Which would you recommend to your child?

[imabrat]

Or anyone for that matter.

I am a HS senior, and am beginning to look at colleges. Problem is, I don't know if I want to be a doctor or a nurse. I honestly do not have any idea; right now it's about a 50/50 chance of going into either field. I have three options:

A) Study Pre-med and then continue on to a medical school.
B) Study Biology with a pre-med focus and then continue on to a medical school.
C) Study Nursing and try to get classes with a pre-med focus, and continue on to a medical school.

I honestly don't know what to do, and while I don't have to decide right now, I'm just wondering if there's anything I may have overlooked. So, what would you recommend to your child/friend/anyone?

 

[Art 1]

A or B is what I would recommend if you were my child.

 

[bluesaturn]

Have you considered becoming a PA or at least including that as an option? Many of the prereqs for PA school (masters programs) overlap with pre med. In my experience talking with friends, the pre-nursing and pre-med prereqs are not as similar. Especially after the first semester or two once you get past the entry level bio and chem.

 

[heatherwillmom]

I am a Family Nurse Practitioner. I am licensed to diagnose, treat, write prescriptions ( including narcotics), suture, etc. I work in a practice where there are also 2 Physicians Assistants. We have 1 doctor who works half days. We are pretty much independant. We can ask his advice if we need it, but we make our own decisions. Being a mid-level provider is great. We bascially can do what the doctors do. The money is good & we don't have to deal with some of the things that the doctors do. With a lot of the changes in health care, mid-levels are becoming more sought after. Insurance companies realize that we can do the same things for a better price which drives our salaries up.

 

[wdwfan16]

It would depend what college/program you got accepted in.

 

[heatherwillmom]

By the way, I wish one of my kids would follow in my foot steps, but they think what I do is gross. If I talk about a wound that I sutured or an unusual disease that I treated, they don't want to hear it. My DD wants to be a psychologist & DS wants to be a Disney Imagineer.

 

[chloelovesdisney]

I'm a nurse and all of the doctors I work with are at this time telling all interested college students to major in something else besides premed. Medicine is not what it used to be, and the insurance companies are overly involved in how patient care is provided. They are frustrated and work very hard for really not that much money. I would think about getting a PhD in a science instead of all of your above options.

I would not go the PA route, I might consider getting my RN and then going on to the nurse anesthetist (CRNA) program within a year or two.

 

[Holly]

I'm a nurse and all of the doctors I work with are at this time telling all interested college students to major in something else besides premed. Medicine is not what it used to be, and the insurance companies are overly involved in how patient care is provided. They are frustrated and work very hard for really not that much money. I would think about getting a PhD in a science instead of all of your above options.

I would not go the PA route, I might consider getting my RN and then going on to the nurse anesthetist (CRNA) program within a year or two.

Why not?


I'm curious because this is an option my son is looking into.

He's decided on bio-chemistry as his premed major but is also looking at other career choices.

 

[honugirl]

I am also curious as to why the PA route is not a good one? That's my backup plan in case I don't get into med school. Nursing is last, last, last, last, last, last, last, last, last, last resort. I want to be an endocrinologist because the ones that are currently in practice are stupid idiots who know nothing about my disease. PA really is my only other option because a nurse just can't do what an endo can do in terms of the diagnosing/treating.

 

[chloelovesdisney]

All of the PA's I work with do the work of interns basically for their entire career. If I was going to go that route, I would go to medical school instead. At least at my hospital, an RN with an associate's degree is paid more than a PA, so all around, it doesn't seem like a great choice.

 

[chloelovesdisney]

I am also curious as to why the PA route is not a good one? That's my backup plan in case I don't get into med school. Nursing is last, last, last, last, last, last, last, last, last, last resort. I want to be an endocrinologist because the ones that are currently in practice are stupid idiots who know nothing about my disease. PA really is my only other option because a nurse just can't do what an endo can do in terms of the diagnosing/treating.

There are no PA's in practice at the endocrinology practice I go to. They are all MD's. If that is your end goal I would focus on getting into medical school.

 

[PixieDustandEeyore]

Option C. Because if you burn out you can work as a nurse save some money and go back to do medical school at a later date.

4 of my best friends finished their nursing degrees with intentions of going to Med school but they were so burnt out from school financially and mentally that they decided to just do nursing and love it! They all intend to go back to school later to upgrade or follow the medschool dream but for now since they did the nursing degree they get to work in the medical field and in my hometown area nurses are being begged for so they are making some decent money with decent hours too!

 

[bluesaturn]

My boyfriend has been told by several doctors that he should become a PA rather than go to med school. Primarily because it's cheaper and faster, and you don't have to deal with the insurance issues. Of course, we won't know what was the "right" decision for many years, but right now we've heard many positive things about PA.
He'd probably make more money as a nurse practioner, but he thinks he'd enjoy PA more.

 

[redlight]

You would be taking most of the same classes whether you are a Biology major or a pre-med who isn't a Bio major. Wait till you've taken a few courses and talked to your classmates before making a decision.

 

[scrosby1]

I think that if you are undecided, option C is your safest bet and offers the most security. It also offers a lot of post baccalaureate options.

I have known many people that have had the intention of going to med school, but for many reasons don't or can't continue on. I had a friend with a 4.0 GPA but did not do well on the MCAT and couldn't get into med school. PA school is just as competitive and she did not get into that because she lacked experience. So to get experience she worked as a nursing assistant and then went back to nursing school. In that whole process she took 7 years to complete a 4 year degree. The same person continued on to grad school and became a nurse anesthetist (CRNA) and probably gets paid better than a PA.

