Other careers in medicine

For those of you out there who are unsure what career path they want to follow may I suggest exploring the following career fields and seeing if they appeal to you.

• Podiatry- this a a growing field that allows more flexibility than I originally thought, most work regular office hours with very little (if any) emergencies. They can go into surgery (orthopedics) or generalize and do a little of everything. They earn on par with many physicians.
• Nursing- this is a HUGE field with jobs available practically everywhere. There are several different types of nurses specializing in many different areas. I once met a nurse practitioner who billed as a specialist (more than her general practice physician bass) for her additional training in women's health. Many go into nursing for the flexible schedules, others like it because increased patient contact, (go to an ER and you'll see what I'm talking about, they are the marine corps of the medical field) I have also been impressed by the growing number of men entering this field. While volunteering at Castle Hospital I met a male nurse who was among the first in the Iron Man 2 years in a row, and you would be crazy to challenge his masculinity. I think the stereotype of the 'murse' is going away because the increase in popularity and need for male nurses.
• Physicians Assistant- PA's do everything a doctor does like perform procedures and sign prescriptions the only difference I can see as of yet is they have to work under a physician (who doesn't necessarily have to be on site) PA's make decent money while not worrying about malpractice a win-win if you ask me.
• Medical Anthropologist- these people help the world at on the macro scale. Many of which have MD or PhD's. They look to environmental and societal causes for disease and treatment. These are the people who work with governments and charity organizations. Read the book "Mountains Beyond Mountains" to see what I'm talking about.
• Physical Therapist- most now have a PhD. This is a hands on job with lots of patient interaction. PT's work a lot with Dr.'s and Athletic Trainers. PT's can specialize in working with amputees, the elderly, athletes, or everyday people. Physical therapy combines aspects of new technologies and exercise and flexibility in order to get the job done.

Get into school fall 2011

Its that time of year to start putting everything in order to have you application in opening day. No matter what kind of candidate you think you are, it will be to your advantage to have your application in as close to the beginning of the cycle as possible. Many schools accept students throughout the entire process its just at the beginning you are competing for far more spots than those who are applying in the fall. For the most part the beginning of June is usually the soonest you can turn in your application materials. You may think that you have plenty of time but the medical school application is long and it takes a lot of time to turn out polished personal statements and essays and no matter how much time you spent studying for the MCAT you will wish you studied more. Here are a few things you might want to consider doing in preparation for your acceptance into medical school.

• Start studying for the MCAT. The Library has some materials for studying but you may consider buying some materials on your own. There are DVD's, work books, study guides, computer programs, and flash cards you may want to consider. If you are broke like me you may find great deals from friends who took the MCAT last year and share costs by finding a study buddy. If you have the money and time you may want to enroll yourself in a Kaplan MCAT course, these classes are expensive but some people need to be motivated to study, and they do offer a full review with practice tests, online materials, access to a tutor and test taking strategies. I have heard mixed reviews about Kaplan so I would suggest learning more before committing the $1500+ down payment. Kaplan is constantly visiting campuses offering free trial classes and tests for those interested.
• Since BYU-Hawaii doesn't have a premedical committee yet it is up to you to work out your own letters of recommendation. I would suggest for your own sake that you register for interfolio or other similar online document service, which will cost somewhere in the $35 range for a years worth of service. By doing this you will comply with all the rules regarding your letters of recommendation while making it easy on your letter writers. Its an easy process which is quick and easy to use. I have used Interfolio and found that my documents are sent in a timely manner, either electronically or through the mail. Each delivery you send (which can contain several letters) will set you back $4-6.
• After you have signed up for your document service start asking for letters of recommendation. It might be a good idea to ask your potential letter writer if they feel comfortable writing you a good letter of recommendation. Even at this small school your letter writer might not feel they know you well enough or perhaps you they don't have enough good things to say about you. If this is the case, tell them thanks for their time but don't pursue a letter any further it is a waste of both of your time. I know there is a misconception out there that letters from prominent people are better but the reality is for a letter to be a good letter they have to know you and be able to say a few nice things about you. One way to assist your letter writer is to share with them some personal information about yourself; your career goals, major accomplishments, etc which will aid them in portraying you in the most favorable light to admissions. (Don't lie, the stories are many and easy to find of applicants blowing their opportunity to gain admission into medical school for fabricating stories to 'strengthen' their application. The medical admissions staff are good at their jobs and know when you aren't being truthful, plus why risk it?)
  
