Hello all–
So glad to find a forum focused on nontrad pre-meds.
I have a bachelor’s in English, a Master of Arts in Teaching, and a Master of Fine Arts in Writing, and I have been teaching high school English and writing fiction for going on eight years. I have decided to begin the work to make a career shift to medicine. Throughout college and grad school, I worked as a newborn care specialist and always had in the back of my mind that I would like to be a neonatologist some day, but I kept pushing that aside because my endeavors were so focused in the humanities that I thought it was “too late” to pursue science as well. I’m now in my early 30s, and I’ve decided to go for it. I’m going to start by volunteering at my local hospital and taking prereqs at a community college and go from there.
My question for you is about educating myself in the areas that I have no experience. I have researched the basic list of prereqs for med school, and I’m in the process of exploring individual schools more thoroughly to determine my list. But are there classes you suggest I take or other things you suggest I do to prepare myself that aren’t just “required” but will help me to really learn the material? I’ve lived so firmly on the other side of my brain that I know I have a lot of work to do to catch up before I can even think about preparing for the MCAT and applying to schools.
Thank you for your help!
Rogue,
Welcome to OPM! Let me be the first to cordially welcome you to what I believe is one of the best (if not THE BEST) forums for everything med and premed for us Nontrads! I’m also ecstatic to see another humanities major on here. Like you, I completed my B.A. in English, but my M.Sc is in Legal Studies, Law and Public Policy. As I neared completion of my bachelors I had already sensed that I wanted to do something healthcare related and so I started taking prereqs along with my upper division English courses. I’m also in my early 30s (33 to be exact) and am completing my very last prerequisite this semester (Physics II) as well as taking my MCAT. I’m totally stoked about the upcoming application season.
In general, you should begin to think and act like a premed student. In order to streamline the process, focus most of your attention on excelling in the pre-requisite courses. Volunteering in a healthcare setting is always beneficial, and you should begin looking for shadowing opportunities. You might even consider doing a little undergraduate research, particularly in the biological sciences. Your science GPA will significantly determine the type of opportunities that will be available to you when it comes time to apply, and hopefully interview, with your schools.
You mention that you’ve “…lived so firmly on the other side” of your brain, but I have found that there is very little practical difference in studying in the humanities vs. the sciences. Right brain/Left brain thinking, in my opinion, is one of the great impediments for students…on both sides. When I was a humanities major my peers would often talk about how much they hated science and mathematics and now, my science and mathematics peers grumble about having to write history papers and interpret poetry. It’s really just about how you choose to approach it.
Hi Rogue! You got great advice from JRashaad. I really want to second what he stated. If/when you start writing notes in the hospital, (be it progress, admit, consult, transfer, discharge, what have you) you are telling a story about the patient. You are stating how they feel, what happened to them, addressing their fears and anxieties. With patients that have social hurdles you are discussing their environment and social support structure. There’s a remarkable amount of writing I do everyday and I am GRATEFUL for the humanities training I received in undergrad. Why? because my notes are succinct, they are coherent, and the story they tell is clear to all who read (I’ve been complimented on my notes by my Attendings). The skills you’ve already developed will serve you well. All you have to do now is expand your knowledge base with the science and math. Good luck to you on your future endeavors!
Thank you, JRashaad and Synchronous! Your encouragement and advice is much appreciated. I’ve only told one person I know that I’ve made this decision, but the questions keep playing in my head–what about all the work you’ve done so far?! It’s really comforting to hear my answer confirmed–that writing and storytelling are always useful skills. At this point my dream would be to work in a teaching hospital where I can use that experience as well.
Today I enrolled at my local community college and set up at an appointment with a counselor to help map out my plan, and I contacted my local hospital to ask for a volunteer application. Getting the ball rolling.
