Hi, Everyone.
I am set to return to school in one week after a 3 year hiatus (kids, kids, kids!) I have been having some real doubts about returning: am I crazy to pursue a medical degree at this point in my life, can I compete with the younger students? I happened to stumble onto your wonderful website while googling medical school entrance tips, and I am thrilled! In a matter of 5 minutes, you have managed to quiet my fears. Thank you!
Melissa
Welcome! Come on in and make yourself at home.
- mkutkowski Said:
... am I crazy to pursue a medical degree at this point in my life...
Hello Melissa and welcome,
As for your question, I think we have all pondered the same question at some point or another in our decision making.
I finally reached a conclusion and it has stood the test of time for me -
How do you define 'crazy'? I think in a certain way everybody is crazy given the right definition of crazy. In other words, crazy is something everyone defines for themselves.
I read of an OPMer on these boards who started med school at 57. Is that crazy? I thought so then, but not anymore.
A more germane analogy - was Phelps crazy when he tried to win 8 gold medals at the Olympics? Sure, but did he do it? Heck yes!
Are you crazy? Sure you are! Not by my standards, but you will definitely meet people who think you are crazy. Can you do it? Heck yes. Only you are responsible for your successes and failures.
Am I crazy? Heck I'm completely off my rocker, even by my standards
! But I am cherishing every single second of this craziness.
Welcome! Come on in
Hello Everyone!
I am new as well! This is a great site and one that I have have needed for a long time! I need some advice and I am hoping that someone can answer my questions.
I am an RN, BSN who graduated in 1998 with a 3.8 GPA. I have worked both in the hospital setting and it corporate arena for the last 10 years as a nurse. I have always wanted to be an MD but there was never the right time. I also want an MBA as well. Should I take this year to study for the MCAT in the hopes that I will do well in an effort to apply to med school for fall 2009? Can I do this with my BSN and GPA or am I required to take pre reqs?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you!
Hi Jennifer
I’m not an expert but what I have seen posted previously is that your best bet is to check with med schools you are interested in about the age of your prereqs. Your GPA is very good, but apparently some schools want recent prereqs. On the otherhand, I do remember reading a post from someone who was admitted with “older” prereqs.
If you don’t need to retake the prereqs and if the material for the MCAT is not foreign to you and you can diligently apply yourself for the next year (maybe take a prep course), a year to prepare should be fine.
As a further aside, there are a few med schools that offer a combination MD / MBA (Boston U, Dartmouth, Columbia …). You should get hold of a copy of the AAMC Medical School Admission REquirements (MSAR) as this has lots of those sorts of details in it.
Hope this helps a bit.