I just learned about this from a current med student. Apparently, each year there are a few spots in every matriculating class where people simply don't show up to orientation. If you show up with your pencils sharpened, notebook in hand you can likely go to the admissions office and say "I'm ready to learn". This puts pressure off the admissions people because they have to fill several slots each time to get a full class, and the tuition associated with it. This may not work so well with state schools, which are usually filled first, but with private med schools and DO schools this is often the case.
This seems like a good premise for a corny movie/novel ala "wedding crashers" or "weekend at Bernie's".
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
What kind of doctor do you want to be?
A common question I have been getting recently is, "What kind of doctor do you want to be?" I understand that it is a natural followup question for when someone finds out you are going to MedSchool. After all, most people understand that there is a wide range of doctor types out there.
My first thought when someone asks me this is, "I don't know!" I think that saying I don't know, makes me seem like I haven't done much research into medicine. But it is the closest to the truth.
From what I have learned from people who have gone through med school is that they often do not end up with the specialty they had intended to become before med school. This makes sense to me, because even the most prepared student doesn't know exactly how the knowledge of one field or another might ignite their own personal fire.
I think it is much like asking which Baskin Robin flavor you like without allowing one to first sample. I could guess, well -- in the past I have liked chocolate varies of Ice Cream. But would I like Rocky Road, Moose Tracks, or Double Chocolate fudge better? How can you tell without actually trying them? What if I try orange sherbert and just fall in love?
I am about 60% sure that I want to go into some form of primary/internal medicine/family practice.
The reason for this is that I know there is a shortage of PCP docs out there, and I like that they are trained in a wide variety of medicine. You get to do all sorts of things, and it would never be boring. Of course, they make on average the leist of all the docs out there. Depending on my financial situation with loans this may not be a possibility, and why walk away from an additional 60-100 k per year if you don't have to?
A sub-fantasy with primary care is to be a rural medicine doc and have some kind of organic food co-op on the side. Maybe start my own vineyard. Just a thought.
My next most likely specialty is Psych. I love psych and think it would be fun to practice. My background is in neuroscience research, and would love to just talk to people about what is going on with them each day. The drawbacks of this field is that it is increasingly becoming a 15 minute patient visit every 6 months or so to just adjust meds. I know of very few Psychiatrists who see patients for an hour and think that they would prob make less money. Also, there is a higher threat that a patient would want to kill you. Psychotic patients may not even be in the same reality as you or I and so there may be such a risk. Of course this can be the case with about any type of medicine, but I think it is a higher risk with Psych.
Third on my list would be Neurology. This specialty goes along with the whole neuroscience type field. This is no longer the field of babysitting vegetables. More and more advances are being made with TBI patients from the recent wars, rehab of spinal cord injuries, Huntington's Disease, Parkinson's Disease (the lab I worked in). Etc... I think this is a growing field and the knowledge base in this field will continue to grow.
Fourth - Cardiology. As someone who has lost a significant amount of weight, I would like to be there to help people to recuperate from bad eating /exercise habits. The drawback I see in this field is first that it is currently a very male dominated field, and so family issues may arise. (they may not be happy if I took time off to have a kid) Also, I may get jaded quickly if most of my patients opt for surgical solutions to their problem instead of diet/ exercise changes. Inside this field there is Internationale and non-Internationale. I think I would gravitate toward non-I.
Fifth - Bariatric Surgery sub specialty of surgery. The biggest deterrent to this is I do not want to do a surgical residency. Surgeons for the most part are ass holes and I don't want to become an asshole surgeon or live with them for 6-8 years of my life. However, I would think it would be awesome to help people to change their lives through weight loss surgery. If there were a fast track to bariatrics somehow that I could take a shortcut through the live of a surgical resident that would be fine.
Radiology - I find this unlikely as it is a highly competitive field and probably wont' be taking a lot of DO students, but I love photography and could spend hours and hours looking at films.
Pathology - I was told once that I have the personality of pathologist, whatever that means.
Orthopedic surgery - this is a field where you can find a problem, fix it, and send the pt on their way. Very straight forward and very lucrative, as it is very procedural.
Fields I know I probably won't like
I think it is realistic to suspend judgement until I have had a better chance to sample all possibility.
