<p>So I have a friend interested in doing engineering and pre-med. I told him that it wasn’t very wise, but if he succeeds all the better for him. Anyway though, I am wondering, what is the purpose of doing engineering as opposed to something much easier? Granted it will develop insane problem solving skills you should have as a physician, but won’t you lose it during the 4 years of med school?</p>
<p>Basically, if someone does an engineering degree as a Bachelors, gets into Med school, would they still possess the knowledge to work as a engineer should they drop out of med school OR doing residency find its not for them and drop?</p>
<p>So would the 4 years be detrimental to their degree? Could they still work as a ChemE/MechE with that 4-6 year gap?
Would there be a way to keep up with engineering, such as perhaps doing internships during the summers, or just cranking out problems from a book?</p>
<p>Given how expensive medical school typically is, once through a year or few of medical school, it likely requires a physician’s pay (as opposed to an engineer’s pay) to have a realistic chance of paying off the medical school debt.</p>
<p>Also, medical school admissions at least in part tries to screen out those who are not totally committed to becoming physicians.</p>
<p>Its probably the best backup degree since if you do get screened out you would still can get a professional career.</p>
<p>And it is quite common as well, even my family doctor use to be a chemical engineer (he even got MSc in Chemical Engineering)</p>
<p>I think OP is asking whether or not that bachelors degree would still be useful AFTER med school, i.e. if he completes med school and then decides that he would rather do engineering work, would those 4-6 years without engineering work/work related to his ChemE degree cause him to lose the stuff he learned about in his major thus rendering his chances at doing the job slim to none.</p>
<p>I think I summed it up well, care to lmk op?</p>
<p>I think he’s probably trying to keep all his options open. I mean, if you were dead set on being a doctor, you shouldn’t do engineering, but if you’re unsure, then go ahead and do both, and plan on focusing in on one area after a year in college.</p>
<p>It’s possible he wants to to bioengineering, but in that case he should focus ore on engineering.</p>
<p>I have a friend whose husband started as an engineer, then he went to medical school became a doctor specializing in cardiology. I believe he now works for Hewlett Packard involved in their cardiac monitoring area as an engineer. </p>
<p>As badly as we want to plan our future, one cannot predict what one’s future path will be. If your friend wants to study engineering, he should. It is more likely he will have trouble getting into and finishing medical school than finding work as an engineer.</p>
<p>The usefulness of an engineering degree if you drop out of the medical track really depends on when you drop out. If it is when you finish undergrad, then there should not be a big problem finding engineering employment. If you drop out while in the middle of med school, then you might still be okay especially if you want to work in an engineering field where medical knowledge is helpful and if you have not racked up too much school debt. If you drop out after you finished med school but before residency, then things could get sticky because you may have lots of debt and may have trouble finding an engineering job unless the medical degree is relevant. If you do an MD/PhD you might be able to work some engineering into the mix and get your education paid for if you’re really smart.</p>
<p>“So I have a friend interested in doing engineering and pre-med. I told him that it wasn’t very wise, but if he succeeds all the better for him.”</p>
<p>Slick, I hope you can see the irony in this statement.</p>
<p>Do yourself a favor. Google premed and engineering.</p>
<p>Now stop being a gloomy gus and support your friend.</p>