I will be completing all the application requirements while still working full-time as an English teacher, so I imagine it will take a few years. I’m generally a good student (3.74 undergrad and 4.0 for both masters), and I love learning (I’ve never been the humanities student who “hates” science/math), but my biggest concern is that I just haven’t touched anything in those disciplines since early college GEs. I think my only science class in college might have been Astronomy! So in terms of a science GPA? I don’t think I really have one yet… I have a lot of work to do!
Glad to be part of this community and hear everyone’s stories and experiences.
Hey,
You’re talking to a rogue English Professor here. M.A., Ph.D., tenured, and going to my first medical school interview on Friday! Couldn’t be happier. Your work in the humanities will put you ahead in the CARS section of the new MCAT, but if you’ve done no previous pre-reqs, just be prepared to go slow and steady. I think the benefits non-trads have is that we’ve matured, and we know how our brains work. I attacked this thing like a beast. I’ve earned As in all of my courses except Biochem (hey, I hadn’t taken general chemistry and organic chemistry in nearly 20 years!), so I wasn’t too hard on myself for getting a B in that class, especially since most the traditional students struggled to get B+s and A-s (and they weren’t working full-time and taking another course on top of the full-time work load).
I’d also really encourage you to look at the field of “narrative medicine.” There’s some great stuff out there. Rita Charon is a name you should know. Good luck and go for it!
Last note, I too have had moments thinking: “How could I throw all of that work–the Ph.D., the publications, landing a tenure-track job, busting my behind to earn tenure, etc.–away?” I don’t think of it as throwing it away now. It’s something I’m carrying with me, and I suspect it will be incredibly useful for me someday–whether I get in this cycle or next.
It’s so comforting to hear about your journey, englishprofessor! Best of luck at your first interview Friday!
I’m curious… How did you go about acquiring clinical experience? The two hospitals in my area only have volunteer opportunities in their coffee shop and driving the tram, but nothing that interacts with patients, and they state that they do not offer any shadowing experiences. I imagine there are other opportunities out there, but I’m concerned about getting in the door with my background.
I’ll definitely look into narrative medicine and Rita Charon. Thank you!
I started my undergrad as a Biochem/pre-med and did a lot of volunteering back then. Recently, I’ve only shadowed, and that was through extensive networking and the good fortune of knowing doctors through my church, in my neighborhood, etc. Probably one of the easiest things to do is to look at becoming a certified nurses aid, as most hospitals, nursing homes, etc., will pay for your certification process, because CNAs are so desperately needed. So maybe that is something you can do during your summers while taking a class or two. I’d love to hear the advice of people on here who are now in med school or through med school. My sense is that as a nontraditional applicant, I have certain responsibilities that traditional undergraduate students don’t have–i.e., a job, a family to take care of, etc. I think my firm commitment to the prerequisite coursework and my shadowing has been a strong enough signal that I’m darn serious about the transition. So I suspect that many med schools do not have the same expectations for nontrads. If I were eighteen again and had my summers off, I’d certainly be working as a CNA. But I can’t turn back time.
Good luck with everything. You’ll make it. Slow and stead wins the race.
Concur that the weight of “real” life does help alleviate some of the expectations of the normal undergrad. They understand that you have a life and responsibilities and can’t just drop everything to change course. You only have so much time, and at least some of that time has to go towards supporting yourself/family/dog/whatever so you can actually continue your pursuit of medicine. Expect questions about why you want to change course though…
That being said, you still have to display your true desire and ability to pursue medicine (grades, MCAT, etc). I think if nothing else, you should definitely shadow physicians. It shows you what medicine is really like outside of your perceptions (whatever they’re based on) and shows the admissions folks that you have some understanding as to what you’re leaving your old life behind for. Working near doctors is not really equivalent to shadowing. Some schools count it as “clinical experience,” some schools specify it as “shadowing,” and some schools lump the 2 categories together.
If the hospitals won’t take you, try local clinics that might have different rules about all that stuff. I know when I shadowed I had to do some basic HIPAA and general “hospital employee” training for legal reasons (per the hospital). There may be docs out on their own who are willing to accept some of the liability outside of the hospital system.