If you’re interested in anesthesiology, you could also consider going the route of CRNA (certified registered nurse anesthetist). You’d have to get a BSN first, work a year or 2 in an ICU, and then apply for CRNA school. 3 yr of grad school instead of 4 and once you pass the certification exam, you basically dive right into work for regular pay (not cheap/underpaid MD resident pay). Lots of CRNAs earn in the range of $250k/year.
You should consider shadowing a CRNA. Lots of hospitals are using CRNAs now, not just MD/DO anesthesiologists.
For anesthesia, besides CNRA-- which requires a nursing degree plus usually several years nursing experience before applying to CNRA programs-- there’s CAA (Certified Anesthesiologist Assistant) which is 2 year Master’s program after earning a BA/BS that including typical pre-med classes (biology, gen chem, ochem, physics, anatomy, physiology and statistics).
CAAs are licensed to practice in 22 states.
I believe there are a few 5 year direct admission from HS CAA programs, (NOVA Southeastern?)
New York is a particularly good state for BS/MD programs. Some are accelerated 7 year programs like the one at Sophie Davis/CUNY School of Medicine, another at SUNY Stony Brook & their own ned school, and a third at Albany College of Medicine with a handful of feeder programs. While City College of NY is primarily a commuter campus, they do have dorms for students in the Sophie Davis program. There is even an accelerated 7 year DO program at SUNY Old Westbury & NYIT on Long Island. There are also BS/MD programs at the two SUNY medical campuses at Syracuse (Upstate) and Brooklyn (Downstate) with a variety of feeder programs.
That thread is very helpful in that it sheds light on careers that many have not considered, and it is a great resource for those who realize that medical school is not for them - for many different reasons.
The one thing that this website does not do is discuss acceptance rates and how competitive a specific program is. At least one of these degrees (maybe more) has single digit acceptance rates for a cohort of 10 or less…and they receive applications from hundreds of very, very strong applicants- some who were in medical school and left - not because of tests, but because they didn’t like it. I have seen 2 students like this recently.
This website is a great resource for those who want a career in healthcare but do not want to be an MD/DO, but some of these careers are not a backup for medical school ….due to the competitive nature of the degree and the specifics that they look for.
Agree…but the reader can also find jobs that do not require extensive years of education and also are not as competitive for admissions.
At this point, a lot of health care professions and allied health professions require an advanced degree…and it’s those programs that are highly competitive.
You already have a 1550 on the SAT. This is superb. There are lots and lots of doctors, and PhD medical researchers, who got significantly lower scores that 1550 on the SAT (even after quite a bit of preparation). Whatever you did to get a 1550 on the SAT suggests that you have the ability to do very well on standardized tests. You really can do this.
I do understand that the MCAT and the GRE are more difficult than the SAT exam. There will be some questions on these exams that you just can’t answer. As a math major, there were some question on the math part of the GRE that I couldn’t answer, even after four years of studying math in university. That is okay. We do not need to be perfect. You do not need to be perfect. Again, if you can get a 1550 on the SAT, then in four or five years, after finishing undergraduate premed classes, with a bit of preparation you are very likely to be able to handle the MCAT and do very well.
Getting an MD (or a PhD or a DVM) is a long path that takes a lot of time, dedication, and commitment. There is a lot of homework and a lot of medical shadowing and a lot of tough exams along the way. The determination to do it may be one of the most important skills that you need to succeed on this path. Your academic results up to now suggest that you have the academic strength to pull this off. The two issues (other than how to pay for the education) might be whether you will find another goal that you prefer (such as research), and whether you want to stick with this for a full 8 years (for the MD) plus residency plus then doing the job.
But right now I think that you are doing very well.
Here’s my thought on BS/MD programs. Just don’t. The vast majority of premed hopefuls coming out of high school DON’T go to medical because they found their real passions in college. It’s literally a setup for failure at this point in your life. I recommend going into college with an open mind and explore your passions BEFORE committing to a major. Your older self will thank you later
D is interviewing for the dual admission MSA at NSU next week! Thanks for sharing this info.
For anyone else interested in a direct Anesthesiologist Assistant program right out of HS, KCU just opened a new AA school which also has a partnership with Rockhurst University in Kansas City, MO. This is a direct entry 5 yr CAA program right out of high school.
Included in the KCU-RU partnership are also direct entry DO and DMD programs.
