hp18 Posted September 27, 2006 Report Share Posted September 27, 2006 Get high GPA, high MCAT, do volunteering, do research, give up most of fun, go through the agony of whether you will beaccepted or not, torturous application process, beg for references and then if at all you get in, spend lot of money, study for 11 years after high school & then pay back huge loan.......it sounds too much to me. Is itt really worth it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamie_kee_mac85 Posted September 27, 2006 Report Share Posted September 27, 2006 Hmmm........No! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madz25 Posted September 27, 2006 Report Share Posted September 27, 2006 Simple - if you don't think it's worth it then don't do it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiel Posted September 27, 2006 Report Share Posted September 27, 2006 Simple - if you don't think it's worth it then don't do it! Very well put! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mac_attack Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 Well I guess if we could apply out of high school it would save us the GPA, and undergrad tuition costs. We would also decrease the whole wait list, not enough doctors problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ploughboy Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 Well I guess if we could apply out of high school it would save us the GPA, and undergrad tuition costs. We would also decrease the whole wait list, not enough doctors problems. Your entire multi-thread rant seems to rest on two false assumptions... 1) allowing application out of highschool would magically increase the number of medical school seats 2) universities somehow turn a profit from tuition fees, and are out to screw you over Darn, I just responded to a troll, didn't I... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gadzillar Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 Think about what you would have to do to become an NHL player, an astronaut, a lawyer, a CEO, a Nobel prize winner, a rock star, an A-list Hollywood actor, a pilot, etc... think about what you would have to do to be a loving partner or parent. You're going to get out of life what you put into it. Just like something like love or kids, what makes it worth all the work and hard times is the love you have for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docofmedicine Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 well said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smurfette Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 Get high GPA, high MCAT, do volunteering, do research, give up most of fun, go through the agony of whether you will beaccepted or not, torturous application process, beg for references and then if at all you get in, spend lot of money, study for 11 years after high school & then pay back huge loan.......it sounds too much to me. Is itt really worth it? It really depends on you. Think about it. Is having a baby worth it? Pregnancy for 9 months - morning sickness, nausea, vomitting, gaining weight, losing your nice pre-pregnancy shape. Possibility of postparteum depression. Possibility of complications. Having the expense of a child - paying for clothes, food, activities, nannies. Being woken up in the middle of the night with the sounds of crying. Years of dedication and devotion. Having to deal with a teenager going through the hormonal fluctuations. Being constantly worried that something bad might happen. But is it worth it? It depends on the person. I think medicine is like that - there's tonnes of disadvantages. The application process is probably the lesser of the disadvantages. What about the on-calls and the stress and having to deal with sickness and death? But if that will make you happy, then it's worth it. If it won't, then don't do it. It's not worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uofthopeful07 Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 Just like something like love or kids, what makes it worth all the work and hard times is the love you have for it. ++ my most valuable experiences/relationships in life have been the ones i've put the most effort into. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hp18 Posted September 28, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 So you all agree its not just money which should drive you to be a physician........You can make more money in many other professions (considering cost of education, time & age at which you start earning and retire early due to stress etc)....so it should be driven by the passion at the cost of materialistic rewards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mac_attack Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 2) universities somehow turn a profit from tuition fees, and are out to screw you over no you responded to someone who has been living in the real world for some time now. Screw over is a strong word, but if universities cared soo much they would not be pumping tuition fees year after year. It's really sad that someone who is educated at a university level is so naive that they can't understand that corporations (big and small, like universities) exist primarily to make a profit. Maybe 50 years ago there was more of an incentive to produce educated members of society. Today, the number 1 incentive is to make money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ollie Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 no you responded to someone who has been living in the real world for some time now. Screw over is a strong word, but if universities cared soo much they would not be pumping tuition fees year after year. It's really sad that someone who is educated at a university level is so naive that they can't understand that corporations (big and small, like universities) exist primarily to make a profit. Maybe 50 years ago there was more of an incentive to produce educated members of society. Today, the number 1 incentive is to make money. Uhhh, Canadian universities are public, non-profit institutions. Their finances are a matter of public record. Any "profit" they make is returned to university's operating budget. Rising tuition fees are a results of decreased provincial transfer payments from the federal government and the deregulation of tuition fees by provincial governments. If tuition fees are stinging you know, just wait until you start paying med school tuition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Law Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 Well, that is a very good point mac girl. Think long and hard about medicine before you decide you want to go into it- for some people it may be worth all the effort, for others it won't be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PHANTOMPHOENIX Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 Darn, I just responded to a troll, didn't I... Yes you did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peachy Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 do volunteering, do research, give up most of funLots of us think that volunteering and research are pretty fun on their own, and would be doing them independent of medical school admissions... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smurfette Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 Lots of us think that volunteering and research are pretty fun on their own, and would be doing them independent of medical school admissions... Haha, it's funny how "fun" things become "unfun" when you make commitments to them. Maybe you think going bowling with your friends is fun. You probably wouldn't think it was so fun if I made you go bowling 5 days a week and you had to wake up at 6am every morning to get to your 7am bowling practice. Undoubtedly, we've all chosen volunteer/research positions we thought were interesting at first, but we had some not-so-fun moments when things got difficult or when it clashed with the other things going on in our lives. Hopefully, those things are something you found interesting in the first place though...and that they're things you'll find interesting most of (although likely not all of) the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muchdutch Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 Uhhh, Canadian universities are public, non-profit institutions. Their finances are a matter of public record. Any "profit" they make is returned to university's operating budget. Rising tuition fees are a results of decreased provincial transfer payments from the federal government and the deregulation of tuition fees by provincial governments. If tuition fees are stinging you know, just wait until you start paying med school tuition. yes, they are public, non-profit institutions. But have you ever looked into their finances closely and seen how much money is wasted? I have personally worked for a major university for several years and it is ridiculous - everyone is unionized, if you work 'too fast' or 'too efficiently' you are either ostracized because you make your co-workers look bad, or you are reprimanded by your seniors because when you aren't doing anything (b/c you've done all there is to do except, say, dusting the floor) it makes them look bad to their seniors. Yes, decreasing provincial transfers etc. contribute to costs, but the larger cost of inefficiency within each university contributes to it a lot more in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peachy Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 Yes, decreasing provincial transfers etc. contribute to costs, but the larger cost of inefficiency within each university contributes to it a lot more in my opinion.All large organizations and all unionized organizations have these problems to a lesser or greater degree. It seems to me that inefficiency is likely to be a more constant cost, and that it can't on its own explain rapidly rising tuition. It remains true that Canadian schools, and in particular Ontario schools, are funded per student far less than comparable US institutions. Although I bet that those comparable US institutions also have lots of "inefficiency" problems. (Sorry for the incredibly OT post!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coastalslacker Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 Get high GPA, high MCAT, do volunteering, do research, give up most of fun, go through the agony of whether you will beaccepted or not, torturous application process, beg for references and then if at all you get in, spend lot of money, study for 11 years after high school & then pay back huge loan.......it sounds too much to me. Is itt really worth it? Ummm, yeah it takes some work, but it's not "tortuous", most of us don't go through a lot of "agony" and while some fun must be given up, I certainly have never "given up most of the fun". Once you get to med school, at least in the pre-clerkship years, you have way more free time than in undergrad. There's so much angst on these boards......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ploughboy Posted September 28, 2006 Report Share Posted September 28, 2006 no you responded to someone who has been living in the real world for some time now. I have socks older than you, kid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_B Posted September 29, 2006 Report Share Posted September 29, 2006 I have socks older than you, kid. Haha at least you didn't say underwear. Now to respond to the original post (which seemed to me to be a valid concern) I will say...it depends. I've just started my medical studies, and I can say that it's not likely for everyone. Your concerns are all valid, in that the road is very long, with many obstacles (money not being the least of which), only to get to a profession that works long hours, has lots of stress, and real commitments. From what I can tell, the only question you can ask yourself is whether or not you think the sacrifice is worth both the knowledge and the satisfaction of what you will be doing with your life. This is true with all pursuits in life, but I do think that the question must be posed at an earlier age for us would be doctors as once you are in, there is a sense of no turning back. Having said all that, I love the education and interaction I have been getting thus far, and I have been made fully aware that it is only the tip of the iceberg. Medicine, once you get into it, is the ultimate "what you make of it" profession, and can be infinitely rewarding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hp18 Posted September 29, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 29, 2006 So you all agree its not just money which should drive you to be a physician........You can make more money in many other professions (considering cost of education, time & age at which you start earning and retire early due to stress etc)....so it should be driven by the passion at the cost of materialistic rewards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scarface Posted September 29, 2006 Report Share Posted September 29, 2006 If you want to go into medicine because you truly love the profession, than all the hard work and sacrifice will definitely be worth it. If you want to go into medicine for the prestige/money, than the question the OP stated might come into play. If you want to go into medicine to help others, than no it's not worth it as there are many other professions in which this is possible. BTW, I am the King of Trolls on these forums. I am currently in the process of updating my status to "Ogre". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hp18 Posted September 29, 2006 Author Report Share Posted September 29, 2006 Scarface you are right. Social status & money should not be motivating factors to go for medicine. If one is going into this profession for social status &/or money....ITS NOT WORTH THE TROUBLE of going through so many years off expensive studies and for profession which allows you to make money when you would have crossed the age of utilizing it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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