Post Script:
After writing this the other day, I have had time to reflect on this a bit more. All of the reasons for or against a certain specialty seem to be based on rumors, hearsay, and just stereotypes of different fields. How can I say that all surgeons are assholes? That is their stereotype. How can I say that kids would drive me crazy? They might be better than psych patients? I am just reiterating the point that I do not not know enough about medicine yet to make such a big decision.
My first thought when someone asks me this is, "I don't know!" I think that saying I don't know, makes me seem like I haven't done much research into medicine. But it is the closest to the truth.
From what I have learned from people who have gone through med school is that they often do not end up with the specialty they had intended to become before med school. This makes sense to me, because even the most prepared student doesn't know exactly how the knowledge of one field or another might ignite their own personal fire.
I think it is much like asking which Baskin Robin flavor you like without allowing one to first sample. I could guess, well -- in the past I have liked chocolate varies of Ice Cream. But would I like Rocky Road, Moose Tracks, or Double Chocolate fudge better? How can you tell without actually trying them? What if I try orange sherbert and just fall in love?
I am about 60% sure that I want to go into some form of primary/internal medicine/family practice.
The reason for this is that I know there is a shortage of PCP docs out there, and I like that they are trained in a wide variety of medicine. You get to do all sorts of things, and it would never be boring. Of course, they make on average the leist of all the docs out there. Depending on my financial situation with loans this may not be a possibility, and why walk away from an additional 60-100 k per year if you don't have to?
A sub-fantasy with primary care is to be a rural medicine doc and have some kind of organic food co-op on the side. Maybe start my own vineyard. Just a thought.
My next most likely specialty is Psych. I love psych and think it would be fun to practice. My background is in neuroscience research, and would love to just talk to people about what is going on with them each day. The drawbacks of this field is that it is increasingly becoming a 15 minute patient visit every 6 months or so to just adjust meds. I know of very few Psychiatrists who see patients for an hour and think that they would prob make less money. Also, there is a higher threat that a patient would want to kill you. Psychotic patients may not even be in the same reality as you or I and so there may be such a risk. Of course this can be the case with about any type of medicine, but I think it is a higher risk with Psych.
Third on my list would be Neurology. This specialty goes along with the whole neuroscience type field. This is no longer the field of babysitting vegetables. More and more advances are being made with TBI patients from the recent wars, rehab of spinal cord injuries, Huntington's Disease, Parkinson's Disease (the lab I worked in). Etc... I think this is a growing field and the knowledge base in this field will continue to grow.
Fourth - Cardiology. As someone who has lost a significant amount of weight, I would like to be there to help people to recuperate from bad eating /exercise habits. The drawback I see in this field is first that it is currently a very male dominated field, and so family issues may arise. (they may not be happy if I took time off to have a kid) Also, I may get jaded quickly if most of my patients opt for surgical solutions to their problem instead of diet/ exercise changes. Inside this field there is Internationale and non-Internationale. I think I would gravitate toward non-I.
Fifth - Bariatric Surgery sub specialty of surgery. The biggest deterrent to this is I do not want to do a surgical residency. Surgeons for the most part are ass holes and I don't want to become an asshole surgeon or live with them for 6-8 years of my life. However, I would think it would be awesome to help people to change their lives through weight loss surgery. If there were a fast track to bariatrics somehow that I could take a shortcut through the live of a surgical resident that would be fine.
Radiology - I find this unlikely as it is a highly competitive field and probably wont' be taking a lot of DO students, but I love photography and could spend hours and hours looking at films.
Pathology - I was told once that I have the personality of pathologist, whatever that means.
Orthopedic surgery - this is a field where you can find a problem, fix it, and send the pt on their way. Very straight forward and very lucrative, as it is very procedural.
Fields I know I probably won't like
- Peds - Kids frighten me
- OB - Just doesn't appeal to me.
I think it is realistic to suspend judgement until I have had a better chance to sample all possibility.
Post Script:
After writing this the other day, I have had time to reflect on this a bit more. All of the reasons for or against a certain specialty seem to be based on rumors, hearsay, and just stereotypes of different fields. How can I say that all surgeons are assholes? That is their stereotype. How can I say that kids would drive me crazy? They might be better than psych patients? I am just reiterating the point that I do not not know enough about medicine yet to make such a big decision.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Just accepted to LECOM
HI all,
I'm sure you're tired of hearing me complain about not hearing back from the LECOM people. I got my letter in the mail today. I was accepted to the postbac program. The criteria for automatic matriculation into next fall's class is for me to get a 3.0 and a 23 or above on the MCAT. I got a 28 Q already, so really I just have to focus on the GPA part.
