Law Student Interested in Med

[Sandcastle]

I realize my background is relatively unorthodox, as I'd imagine the majority of people on here are science undergrads hoping to do med after their degree. I haven't done too much research into the admissions process for med, but was initially very interested in pursuing it before going the social sciences route through undergrad. I'm enjoying law and doing well, but imagining an entire career built around it has me second-guessing my decision... A lot of it focuses on conflict and wealth-generation with the looming requirement to clock billable hours. Though med of course has just as much (if not more) stress, I think in the long run a lifetime of this sort of work will leave me unfulfilled, and I'm starting to seriously consider an alternate career path.

 

Mostly what I'm hoping for is some advice as to how my background might fare in the admissions processes in general (I realize each is very different, and made sure to check out the threads stickied above), and what some people might suggest. I'll start with my background:

 

I'm currently a second-year law student with my BA in English and philosophy. I finished with an A- average at UBC, and did well (92nd percentile) on my LSAT, along with having had a good deal of extra-curricular involvement in environmental advocacy. I've taken very few hard sciences courses since high school, though, save for some marine bio and botany classes. Still, I've always enjoyed bio, and did very well in those classes. One of my biggest questions is whether it's possible to pick up the pre-requisites for med without completing a second 4-year degree altogether? I'm planning to finish law school if only to pay off my debts, and would likely be taking courses in the evenings or by correspondence, and a full degree would make this very difficult.

 

Also, how do mature students fare in the admissions process? In law the admissions standards are softened somewhat, generally because it's presumed that mature students will bring unique perspectives to the field. Is this generally the same for med? I'm 26 now, and realistically would probably not be able to get an application together for another 4 or 5 years.

 

I checked out the thread about grad students, but I'm not certain that includes law, as the JD is generally considered either a professional or second undergraduate degree. In the latter case I'm worried as to how my GPA would be affected, as law grades are different from undergrad, and straight As virtually unheard of. It seems unfair to clump these grades together with undergrad ones if that's the case... Does anyone know if exceptions are made based on programs?

 

Also, how important are extra-curriculars? Do med schools look for involvement in general, or is there favouritism (or even a requirement for) involvement within the related fields of med?

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Apologies for not having researched the subject considerably, as I know it can be frustrating for people to ask questions which have otherwise-obvious answers. I'd like to get some opinions first before proceeding with the serious, research though, and mostly want to get an idea of how realistic a career in med for me would be, along with what obstacles I'll be looking at.

[osteon]

Cool career path. An MD, JD would allow for some cool job opportunities.

 

I'm going to list some answers to your questions very quickly, so they're pretty topical but should give you some starting directions.

 

1. Your grades from the JD degree will not be considered in the admissions process. Usually just standard undergrad grades are, which you did fine in. An A- GPA puts you in good shape.

 

2. Not all MD schools require science classes, and not all MD schools require the MCAT for that matter. Personally, I would not bother going back for extra undergrad courses just to meet stupid science requirements - if a school doesn't want you for what you have already, then move on to somewhere else. That's my philosophy at least. I know there's a lot of people on here who will disagree with me, but I think its a big skid mark on the resume for someone with an advanced degree like a JD, PhD or MSc to go back to undergrad just to meet course requirements. Off the top of my head, Calgary and McMaster are probably your best bets as neither have course requirements and both only look at the verbal reasoning section of the MCAT, which is similar to the LSATs which you did great on.

 

3. Schools don't care what types of extracurriculars you have, as long as you have some that you are passionate about and learned something from. Again, Calgary is a good option in this regard.

 

4. Things to consider about starting med: It's 3-4 years for the MD, plus at least another 2 years, though possibly 5 or more for residency. Something to consider. Again, Calgary and McMaster are good options since they're only 3 years for the undergraduate MD.

 

Good luck!

[tooty]

I agree with osteon. Maximizing your verbal score will max your chances for Calgary and Mac. The other sections don't matter for Mac, and minimally so for Calgary.

 

You don't have to wait so long to apply. You missed the application deadline this year so apply next cycle and see how well you do. Write the MCAT asap of course and don't sweat it if you bomb physical and biological.

 

If you are interested in any other school, you'll have to study for the science sections of the MCAT.

[cardiomegaly]

We have a lawyer in our class, it's unusual but not impossible.

 

If you can rock the LSAT, you'll kill the verbal section in the MCAT.

 

Also double check about your law degree grades counting for med - in other professional programs like pharmacy, physic or OT they do count your GPA (at least at Alberta) so I can't imagine that they'd just dismiss the fact that you've done two years of that program

[ploughboy]

We have a lawyer in our class, it's unusual but not impossible.

 

There was a guy from Osgoode in my class, now doing physiatry. It's certainly possible.

[Sandcastle]

Big thanks for the replies, everyone, the responses have been very helpful and encouraging! I'll begin researching this a lot more seriously now.

 

Considering I'll probably be 29-30 when applying, does anyone know how mature applicants are treated in the admissions process? For example, will there be more leeway granted towards my GPA in general because of my age?

 

Also, I'm curious about how much of a disadvantage someone would be at not having taken a sciences degree for med... Granted law is also highly analytical, but I'd imagine the students with the hard sciences backgrounds would have a pretty considerable advantage when it comes to a lot of the material. Is this always the case, or is a lot of the knowledge/thinking acquired once you're in the classroom?

[Nasket]

Cool career path. An MD, JD would allow for some cool job opportunities.

 

1. Your grades from the JD degree will not be considered in the admissions process. Usually just standard undergrad grades are, which you did fine in. An A- GPA puts you in good shape.

 

 

I agree with Osteon - J.D/M.D should be an interesting combination. However, I do believe McMaster will consider JD as undergraduate marks just like teachers' college and dentistry.

From Mac Med website:

 

Q: Is my Law Degree considered an undergraduate or graduate degree?

 

Law degrees (LLB) in Canadian law schools are undergraduate degrees. This includes Osgood Hall law school. Graduate law degrees will be clearly identified on the transcripts as such.

 

Good luck! Hopefully this helps your case!

[tooty]

Big thanks for the replies, everyone, the responses have been very helpful and encouraging! I'll begin researching this a lot more seriously now.

 

Considering I'll probably be 29-30 when applying, does anyone know how mature applicants are treated in the admissions process? For example, will there be more leeway granted towards my GPA in general because of my age?

 

Also, I'm curious about how much of a disadvantage someone would be at not having taken a sciences degree for med... Granted law is also highly analytical, but I'd imagine the students with the hard sciences backgrounds would have a pretty considerable advantage when it comes to a lot of the material. Is this always the case, or is a lot of the knowledge/thinking acquired once you're in the classroom?

 

1. You won't earn extra points for being older but your life experience and maturity will show through in various parts of your application, especially in the MMI

 

2. You won't be disadvantaged at all. Past first year (sometimes 2nd year) intro courses, science courses become mostly irrelevant to the study of medicine. You will learn all you need to learn to be a competent physician or surgeon in medical school, residency, and beyond.

[meds400]

Calgary does have a lot of students with humanities/social sciences background and I believe we even have one person in our class right now who already has a JD. However, be a bit careful - just because you don't 'need' any science to get into this program, doesn't mean that it wouldn't help you quite a bit. At the very least, I'd suggest that you take a first year biology course and/or physiology to see if you even "like" science...I have an MSc and some of the scientific concepts we have gone through in class has been way over my head - I can only imagine what it would be like if I didn't have any science background (although some certainly do it without...).