If you're in college finishing up your degree and contemplating applying to or attending medical school, I'd like you to take a step back and try to evaluate your life from a more macro-top-down approach. Ask yourself, are you willing to sacrifice the next 12-15+ years (4 years of undergrad, 4 years of medical school, and 3-7 years of residency + any additional research years you took) to become a doctor? Don't get me wrong, I love medicine and the specific sub-specialty I am in. It has always been my dream to do what I currently do, but I also know that I could have been happy in a completely different field that required less training, less debt, and certainly less stress.
This is the most important financial decision you can make, because attrition is the biggest tragedy. It would be gut-wrenching to spend 12-15+ years of your life, only to figure out that in the end that you hate the job altogether. The irony is that you'll be making the most important decision at a time at which you are the least informed.
So please listen to what I have to say:
1. Shadow, shadow, shadow. Get involved during your fall, winter, spring or summer break. I know it sucks, but it's worth it. Ask around for opportunities to spend time in the doctor's office. Try to get a broad range of experiences. I think following a primary care doctor will give you a good gestalt. It'll help pad your medical school application anyways. Don't focus on the amount of time spent, rather, focus on trying to see if medicine is right for you.
2. While shadowing, pay attention - not necessarily to the pathology, sciences, or the research, but rather to how happy the medical staff are. Where is the physician's focus? Is it on how fast he/she can finish their notes to make their afternoon yoga class? Is it on how things will be billed? Is it what kind of referrals he/she is provided? Or is it actually about how concerned he/she is for the patient? Get a feel for that, and don't ignore the sentiment. The negative vibe you get from clinicians when they complain about medicine is very real and very pervasive. When you enter medical school, you'll hear the "patients come first" mantra spouted throughout, but as you continue throughout your training you may start to question how much of that is truly held dear in your institution or among your colleagues.
3. Think about how you're going to pay for medical school. Are your parents dishing out the cash? Have you worked before entering med school and have some money saved up? Do you plan to take student loans, if so, how much and at what interest rate? Think also about what financial position you'll be in before entering med school (i.e. do you have undergrad student loans?).
4. Be proactive. If you're not proactive in medicine, you'll fall behind. If you make the decision to go into medicine, do it right the first time. That means getting the best GPA possible, studying diligently to ace the MCATs, pursuing research DURING undergrad, shadowing physicians in a meaningful way, and and being involved in meaningful volunteering activities that make YOU fulfilled. I've seen so many of my colleagues take a year off after college under the guise of taking a "research year". In my mind I ask, WHAT are you doing? I can guarantee that all of my colleagues who took a research year, didn't do it because they were so captivated by their research interest that it compelled them to give up a year of their life. They did it it to bolster their application prior to medical school because something else in their application was lacking. Time is money, and each year you take off, is another year of earning potential lost.
I'm writing this particular piece, not because I want to deter you from going into medicine, but to make you more informed before making the commitment. You have to be absolutely sure you want to go into medicine. If you do make that decision, there is no back tracking. Otherwise, it wouldn't make sense either practically or financially. It takes a lot out of you, physically, mentally, and financially. At the end of your training, you don't want to come to the conclusion that you wasted the past 12-15 years of your life.
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