Now for some housekeeping, such as cancel plane ticket, find someone to lease my Bahamas appartment, re-sell the items I bought off another student (bike, printer etc...) Start AACOMAS ap for 2012, etc...
I will have to find a new theme for my website, as I will be in Erie PA (lake effect snow). Something like just white snow drifts... Just about as opposite an environment as you could imagine from living on a tropical island.
I'm sure you're tired of hearing me complain about not hearing back from the LECOM people. I got my letter in the mail today. I was accepted to the postbac program. The criteria for automatic matriculation into next fall's class is for me to get a 3.0 and a 23 or above on the MCAT. I got a 28 Q already, so really I just have to focus on the GPA part.
Now for some housekeeping, such as cancel plane ticket, find someone to lease my Bahamas appartment, re-sell the items I bought off another student (bike, printer etc...) Start AACOMAS ap for 2012, etc...
I will have to find a new theme for my website, as I will be in Erie PA (lake effect snow). Something like just white snow drifts... Just about as opposite an environment as you could imagine from living on a tropical island.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Economics of getting into Ross
To all applying to Ross, here is what will be required of you financially once you get accepted. This is before you get a student loan refund, so it will be out of pocket. I bought ALL books required and recommended. This is not suggested by most students but I did anyway. Plane ticket may vary. I have not included the excess baggage fees for the airline or the cost to ship items to myself on the island as I have not done this yet. ALL students need to do a student visa unless you are a Bahamanian citizen. I thought this was just for non-Americans but I was wrong. The apartment deposit is first months rent, deposit (first months rent), and a $400 electricity turning on fee. Apparently electricity in the Bahamas runs about $400 per month.
| ROSS (SO FAR) | ||
| DEPOSIT | $ 700.00 | |
| PASSPORT | $ 170.00 | |
| STUDENT VISA | $ 100.00 | |
| BOOKS | $ 618.12 | |
| PRINTER ETC | $ 350.00 | |
| HOUSING DEPOSIT | $ 1,800.00 | |
| FLIGHT | $ 709.59 | |
| GROCERIES / EQUIPMENT | $ 300.00 | |
| $ 4,747.71 |
The Economics of getting into Medical School
First of all, I am totally embarrassed to admit that I have spent this money on getting into medical school. I was in so much denial that I delayed actually adding up the amount because I JUST DIDN'T WANT TO KNOW. However, as a service to those who are applying or thinking of applying I thought I would just put it all out there. I am still somewhat anonymous (so far) in this blog. If you are thinking of applying to med schools just know that you will almost certainly be requested to submit a secondary application for each school you apply to. The only schools that I didn't get offered a secondary to had some sort of state residency requirement. It all started with me taking a Kaplan MCAT prep course. All in all about $5k was spent to get me one spot in MERP at ROSS.
| SCHOOL NAME | AP FEE | SECONDARY FEE | MISC | |
| KAPLAN COURSE | $1,599.00 | |||
| AT STILL | $32.00 | $60.00 | ||
| CHICAGO COM MIDWEST | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| DREXEL | $32.00 | $75.00 | ||
| EAST TENNESSEE | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| EDWARD VIA | $32.00 | $85.00 | ||
| FSU | $32.00 | $ - | ||
| GEORGE WASHINGTON | $32.00 | $125.00 | ||
| HOWARD | $32.00 | $75.00 | ||
| IU | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| LECOM BRADENTON | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| LOUISVILLE | $32.00 | $75.00 | ||
| LINCOLN DE BUSK | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| MARSHALL | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| MEDICAL COLLEGE OF WISCONSIN | $32.00 | $70.00 | ||
| MEHARRY | $32.00 | $65.00 | ||
| MOREHOUSE | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| OU-COM | $32.00 | $40.00 | ||
| PACIFIC NORTHWEST | $32.00 | $ - | ||
| PCOM GEORGIA | $32.00 | $ 50.00 | ||
| PCOM PHILY | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| PENN* PB ONLY | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| PIKEVILLE | $32.00 | $75.00 | ||
| PONCE | $32.00 | $100.00 | ||
| ROCKY VISTA | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| ROSALIND FRANKLIN | $32.00 | $100.00 | ||
| ROSS | $32.00 | - | ||
| SLU | $32.00 | $100.00 | ||
| THE COMMONWEALTH MEDICAL COLLEGE - SCRANTON | $32.00 | $100.00 | ||
| TULANE | $32.00 | $100.00 | ||
| UK | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| UNIVERSIDAD DEL CENTRAL CARIBE | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI | $32.00 | $25.00 | ||
| UNIVERSITY OF NEW ENGLAND | $32.00 | $55.00 | ||
| UNIVERSITY OF PUERTO RICO | $32.00 | $15.00 | ||
| VANDERBILT | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| VIRGINIA TECH CARILION | $32.00 | $ - | ||
| WEST VIRGINIA | $32.00 | $80.00 | ||
| WESTERN U | $32.00 | $65.00 | ||
| WRIGHT STATE | $32.00 | $50.00 | ||
| TRANSCRIPT REQUESTS | $ 560.00 | |||
| INTERFOLIO FEES | $ 193.00 | |||
| $ 4,268.00 | $1,280.00 | $2,235.00 | $ 753.00 |
Good things come to those who wait...
