Is Medical School for me?

So you’re considering a career in Medicine but you don’t know if it’s for you. Depending on who you talk to, you can get different opinions. These are the facts. A career in medicine is what you make it.

Physicians are researchers, politicians, business consultants, activists, and even plain family doctors.

Depending on what you want in life, a career in medicine can take many forms. Medical school is a means to the ends to achieve your goals. It is challenging but not impossible. Hundreds of medical students graduate yearly. If they can do it, you can do it also.

Here is the clincher. Do you enjoy medicine? Is it interesting? Do you like the intellectual challenge? Do you enjoy helping people? If your passion to be a doctor is not there, medical school will seem like the longest 4 years of your life. But if there is something about medicine that drives you then medical school is just another stepping stone. It is something that you will gladly do to achieve your goals.

So how do you really find out if medicine is for you?

Go to the source for your answers. Below are a few ways that you can find the truth about a career in medicine.

• Speak to a physician. You can start with your family physician.
• Speak to a medical student. Introduce yourself as a premedical student and ask questions! People love it when they are asked about what they are passionate about.

So what type of questions do I ask? Here are a few you can use to start up a conversation.

1. Why did you go into medicine?
2. Would you do it over again if you had chance to do something else?
3. What’s your specialty?(physician) or What do you want to specialize in?(medical student)
4. How did you choose your speciality?
5. How did you prepare as a premedical student?
6. What have you sacrificed to become a physician?
8. What are your experiences as a medical student or physician of color?
9. What medical school did you go to? How did you choose your school?
10. Do you have time for a family?

If the conversation goes well, you can ask if you can shadow them for a day. What’s better than seeing what they do first hand?

Next, plug yourself into the premedical world!