Soul-Sucking?

sp_sspu · February 18, 2009, 2:23am

This might be long winded; please bear with me. I would certainly appreciate any responses from people currently in and out of the pre-med phase. I’m a current high school Senior, for context.

I’ve come across two dual-degree programs now, that have caught my attention: Brown’s PLME (didn’t apply) and UCSD’s Medical Scholar’s Program (don’t know if I’ll apply).

They caught my attention because:

I am interested in (academic) medicine in the future.

2) Both promised something in common, that I’m looking for in college. Quoting from UCSD, “One of the most compelling attributes of this program, however, is its inherent flexibility. Many Medical Scholars find time to pursue interests and extracurricular activities that might otherwise be marginalized in the rigor of traditional pre-medicine demands.”
Brown had a similarly compelling reason for applying to PLME.

And yet, I hear Doctors saying all the time, that Pre-Med’s (not in these programs) don’t necessarily have to major in Biology/Science. They can pursue whatever interest, etc. Basically implying that there is a lot of freedom and flexibility before applying to medical school, that perhaps doesn’t get utilized.

Well, if this is case, that’s great for me. I like having the opportunity of exploring my diverse interests and trying new things, without always agonizing about the next step. And I’d rather obtain this flexibility without enrolling in these programs, because in case my plans change, I’d rather not feel obligated to continue with medicine.

But is this freedom practically not true when it comes to Pre-Meds? I mean, I hear how grueling the MCAT and Organic Chem can be (soul-sucking?). Does this difficulty exponentially rise when you try to deeply explore areas that do not align with Pre-Med requirements? When you try to do things like, travel abroad? Is it possible (without having superhuman intellect, or whatever) to balance your college life with such experiences, and still be ready for/to apply to med school?

Because, those Dual-Degree programs are leading me to believe, ironically, that if I’m looking for “freedom and flexibility” as a Pre-Med, then I’m gonna have to first narrow myself down into those programs.

Bigredmed · February 18, 2009, 7:17am

I think you’re splitting hairs. But you’re spot on about the irony.

It comes down to security and ultimate freedom.

Being a pre-med through the ‘normal’ route does mean you have to finish a set coursework and a number of EC’s that are rather inflexible…But yes, you absolutely can major in whatever interests you (my bachelors is in Sociology). And of course if your interests ultimately change, you’re not “stuck” in medicine. Thus, there’s more freedom.

These other programs though give you the security of having a spot in medicine ready for you, and so there is perhaps a little bit less stress and “fitting things in” associated with them. So while there’s the security of having a spot held for you, you’re hemmed in slightly by the fact that it’s more difficult to just drop everything and change career aspirations…

Overall though, I think if you have a plan for things you want to accomplish while in undergrad, it’s absolutely 100% possible to get them done as a pre-med student. You may have to juggle things a little, take some summer classes, take a couple of semesters with multiple labs or 19 or 20 credit hours, and perhaps forgo that History of Rock and Roll class you really wanted, or pass on the camping trip your friends are taking because of an exam, but in the overall scheme of things, you should be able to manage the majority of things you want to do…and besides, being a physician will require sacrifices in the future. For the sake of your patients, you’re not always going to be able to do what you want to do when you want to do it, that’s just the nature of the profession and to a certain extent starts in undergrad.

bluedevilmike · February 18, 2009, 9:52am

This is one of the things that drives me batty about some advertising associated with BS/MD programs. “You can major in whatever you want!” Well, so can normal premeds. “You can have interesting, non-science EC’s!” Again, this is pretty normal. “You can study abroad! You have flexibility! You can take other interesting classes!” These are all 100%, completely normal for the standard-issue premeds.

premededout · February 18, 2009, 1:43pm

I know people in the Brown PLME program and it pretty much guarantees you a spot in the medical school class if you decide to take OR not. I know people in the program sometimes end up doing something else (they chose to go to a liberal arts college for a reason), and others end up taking the MCATs and applying to other medical schools. Which, for me at least, seems like a good idea as I personally feel it is isolating to be in the same (albeit good) academic/medical community for eight years as a young student. Some ridiculous % of the Brown Medical School class comes from PLME (60% or more), so they just have a ton of reserved spots for the rather large size of the program. Since it’s still a relatively normal undergraduate program (yes, there are some more pre-medy requirements to it) and because you have the opportunity to major in anything you still have the same amount of choices as a normal undergrad. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure PLME kids don’t even have to take organic chemistry and the traditional pre-med requirements (the one I met hadn’t). And remember that being pre-med isn’t all just boring classes. You’ll learn a lot of skills that you can easily transfer to a number of other careers, even if they don’t necessarily have to do with medicine.

I’m really not a super fan of these programs, because (1) I think it’s silly that someone could absolutely know they want to be a doctor at 18 (2) most of the students who are accepted to these programs probably could work hard and go to a better medical school through the normal route. (3) Who really wants to be in the same place for 7-8 years as a young adult? Explore the world!

My two cents.

Bigredmed · February 18, 2009, 9:15pm

<a href=“1”>quote</a> I think it’s silly that someone could absolutely know they want to be a doctor at 18

[/quote]

Tell me how you feel about the fact that every where else in the world (UK, Europe, Australia) that’s exactly how they do it…

premededout · February 18, 2009, 11:45pm

I will tell you that I have lived in the UK and studied at the largest health university in Europe for six months during my junior year of college. I have also lived with first year UK medical students…they were my roommates and friends. Both of whom failed their first year exams and had to spend the summer studying to re-sit them (it may have been due to the fact that they usually came home from bars at 4 am…about 5 days a week). I also met a number of students who undertook a first degree in medicine, who were either re-doing their undergraduate degree in something else, or taking a one year master’s program to transition into another career. I have my opinions on the UK education system as a whole (which is somewhat negative), but I will say that I met a ton of doctors, educators, and researchers who self-admitted that their education system was flawed and many that were quite jealous of the fact that I got to chose a major other than medicine as an undergraduate degree before going to medical school. Most were surprised it was biology (the general response was…really? you’re going to be doing science forever! you should have picked something different.)

While no one is ever really fully prepared to be a doctor, I think four years of an undergraduate degree give you a certain perspective about yourself and the world, and your subsequent place in it, that is very hard to know when your 18 (or, really, 16 or 17 in the UK, deciding which A-levels to take). So, yes, while some may possess a rare maturity at that age to know what they want out of life, I think people are better off taking the time to find themselves. Nothing scares me more than a high school senior who claims to want to be a neurosurgeon based mainly off of how cool it looks on Grey’s Anatomy. I’m an alum interviewer for my undergrad university and I’ve actually gotten someone who has said this.

Soul-Sucking?

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