Similar to the place I was with Ross a few months ago, I am waiting to hear back from LECOM. I have called to find out how much of any of the costs sunk so far into Ross are recoverable.
I did talk to Kevin who is the new student coordinator for MERP and he said that I could defer admission until November. I do not want to do that as I would be gone through all of the holidays. If I don't hear a positive response from LECOM I will still go to Ross. This is scary to me because I am set to leave Aug.1 which is about a week and a half from now. If I am to ship any packages to myself I would need to do it Friday or Saturday.
I have tried to communicate this dilemma with the LECOM admissions personnel, JM.
As you know, I am in somewhat of a unique situation in that I am due to leave out in two weeks for another academic program on August 1. I have contacted this program and they would like for me to notify them as soon as possible if I choose not to attend their program. I would prefer the LECOM program to this other one; and so time is of the essence for me at this point. When we spoke before on the phone, you said that you could not notify anyone of their admission status until the dean of the college had certified the admission committee's decision.
Has the dean signed these decisions? If so, are you able to tell me via email or phone which way my application was decided?
I apologize again for the multiple follow-ups in this matter and understand that you have a busy schedule, however as the time for me to leave is quickly approaching each day sooner where I can get confirmation is critical at this point.
Thanks in advance,
I feel that this email was polite and explains the situation and why I am requesting to be told sooner than is their policy. I hope that I seemed respectful and polite. I am starting to worry that my trying to get this information may be jeopardizing my chances, so I decided to just cool it and wait. I don't want to get a reputation of being too Type A already. I have yet to get an answer to this email.
If I do not get notice soon, I will still go to MERP and to Ross, and it will be even harder because I will be scrambling at the last minute to get things ready. I think I can do it, but it will not be the easiest.
So, I'm just waiting and trying to be cool....
- The $700 deposit is not.
- The $2,800 housing deposit can come back to me if they rent out the unit in the next ten days.
- With each day that passes and I do not get an answer back from them, the less likely I think this will be. I find it unlikely that there is a student out there still who will be going to MERP in August who does not yet have housing nailed down. I have not mentioned it on the MERP Facebook group yet because if I do end up going to MERP I don't want to be labeled as the person who was on the fence about the program.
- The $700 plane ticket can be canceled but the airline will give me a credit and I will have to use the credit within one year of the original purchase date, and there will be a $160 rescheduling fee for this.
- The $350 I paid to a current April MERPER for a bike, color printer, fan, and some electronic books - I think I will have to sell these items to a current MERPER which I do not think will be difficult.
I did talk to Kevin who is the new student coordinator for MERP and he said that I could defer admission until November. I do not want to do that as I would be gone through all of the holidays. If I don't hear a positive response from LECOM I will still go to Ross. This is scary to me because I am set to leave Aug.1 which is about a week and a half from now. If I am to ship any packages to myself I would need to do it Friday or Saturday.
I have tried to communicate this dilemma with the LECOM admissions personnel, JM.
- I called him Wed Afternoon, and he said that the application would go to the committee.
- I called him Friday morning and he said that the committee had made a decision but he could not tell me which way it was until the dean signed and approved of all the files.
- I called back Friday afternoon to see if the dean had done so and he said no; and also communicated to me that the notifications would not come out via phone or email but rather by snail mail.
