Is medicine right for me?

Question

I'm thinking of doing medicine at university but I'm not sure if it's right for me or if I'd make a good doctor. It interests me but I don't want to invest five to six years in something that I might not be good at! I want to practise neuroscience (i.e. with people in a medical environment rather than just research) so i'm guessing i need medicine to do this.

- What's studying medicine like?

- How much prior knowledge are you expected to have?

- What do universities look for in prospective medical students?

- At what point would I be able to specialise in neuroscience?

Advice from medical students and people in the medical profession would be much appreciated!

Answer 1

It is difficult, and the training is hard.

I did my training at Manchester University, and the first year was split into the life cycle and cardio-respiratory work.

The second year was metabolism and nervous and muscoskeletal systems.

Then the third year you spend at a training hospital and you revisit the first year material on a more clinical level (diagnose, treatment options etc.).

then the fourth year visits neorology again, and paediatrics (i think, i cant remember too well), but at the end you complete a project on a specific problem (I did cystic fibrosis and other genetically transmitted respiratory disorders).

Then the final year, you decide what you want to do. You can work abroad, you can shadow the 1st year doctor that you're going to take over from, or you can do what I do and basically just work in a hospital as a 1st year doctor, then complete the actual 1st year.

Universities tend to look for less academic, more empathic candidates, people who can sympathize with patients, rather than people who can learn quickly.

You don't need any previous knowledge, but you need work experience at a hospital.

You would be able to specialize once you have completed your second foundation year. You can start to specialize on your 3rd year out of university, so about 8 years after you have started studying.

It takes dedication, so good luck.

Answer 2

My father was a doctor and went through a huge amount of schooling to get there.  I would suggest you do some volunteer work at a local hospital.  You could ask to be assigned to intensive care, the ER, pediatrics, the cancer ward - the choices are endless.  There you would get some exposure not only to the patients but the kinds of treatment they undergo and you'd be around a lot of medical stuff.  What you need to get into medical school nowdays is a BS (bachelor of science) degree which takes 4 years, going full time.  Most people who want to be doctors major in "pre-med".  You also need an incredibly high GPA, like 4.0 or close to it.  If you have connections, like a doctor in the family, believe it or not, that helps too.  Medical schools look for great grades, a bachelor in sciences (not a bachelor of arts like you would get with psychology).  Classes you will probably be required in pre-med are things like medical terminology, biology, a minimum of 4 semesters of chemistry, anatomy & physiology and things like that. (I am in pre-nursing and have to take all that stuff and have the same people in all my classes and they are all going for nursing, pre-med, nurse practioner and physican's assistant) They also look for a well-rounded individual so that volunteer work in a hospital would be an excellent thing to have under your belt.  (For specifics, get on the internet and google Harvard University for example.  Once on the web site go to the medical school site and they will probably list the classes you need to take as prerequisites before applying to the program and if you actually get into the site as far as the medical school program, you might even be able to find out what classes are required to complete medical school).  After your BS, medical school is another 4 years.  That is followed by 1 year of internship.  THEN, if you are interested in neurosurgery, for instance, you would go through 5 years of residency in neurosurgery to be able to be certified as a specialist in that area.  If you count all that up, that's a lot of school.  When you get through you'll probably owe a quarter million in student loans which you will probably be able to pay off in just a couple years.  One of the good things is the payback for all those years of school - mucho dinero!

Answer 3

OK, neuroscience is going to take a LOT longer than five or six years.  Anything in medicine, as far as being an MD is concerned, is going to take a lot longer.  

Studying medicine is chaotic.  It is tiring, and it is not something that is fun or easy.  It is hard, challenging, and it will leave you feeling angry or like you are an idiot.  You will not get to spend a lot of time with your friends and family, and no one outside of the hospital will understand you.  

You should have some prior knowledge of science, as most universities want you to have a degree prior to applying to medical school.  Also, universities look for people with diverse study fields.  So don't just focus on science.  

As a medical student, you need to have a desire to help people, the desire to do something good, being a doctor does not need to be about the money for you.  You need to know why YOU picked medicine.  

And you generally get to specialize later on in your rotations.  You will be exposed to neurosurgery and neuroscience in your internship and then you will be able to specialize during your residency.  

Good luck.