Average day in the life of a neurosurgeon ?

Question

I am fourteen years old, a straight-A student, and I have a strong drive to help people. I'd really like to become a neurosurgeon, not just because my dreams of grandeur and success require copious amounts of money, but because I love medicine, and I know that I would love to help those in need.

I know it requires four years of pre-med, four years of MD (what is MD ?), and six years of residency, but what is it like, what is your average day ?

Advice and tips appreciated !

Answer 1

As the previous poster said, an MD is a Doctor of Medicine degree.  You apply to medical school after college--it's separate (or actually most people put in the application during their junior year, so they can move straight on into med school after they graduate, because the application and the interview process take up a lot of senior year).  And actually, a neurosurgery residency takes seven years.  ;-)  A lot of them go on and do fellowships after that, too.  Neurosurgeons are a special kind of crazy.  (And yeah...don't use the "I really want to help people!" line unless you're doing it tongue-in-cheek.  It's an old med school joke.)

As far as I can tell there is no average day--you never know what they're going to throw at you.  It's possible, of course, to do non-emergency neurosurgery; both neurosurgeons and orthopedic surgeons may work on the spine, for example, so a neurosurgeon could build a practice on spinal stenosis and hernia repair, I guess.  All I know is that all the ones I know personally work like demons and never seem to leave the hospital.  And they seem to *like* this.

You're a ways away from having to decide on what you want to do, though I think it's great that you're already thinking about possible specialties.  I'll just warn you, though, that although neurosurgeons certainly make a very good living, I'm not sure when they find time to spend any of it.  *g*

Best of luck to you!  I promise you, it's a really fun ride no matter what you decide to go into.  I hope you follow through with your plans!

Answer 2

Two friends of mine from med school went into neurosurg. They work between 110-120 hours/week. I'm not even kidding. They are nuts!

Answer 3

In response to your first question, an M.D. is a graduate degree which confers upon the recipient the title of a Doctor of Medicine. I myself considered a graduate degree from a medical school as an undergrad. I have since gone in the opposite direction and pursued a degree in polymer engineering instead. However, during my time as an undergrad at PITT, the director of the undergraduate chemistry department had said to me, as well as others who were considering med school; that when writing your entry essay, something you will do after you take your MCAT's, not to say you want to help people. The reason was because that particular answer was too cliche. However, being that you are already ahead of your peers in school, I am confident that you will be able to come up with a better thesis.