- I emailed several current and former LECOM folk and they confirmed that this is so. I anticipate that if they mailed the notice yesterday, Monday, then I will get it Wed. (I hope).
- A former LECOM person told me of another person to call for and I called and asked for this person Monday morning, only to learn that he no longer worked there and was replaced by JM.
- I called Monday (yesterday) afternoon to see if the signing of letters had gone on, but got JM's voicemail; his voicemail stated that email is a better means of communication for him and so
- I sent this email
As you know, I am in somewhat of a unique situation in that I am due to leave out in two weeks for another academic program on August 1. I have contacted this program and they would like for me to notify them as soon as possible if I choose not to attend their program. I would prefer the LECOM program to this other one; and so time is of the essence for me at this point. When we spoke before on the phone, you said that you could not notify anyone of their admission status until the dean of the college had certified the admission committee's decision.
Has the dean signed these decisions? If so, are you able to tell me via email or phone which way my application was decided?
I apologize again for the multiple follow-ups in this matter and understand that you have a busy schedule, however as the time for me to leave is quickly approaching each day sooner where I can get confirmation is critical at this point.
Thanks in advance,
I feel that this email was polite and explains the situation and why I am requesting to be told sooner than is their policy. I hope that I seemed respectful and polite. I am starting to worry that my trying to get this information may be jeopardizing my chances, so I decided to just cool it and wait. I don't want to get a reputation of being too Type A already. I have yet to get an answer to this email.
If I do not get notice soon, I will still go to MERP and to Ross, and it will be even harder because I will be scrambling at the last minute to get things ready. I think I can do it, but it will not be the easiest.
So, I'm just waiting and trying to be cool....
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Will I Become a Different Person?
This post is mostly related to family interactions. For sure, I am not the same person I was 10 years ago, 5, 3 or 1 year ago. I feel that as a person I am continually evolving based on my previous life experiences. At the same time at the age of 32 most people would agree that my personality is fairly formed. Is it? I also have no doubt that medical training and the stresses and victories involved with it will also cause me to become a 'different person'. My fear is that this new person I become may not be compatible with my current family relationships. The mere title of "doctor" may change people's opinions of me for better or worse. If I am perceived as being 'rich' will family members come to me for money? How will they react if I say YES or NO? (If I were to say YES I would imagine that they would feel that further financial support would be predicated on a continued positive relationship and if I were to say NO I would imagine that they would feel that I am simply being an asshole.)
Also, it is very common for romantic relationships to break apart during med school. Most stories I have heard have been of a serious dating relationship breaking up. My husband and I have been a couple for over 10 years. I am willing to say that we are a fairly stable couple. But I feel that Med School can make any relationship challenging esp. when you add the stress of making a cohabitation relationship into a long distance one (whether that distance is 362 miles away or 2258.811 miles away in a foreign country). Even in the most ideal situation I would imagine that it is going to be difficult. I recently found this forum on SDN; however, I cannot seem to find official stats on this Med School Divorce Stats. Clearly I don't want a divorce but it seems that the stats are out there.
What if I become more assertive, more augmentative, more used to getting my own way, more judgmental, or cynical when listening to a purported natural cure someone relays to me that they read in 'hippie weekly'? What if I fail in this attempt and become despondent? Will this personality change make it impossible for me to carry on my relationships with my friends and family? What if the cost of pursuing my dream is loosing everyone I now have close to me?
Also, it is very common for romantic relationships to break apart during med school. Most stories I have heard have been of a serious dating relationship breaking up. My husband and I have been a couple for over 10 years. I am willing to say that we are a fairly stable couple. But I feel that Med School can make any relationship challenging esp. when you add the stress of making a cohabitation relationship into a long distance one (whether that distance is 362 miles away or 2258.811 miles away in a foreign country). Even in the most ideal situation I would imagine that it is going to be difficult. I recently found this forum on SDN; however, I cannot seem to find official stats on this Med School Divorce Stats. Clearly I don't want a divorce but it seems that the stats are out there.
What if I become more assertive, more augmentative, more used to getting my own way, more judgmental, or cynical when listening to a purported natural cure someone relays to me that they read in 'hippie weekly'? What if I fail in this attempt and become despondent? Will this personality change make it impossible for me to carry on my relationships with my friends and family? What if the cost of pursuing my dream is loosing everyone I now have close to me?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)