• In my experience with Interfolio once I had talked with my letter writers I was able to send the official invitation via email through my interfolio account. Along with the invitation the email comes with the instructions on how to submit the document and once your letter writer submits the letter Interfolio sends you an email informing you that your letter is in. To be prepared (since different schools ask for different things) get 3 or 4 from science professors (since we don;t have a premedical committee at our school you will be asked to send extra letters in lieu of a committee letter. You might also need 1 or 2 letters from non science professors, an ecclesiastical leader (if applying to a religious institution like Loma Linda or Creighton), an old boss, a physician you shadowed (DO schools usually require the physician be a DO MD schools don't typically care), and a place you volunteered. This process of asking and reminding and reminding takes a lot longer than you will anticipate so it is good to start asking earlier and be persistent. You will have to walk the thin line between dedication and annoyance to ultimately get the letters you are looking for so start asking early, preferably before finals and vacations when your letter writers can take time to put together a solid letter.
• Buy the MSAR or visit your libraries copy on a regular basis. This book is a list of all the medical schools along with information about each individual school. Study this book religiously and keep a list of schools you feel competitive in applying to. (A hint; state schools to which you are not a resident will be extremely difficult if not impossible to get into, so start in your home state then look into private schools).
  
• Work on your personal statement. Have lots of people look at it. Get an English professor to do the final once through. A lot of people who would otherwise be very competitive applicants blow off the personal statements and get rejected. This is the one area outside of the interview you can express yourself and where admissions officers can weigh the intangibles. I was told by an admissions officer that a good statement won't necessarily get you into the school on its own but a poorly written one will sure keep you out. If you don't know where to start, begin by looking at personal statements of people who were accepted.
• If your MCAT or GPA are lower than average you may want to consider DO programs which typically look at many other factors in determining admission to their school. Osteopathic medical education typically emphasizes more the primary care aspects of medicine and consequently most DO's pursue primary care residencies but in spite of this you are still free to apply for whichever residency you wish and there are DO's in virtually every area of medicine (even teaching in MD schools). The major differences between Allopathic and Osteopathic medicine are DO's used to be more holistic in their approach while MD's were more symptomatic. These differences have narrowed in time but what remains today is the Osteopathic approach still emphasizes the musculoskeletal relationship with disease and as a result teach Osteopathic Manipulation Technique, which some DO's find useful while others learn it and never use it.
• Foreign Medical Schools are an option for some students. There are thousands of foreign schools but only a handful of reputable institutions. In the Caribbean St. George's,Ross, American University of the Caribbean, and SABA are the biggest names in turning out doctors in the US. These programs usually involve 1.5-2 years of the science curriculum taught in the Caribbean followed by clinical rotations at U.S. or English hospitals. You have to be careful to make sure that upon completion you will be able to practice medicine in your state. Only New York, New Jersey, Florida, and California actually pay to evaluate the schools and the rest of the states tend to fall in line with one of these. States like Idaho, Colorado, and Texas have a reputation for being a little harder for foreign medical school graduates although they do have foreign graduates practicing within their borders. If you are interested in applying to a foreign school make check out whether or not you'll be licensed to practice in the state you intend to live, whether or not you qualify for federal loans, and what the USMLE pass rates are. You will be surprised at the disparity of foreign medical schools. Some are on par with US medical schools in USMLE pass rates, residency placement, and technology. It fascinates me to this day how some of these schools can do it with an 'inferior' student population which is a testament that there must be other factors for predicting future success outside of grades and test scores. Another thing to keep in mind is that foreign schools typically accept students 3 times a year and have no application deadline which makes them a viable back up plan in the case you don't get in and you have no desire to get a masters degree, or enroll in a premedical post bacheloriate program.

Keep in mind that everything discussed in this post will probably take more time than you think, so start working on you application today, give yourself deadlines, make goals because you will benefit from the preparation of not only getting your application in on time but also done right. Don't wait until the end to start throwing it together. Good Luck and if you have any advice you would like to make please do so in the comments section below (no registration required)