as well. Thanks for advance and many blessings!:)</p>

<p>“My goals are to make a ton of money like an Anesthesiologist.”</p>

<p>You are exactly the type of person medicine doesn’t need.</p>

<p>Really? Do I have to be a little more extent on how passionate I’am in the field as I previously stated? I know for a fact going to be stuck with bills up the ass, like seriously. Anyone else?!</p>

<p>I think Viking was right to call you out on that point and you really need to tone it down. But I will answer your question.</p>

<p>Love of science is charming but you need to be really good at math to go to med school. You need way, way beyond GED math. Think calculus. Also, the higher you go in science, the more you need to use math in your science classes too.</p>

<p>You might want to try posting on the Parents Forum to get some advice.</p>

<p>What is BMCC?</p>

<p>I think bmcc is a community college. </p>

<p>Op you need to focus on your study right now. If you can get all As in your college carrier, you may succeed to get into a med school and then u may reach your goal. It’s about 12 years from now, keep it up. </p>

<p>Thanks to the people with positive feedback. 88 people saw my post and only 4 wrote back. That sucks. First time on here, so didn’t know how to put threads in specific locations. I wrote that “10 years without school and passed it all with one shot” “being passionate about this since I was 9” “I’ve completed med books while living on the street” but all that I put up is IRRELEVANT?! but you guys backlash because I want to find a “high paying job”? Forgive me, I don’t want to become a CNA for lousy $10 an hour. ■■■■!!! I understand I need 12 years of school. That’s not rocket science Geranamo. And plus by the time 12 years pass by I’ll be making a ton of money rather than sticking it out for my BSN making 75,000. Yea, it goes to show you how much people get behind their screen and talk absolute ■■■■ for no reason. No one else sees me “trying”. All the kids that comes straight out of HS ask this sort of question on what’s better an Anesthesiologist or a PA, and my god they get paragraphs of advice. But a bum can’t get no help. I bet the majority of you guys give food and water to a dog rather than a human. </p>

<p>On what note was “Viking right?” How finding a job which pays higher is " wrong!!!""</p>

<p>One sentence thru everyone off?! Because I want to make a ton of money?! Please clarify! I really want to wipe ass for 10 an hour</p>

<p>Sorry, wrong goal! This goal is out of reach for all for many many years. Very long road and I would assess it as extremely difficult one with continuos tests of your physical, emotional, brain stamina pushed to the very extreme levels that are totally unimaginable by vast majority of human population. Med. students can survive it only if they have some goal that is way way bigger and wider than “making ton of money”. We are talking about 14 -16 hours of very very hard labor day after day, week after week, month after month with the very few and short breaks ans sometime those weeks do not have any breaks at all…and then the real hard thing begins - residency which is compensated at the very low levels for many years again of very hard labor when you most likely will not see your spouse, kids for many days in a row and you better have a very supportive spouse (supportive in all aspects of your life, financial, kids, emotional, absolutely everything). And all along all you can do is smile and nod and smile and nod everywhere that you physically exist. Nobody can sustain that if the goal is just making tons of money. They will be constantly under inner struggle: “Why I am doing it”. D. was involved with the interviewing new Med. School applicants. With all the passion that she has for what she is planning to do in her future, her comment was (to me, not anybody else): “Poor things, they do not know what they are getting into”. And that was BEFORE the hardest year in Med. School - 3rd year.
So, unless you find many more reasons and much greater passion for medicine within yourself than “making ton of money”, I would not advise you to plunge into this. Of course, your are the only person to decide. And you absolutely do not need to decide at this point between Anesthesiologist or PA. Additional obstacle that you personally have is living in the NYC. You already living much harder and more expensive life than the most of the USA.</p>

<p>One step at a time.
Consider the steps it takes to achieve either one of your goals, as they are different.</p>

<p>You just enrolled in community college. Your first goal is to do well and complete the necessary tasks to transfer to a four year college. </p>

<p>To become and anesthesiologist, you need to complete pre-med requirements. To become a CRNA, you need to attain a BSN. To be a PA, you need to complete the pre-PA school requirements.</p>

<p>As a college student, you will need to do extremely well academically for any of these careers, either apply to med school, PA school or if you wish to be a CRNA- you will likely need at least 2 years working as a BSN in an ICU setting, and those jobs are competitive as well.</p>

<p>Then, have to do well either MCAT’s or GRE’s apply to the professional school you are aiming at, get accepted and do well there too.</p>

<p>Then for some of these careers, you put in years of low paid residency before you are actually employed making (maybe) “tons of money” and somewhere along the way as a student or volunteer, you will also have experienced wiping some **** to put it in your terms. At some point along the way, you might even gain some respect for the hard working CNA’s who do provide the necessary bedside care for people because they are an integral part of the health care team and deserve appreciation.</p>

<p>IMHO, those students who make it to being health care professionals are willing to do what it takes to get there, including providing the less glamorous hands on patient care because they want to help people and they know how important that is. </p>

<p>But your first task is to do well in your classes at your college. Start there. </p>