The problem with the pre-med route is if you don't get into med school you will have a degree that will not likely get you a great job or one that you love. I think that pre-med students with bio or chem majors are a dime a dozen. If you are burnt out on school and went the nursing route, you could take a break and earn a great living. There is not much difference between a nurse practitioner and a PA, so you can continue on to grad school with that route. There are many master's degree nursing programs and many universities are moving towards having doctorate programs as well.
You can always try to get into med school as well, but as a pp said the courses after a certain point are different and you would have to do some additional credits to meet the admission criteria. No big deal if you are working as a nurse and making enough money to pay for the education, right?

Anyhow, if after 4 years you are burnt out or are finding things are too competitive nursing is a nice resting point. You will not be rich but you will be able to pay off any debts from student loans!

 

[golfgal]

Pre-Med generally isn't a "major" at most schools rather a course path. Typically you see people going into medical school getting a major in biology, chemistry, etc. I have a couple friends that are doctors that have English degrees for their undergrad even .

There is nothing that says you have to declare a major when you apply to colleges and most colleges don't make you declare until end of sophomore year or into your junior year even.

Your general course work for nursing and a pre-med track will be pretty much the same to start so you will have time to decide.

Most hospitals have volunteer programs. I would suggest you spend the year volunteering at a hospital to get a first hand look at what dr's and nurses do and see if that helps you in your decision. The Boy Scouts have an Explorer's program that is open to boys and girls. Check to see if they have one in your area because often they have one for the medical field. You will have some access to things at the hospital that you might not otherwise.

 

[Disney Doll]

I am also curious as to why the PA route is not a good one? That's my backup plan in case I don't get into med school. Nursing is last, last, last, last, last, last, last, last, last, last resort. I want to be an endocrinologist because the ones that are currently in practice are stupid idiots who know nothing about my disease. PA really is my only other option because a nurse just can't do what an endo can do in terms of the diagnosing/treating.

Please don't become a nurse. We don't need anyone in the profession for whom it is a last, last, last, last, last, last, last, last, last last resort. Patients are too important to have someone who does not love the profession care for them.

 

[Sparx]

I am a Family Nurse Practitioner. I am licensed to diagnose, treat, write prescriptions ( including narcotics), suture, etc. I work in a practice where there are also 2 Physicians Assistants. We have 1 doctor who works half days. We are pretty much independant. We can ask his advice if we need it, but we make our own decisions. Being a mid-level provider is great. We bascially can do what the doctors do. The money is good & we don't have to deal with some of the things that the doctors do. With a lot of the changes in health care, mid-levels are becoming more sought after. Insurance companies realize that we can do the same things for a better price which drives our salaries up.

I have no idea what the protocol is, but I thought a nurse practitioner would be a good idea, Sonya.

 

[Sparx]

Pre-Med generally isn't a "major" at most schools rather a course path. Typically you see people going into medical school getting a major in biology, chemistry, etc. I have a couple friends that are doctors that have English degrees for their undergrad even .

There is nothing that says you have to declare a major when you apply to colleges and most colleges don't make you declare until end of sophomore year or into your junior year even.

Your general course work for nursing and a pre-med track will be pretty much the same to start so you will have time to decide.

Most hospitals have volunteer programs. I would suggest you spend the year volunteering at a hospital to get a first hand look at what dr's and nurses do and see if that helps you in your decision. The Boy Scouts have an Explorer's program that is open to boys and girls. Check to see if they have one in your area because often they have one for the medical field. You will have some access to things at the hospital that you might not otherwise.

Yes but its a good idea to have a vague idea of what you're going to be doing. I know that in my major, there are many, many classes you cannot take until you've applied and been accepted to the major. Its a good idea to walk in with a plan of when you're going to apply so you can graduate on schedule, or you'll really be behind.

 

[Disney Doll]

Please be aware that Nurses, MDs and PAs play 3 very different roles in health care.

They are 3 very distinct professions with 3 very different focuses in terms of patient care. While he MD & PA are probably closer to each other in their role in patient care, there are still some distinctions, even between them. Nursing's role in patient care is different from either MD or PA, but equally as important.

One should not become a nurse or a PA because one "could not" become an MD. They are not "2nd place" positions to an MD, and it is offensive to suggest that they are.

One should determine what they'd like to focus on in patient care and what one wants one's work/life balance to be and follwo that path.

My niece determined early on that she wanted to be an MD. Once she got to college and started to see the reality of what becoming an MD would mean for her, she decided against it...too much time, money, too much taken away from one's private life etc. She determined that she did not want to be a nurse, so she became a PA.

She has the best of all worlds:
~patient contact, which she loves and excels at...she has a terrific bedside manner
~a manageable schedule so she has wonderful work/life balance - she works at a facility which is a primary care facility that also offers urgent care services, so she sees a lot of different cases throughout the day, but she has a workweek with days off and no overnights, no on call stuff etc.
~a decent salary
~PA school was 2 years as opposed to the 6-8 years it takes to get through med school/residency, so she was able to start her life faster, start earning money etc.

My only point is decide what you want to do and then go for that goal. Don't say "Well, if I can;t do this then I'll do this" Because that's the wrong reason to go in to any profession.

You usually have at least a ayear or so to declare a major, so do some workin a hospital, see how each profession "fits" into healthcare and determine which one would fit you best.

Good Luck!