Hi there, I just found this forum and was hoping to get a little help. I need to decide what path i’m going down in school here pretty soon. I am a paramedic in minnesota and also a single mother. My son, Dillon, is 15 months old and the light of my life. I am returning to finish my BS and have always dreamed of going to medical school. However, I face a lot of people who think it’s beyond my capabilities as a single mother. I know that if my son wasn’t here I would not hesitate to pursue it and I know I could do well. I can be awfully determined, and the word stubborn has been used more than once to describe me. Am I crazy to think of pursuing this dream at this time in my life? I have heard such horror stories about how you’re never home during med school, that it’s just too time consuming to raise a family. I was hoping to get a little direction from some of you and know that there are some mothers out there. I’d love to hear what some other returning students actually think of the med school course load.
Welcome! I think anyone can achive thier dreams if they are focused and willing to work hard. Do you have family support?
If this is something you really want to do then time with your child and school will work out.
Yes there will be a lot of studying while in Med School and if you can try not to work while in school so you will have more time for your child. Well that’s my 2 cents
I know you will do what’s right. Just keep working towards your goals. Good Luck.
Bill 
Melissa, while med school is certainly time-consuming, it does NOT eat up every moment of every day. Your schedule is pretty predictable during the first two years - it will be a challenge but you can certainly figure out a way to study and continue to be a mom. Third year is more unpredictable when you do clinical rotations - finding child care for overnight call, weekends, and long unpredictable days is probably the biggest challenge. And you don’t have much time, it’s true. But even then, it’s not an ENTIRE year of nights on call. You’ll have some horrific rotations like surgery and OB where you have to be in the hospital rounding at 5am. But you’ll also get psychiatry and primary care, where you’ll do nice office-hour type schedules.
Definitely keep working toward your goal. You can continue to think about how this would work for you as you complete your bachelor’s degree and as your baby grows… you could change your mind a few more times about how you want to pursue this or how you’d like to approach it… there’s no one right way. Good luck!