What should i study ? NEED HELP.

[Guest CanadianG]

I am 15 and planning to become a doctor. However i dont know what kinda doctor i want to be. I am interested in the ppl thaat work in a ER checking the person condition when coming into the hospital or inside the hospital. So i dont know what kinda of specialist i want to be but nothing with cutting someone open. So if u can help can u give me suggestion of what kinda of specialist there are and what are the requirement thx. I planning to save lives not to earn money.

[Guest Ian Wong]

You've got plenty of time later to worry about that. In terms of the education you've got to go through to become a doctor and a specialist, I'm probably about 7-8 years ahead of you, and I just decided this year what kind of doctor I want to be. So, you've got plenty of time yet!

 

I think it's way too early to get all worked up about the requirements for each specialty. For you at this stage, if you're considering medicine as a career, try to get some volunteering experience in at the local hospital, and see if some of those doctors would be willing to have you follow them around for an afternoon or a weekend, so you can see what they do exactly. This is known as "shadowing" a doctor.

 

As far as high school and university go, you might want to take some courses that you think are interesting, or that you might enjoy eg. English Lit, Art, Drama, Music, etc. You may discover a subject that you really love studying. Along with those, having a solid background in the sciences right out of high school will help tremendously with your university science courses, so you might want to consider high school biology, chemistry, physics, and math.

 

Other than that, take things easy, enjoy whatever you are learning, try to have some fun, and get some medical volunteer experience in. You've got plenty of time in the future to decide if medicine is right for you.

 

Ian

UBC, Med 3