[Hawkeye]

Originally Posted by Keto

College - 4
Med school - 4
Residency - 4

so 12 years.

See, that is why I could never be a doctor. 7 more years of school just doesn't sound appealing to me In 7 years I'll be making at least $120K a year so I would have to agree with Nissan about hitting up the financial field if you are good with numbers. I will have about the same salary with a head start on my 401K and much less loan debt. Demand for actuaries right now is crazy if you are into that sort of thing .

[CnoteMD]

If you are considering a career in medicine, make sure you are going into it for the right reasons. I remember back when I was applying to medical school, the number one question was "Why do you want to practice medicine".

This is probably the most important question you can ask yourself. If the reasons are materialistic or related to a certain amount of perceived power or prestige, then this field isn't for you. There are much easier ways to make money and honestly, the prestige has declined significantly.

As others have mentioned, there is a huge time committment and sacrifice of lifestyle to get started in the field. I happen to enjoy what I do, but there are many people I know who are either dissatisfied with thier decision to pursue medicine (they either did it for the wrong reasons, or went into the wrong specialty).

There is a constant weeding out process in this field. For example, during your 4 years of college, many are eliminated after organic chemistry. Then the MCAT eliminates even more people just before applying to med school, which eliminates even more people.

Once you get to med school, you will have the USMLE, Step 1 exam after 2nd year. If you don't pass that test, most schools will not let you touch a patient in your 3rd year. Just before graduation, you will have Step 2 to pass in order to touch a patient as a resident (and is often required to graduate from med school).

Once you start residency, you will need to pass Step 3 in order to obtain a full medical license. Eventually, you will have board examinations in your specialty (and subspecialty). Even though board certification was intended to be an optional process, it has become almost a requirement for insurance reimbursement.

Just to put things in perspective, my chosen specialty would take a total of 15 years of education, and 7 major examinations after high school:
college: 4 years
med school: 4 years
residency: 3 years
fellowship: 3 years
advanced fellowship: 1 year

Do I think it was worth it? YES. If I had to do it all over again, would I? That's a tough question.

[TahBOSS]

I am kind of on the boarder if I should pursue the medical field or not as well.. I do want to help people but I also have a business mind and I don't think I can live with myself if I don't make a lot of money in my life... I was first thinking cardiology and then plastics (open up my own practice and have the business aspect partially in it) and now I don't know what I want to do..

[E(@M#]

Originally Posted by TahBOSS

I am kind of on the boarder if I should pursue the medical field or not as well.. I do want to help people but I also have a business mind and I don't think I can live with myself if I don't make a lot of money in my life... I was first thinking cardiology and then plastics (open up my own practice and have the business aspect partially in it) and now I don't know what I want to do..

medicine would hardly be the field......as for money.....not as lucrative as other professions when looked at on an hourly basis

[TurboFan]

Originally Posted by TahBOSS

I am kind of on the boarder if I should pursue the medical field or not as well.. I do want to help people but I also have a business mind and I don't think I can live with myself if I don't make a lot of money in my life... I was first thinking cardiology and then plastics (open up my own practice and have the business aspect partially in it) and now I don't know what I want to do..

Wow that's a lot of training. Cardiac and plastics? You'll be in residency untill you're 35-40 years old! Screw that. Pick one, do a fellowship, and get to work.

Originally Posted by E(@M#

medicine would hardly be the field......as for money.....not as lucrative as other professions when looked at on an hourly basis

Most specialties anymore are not as lucrative as many other careers on a yearly basis. Especially when you average in all the years where the docs make no money (med school) and damn little money (residency). Add in med school debt of $150-$300k....wow. Ya better love it, becuase the money doesn't make sense.

[E(@M#]

eh......on a yearly basis, i'd be hard pressed to find a more rewarding profession.....benefits, paid leave, etc.....on a weekly/hourly basis.....i completely agree.......demanding and difficult

quite the opposite in regards to specialties....primary care(internal medicine, family physician) may yield less than a number of office-held jobs, but in today's market many people seek to specialize.....a good portion of specialists, with 3+ years of experience, can easily make 200k+

let's not forget that the median salary in america is still ~40k and less than 10% of americans earn more than 90k

[TurboFan]

Originally Posted by E(@M#

eh......on a yearly basis, i'd be hard pressed to find a more rewarding profession.....benefits, paid leave, etc.....on a weekly/hourly basis.....i completely agree.......demanding and difficult

quite the opposite in regards to specialties....primary care(internal medicine, family physician) may yield less than a number of office-held jobs, but in today's market many people seek to specialize.....a good portion of specialists, with 3+ years of experience, can easily make 200k+

let's not forget that the median salary in america is still ~40k and less than 10% of americans earn more than 90k

I haven't read the latest salary study, but I'd say that well over 95% of physicians make over $90k. So looking only at jobs paying over $90k, you can make more, with less time in school, fewer years of no income and fewer years of reduced income, in many many other professional fields.

Do medicine for the love of the job. There are far better ways to make money and have a much better lifestyle.

[Iron Rob]

You can do anything with an Engineering degree.

[Maestro]

Get hold of Richard Branson and see if you get get a job with his ventures, I bet going the private route could get you in space sooner

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Branson.

Very few doctors these days have the "personal" success, too much of what they do is dictated by corporate MBA's.

[ghosthi32]

holy old thread

[vjordan]

My daughter became a dentist, followed my footsteps,...8 years of college, 50,000/year school loan, and does pretty well in the income area...BUT...things really are changing...corporations/public health/clinics are making the whole scene BAD...DELTA Dental really calls the shots here in cali...With your degree in engineering, I would join them , instead of fighting them..GO TO LAW SCHOOL....3 years...become a PATENT ATTORNEY...with your background, it would satisfy all of your needs...you can even go in the evening..part time ..etc....no court duty..all paper..and you control your schedule!!!

[Maestro]

Originally Posted by ghosthi32

holy old thread

damn missed that... forgot to look... wonder what his decision was

[JayKay335i]

At this point in time, its probably not a great idea.

[Topless 335i]

save all that "follow your dreams" bullshit for disney. it's too late and you should just stick to your current job.

[MrRoboto]

Lots of talk about compensation. If your main driver for medicine is money, choose another field.

[MediaArtist]

Originally Posted by Topless 335i

save all that "follow your dreams" bullshit for disney. it's too late and you should just stick to your current job.

That's some cold hearted sentiment right there.

[JayKay335i]

Medicine isn't really a field you want to get into late. With the time it takes before you'll put any money back into your pocket let alone start to come into the green again, then paying off your student loans with it..... I watch people with families struggle in my classes. But hey, you can always go on welfare.

[dth656]

i'm desi too (pk), and got an engineering degree, but then fell off the wagon and got an MBA. if the medical bug is itching, you could do bioengineering, or work for a medical devices company and still do pretty well. think boston scientific, medtronic, etc (i use stent mfrs as an example cuz i know mechE's in that field) or their competitors. i would imagine that their R&D groups are a combination of engineers and physicians (as well as the teams that move the different products thru the various FDA clinical trial phases).

[JayReplay]

If it's what you wanna do go for it. But it's not as easy. You will need to take the pre req classes, then comes the MCAT and getting into a good med school program. Followed by that is your USMLE Board exam. Your score on the board will determine which medical specialty you will enter. So it's a hit or miss. You do bad, then you get placed in family practice. You do well, you can go into radiology, anesthesiology, dermatology etc. Then comes residency....