<p>You are on the right track. But you need to research all of the fields you are considering. Becoming An Anesthesiologist is something that takes many,many years of school, and you won’t be able to leap frog out of most of that like you did with your GED. One try, and you have your high school degree. Doesn’t work that way for a lot of things you are considering. Not to say that you cannot make it. My friend became a MD and is now a psychiatrist and she did not enter medical school until she was in her 50s. </p>

<p>The thing is, you have to get through some hurdles now and as a 25 year old, you many need some financial support as well. I suggest you research a number of medical fields that can offer a good pay back and foundation for further study in terms of academic grounding and work in that direction. Certain courses are needed, certainly the biology, chem, the premed curriculum for most all medical type fields, so you want to take those courses too.</p>

<p>I would not put my nose up at CNA positions as they can offer a lot of flexibility while going to school, and if you find the right one, you can get a specialty and sometimes get the places to help pay your way. Several of the PT aides at the center I know started out that way, and they are making good pay even as they continue their education to become a full fledged physical therapist. But they started out as CNAs at physical rehab centers and those depts in nursing homes. It all comes down to taking the opportunities as they come up. </p>

<p>You are ahead of the game right now in that you are investigating these fields. A number of young people I know graduated, some from top schools, with no clue as to what they wanted to do, drifted around at minimum wage, not enough hour jobs for a while, living with parents after 4 years away, and then went back to school in the form of community college programs in some medical technology or other health profession type certification in order to get living wage jobs and then segued their way into truly high paying positions as they opened. </p>

<p>You should talk to some counselors at the community college career office after doing some internet searches, maybe talking to some health profession job placement offices and find out what the demands and pay scales are for the options you have and the time and training you need to get into those fields.</p>

<p>Good luck and congratulations on that big first step.</p>

<p>Why not start at the BMCC career center:
<a href=“http://www.bmcc.cuny.edu/career/page.jsp?pid=1005&n=Who%20We%20Are%20and%20What%20We%20Do”>http://www.bmcc.cuny.edu/career/page.jsp?pid=1005&n=Who%20We%20Are%20and%20What%20We%20Do&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>You will get much more helpful advice here if you respond with honey rather than with vinegar.</p>

<p>To start, I have a master’s degree and I make $10 an hour “wiping butt” (you phrased it a bit differently ;)) ) 25 hours a week in addition to my professional job. There is nothing wrong with being a CNA or home health aide, but the people who stick it out do so because they genuinely like caring for people.</p>

<p>Medical professionals at any level who are in the profession just for the money are often lousy medical professionals.</p>

<p>I really respect you for coming from a disastrous past and reaching for a good future. And I wish you well. That being said…</p>

<p>You may want to look at becoming a PT or OT assistant. Or perhaps an xray tech or ultrasound tech. That would get you into the medical field that draws your interest, at a decent salary, with the minimum of educational expenses… Working that dreaded CNA job would help pay the bills for your education, and the experience would impress potential employers.</p>

<p>With your academic abilities and limitations, that may be more attainable and suitable. I’m not trying to say that you are stupid or anything like that - it’s just that we are all born with different academic abilities. I have a master’s degree but I know that I am incapable of learning and memorizing the material my daughter had to master in order to earn her MS in Physician Assistant.</p>

<p>And if you were to earn that degree and pass the national exam every two years for the rest of your life, the pay is not as high as you imagine, depending on your area of specialty. Family practice starts around $75K, and surgical or others about $10 K more. Anesthesiologists make more, of course, but there is almost NO financial aid available, plus you would have to pay very high malpractice insurance, so that reduces your net income considerably. </p>

<p>@KKmama‌ </p>

<p>In the US, most family practice physicians make $150k on average, I have no idea where you got the 75k number from. See here <a href=“The Best- And Worst-Paying Jobs For Doctors”>http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2012/07/20/the-best-and-worst-paying-jobs-for-doctors-2/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>@JayLeethal‌ </p>

<p>Viking’s comment was harsh, his parents are probably democratic socialists. All he was saying is that, at 25 years old, there are much easier and quicker ways to make lets say, $250,000 a year than pursuing medicine. With Obama Care, an incresing wealth gap, and physician pay having been decreasing for many years, medicine is not a good financial investment of a career, compared with routes like investment banking, dentistry, private equity, etc.</p>

<p>@Jweinst1‌ KKmama was referring to the salaries of PAs, not physicians.</p>

<p>< my love of science and weakness of math I’m deeply afraid I can’t be an asset as I want to be. Reading ,Writing and Science all a 600 my math a 450. If that helps.></p>

<p>I did try to help you, but you seem to only hear parts of anyone’s message. So again, looking at your own words, you are afraid of math and your GED scores in math are much lower than the other topics. You need to dig in and learn some math if you want to achieve your goals.</p>

<p>I was a CNA before I went to med school. Before I went to college. GREAT way to get by, on the way.</p>

<p>Getting angry at strangers? Not so much, </p>

<p>$200K, are you prepared for this?</p>