Back-up plans?

[Guest paniccity]

Hi

Would anyone mind telling me what their back up plans are in case they DON"T get into MD school this year? I have applied and had some interviews (2) but I am starting to panic... (no specific reason, the interviews were fine...)

 

I have already taken one year off to upgrade etc my marks so I don't think taking another one is a good idea. The grad school option is not tempting me b/c it takes soooo long to get out (2 yeasr MSc, at a minimum), before I can reapply to medicine again (completely, committment free.)

 

Ian, if you can, I would love to hear what you think on my dilemma. Break out the Ativan, this is full-fledged Anxiety Disorder, here.

 

Thanks.

[Guest MDCY]

If you don't mind moving to new scenery, you could get a one year course-based Master in Biomedical Technology at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Calgary. It's course-based so you don't have to do "research"/thesis stuff and you could still apply to medicine for the following year. Here's a link to their website:

www.med.ucalgary.ca/webs/Biotech/

Personally, this is what I am planning on doing in case I don't get in this year either. Or I guess you could also work a year at a research place. I graduated in '01 with my Bsc and I am working at DND for a year to get experience in research while waiting for med school. Besides that, you could always go back and try to start another undergraduate degree. Whatever you do, just don't waste a year doing nothing because it probably doesn't look good on your next year application in case you don't get in this year. Good luck.

Cheers!

[Guest Liana]

There are a lot of options. I personally am planning on finishing my BSc if I don't get in, so I don't share your dilemma. However, here are a few of the things that come to mind:

 

Work - it's a great way to save money and pay off any student loans you have. You don't necessarily have to find a really "biology"-type job; you can apply in government or in laboratories at your university, at biotech/pharmaceutical companies, etc. A lot of these jobs are either in laboratory (QA/QC) or sales, but both have advantages; the labs will obviously provide you with further insight to scientific research & applications, while the sales aspect can help with the interpersonal skills (and probably be a great aid for improving your interviewing abilities!) The government of Canada has various "internship" opportunities for recent grads which run from 6 months to a year; these range from teaching English in Quebec/NB, to office jobs, to who knows what else. Or take the opportunity to do something fun - get your personal training certificate and work in a gym for a year.

 

Travel - you don't have to shell out a lot to do this; you can always take on a job that isn't necessarily lucrative, but still allows you to witness a new culture - you could teach English in Asia, work as an au pair in Europe, or even get involved with certain volunteer projects (usually to S. America & Africa) that often cover your cost of living, or can be funded by fundraising and organizations like the Rotary Club.

 

School - like MDCY mentioned, there ARE some 1 year Master's degrees out there. They're a lot more common than you think, but not usually in theoretical lab sciences - I have run across programs in the arts, epidemiology, applied lab technology, etc, than span a year. If you have the money, you could apply to MSc programs in the UK, which are generally 1 year in length (although many of the deadlines may have passed).

You can also look into pursuing a community college post-degree diploma. There are a lot of these directed to university grads - the obvious ideas might be in lab technology, but you also might want to look into rounding out your abilities, for instance, computer communications (imaging, etc) could always come in handy, as could managerial-type programs.

 

Or you could try something really exotic: climb mount Everest, develop your own charity, or start a religious cult. There are plenty of things out there, and you're looking at just the right time to get some great backup planned!

[Guest MD2006]

I'll give you my scenario as to what I did after finishing school and waiting to get into meds. I currently am a research assistant at a Medical School in the US. I have been here for the past year and 1/2 and have had some wonderful opportunities and experiences.

I have been able to see what the academic and clinical aspects of medical research are like. But one of the most important things I think I've learned is how to extract information from journal articles. When I first started, I had a vague idea of what scientific experimental techniques were like from undergrad labs but it doesn't prepare me for the type of work that is done in academic research labs. I am now very familiar with alot of the procedures used...why they are used....and how by looking at the data, I can draw my own conclusions. Personally, I think this is going to help me alot in meds since I will be able to get info out of articles without alot of background reading. Also, by living in a major academic area, I have had the opportunity to attend lectures from some the the leading scientists in many fields of medicine, and attend medical symposiums and conferences. Not to mention the various people I have met, the volunteer opportunities and the connections I have made, money I have paid back on my student loans, and the chance to have a break from being a student. I have my evenings free of studying and I get to do things I wasn't able to while in undergrad.

So I guess my feeling was......getting into medical school means being a student for four years plus residency, so I didn't feel the need to fill the gap with more school......but that was my own personal choice! Hope this was helpful

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hey there;

 

Back-up plan on this end if the medical equivalent of "the Oscar goes to..." doesn't appear in my mailbox come May/June: quit the full-time job immediately then begin a M.Sc. in clinical epidemiology here in TO (in a medical field of interest), starting with some extra research in the same field this summer.

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen

[Guest DxRShawndx]

Not to sure, but couldnt u spend that year volunteering?

I am still in highschool.

[Guest paniccity]

Thanks for the advice. It's all good.

 

I'm sure I'm not going through anything that other applicants are not, yet when you are waiting to hear the whole process is so isolating. That's why I liked interviews: you could meet with other people and they all had the same concerns/insecurities (for the most part) re: the whole process.

 

Anyway, Happy Easter,everyone.