Guest capblues Posted October 18, 2003 Report Share Posted October 18, 2003 Hello Everyone, First I want to say that this board is amazing, and that it is a great resource. I am in my first year of undergrad just taking some general courses, but I think I am going to go into kinesiology. Has anyone out there done kinesiology as an undergrad? How was it? I know that I really want to go to med school, I am not the greatest student, but I know that if I put in the effort I can get the grades required. At this point I need to start thinking of some sort of work or volunteer experience that might help my chances of getting accepted to a med school, as I have next to none now. I have been thinking about joining the Canadian military reserves, but I am having some trouble deciding what trade I want to go into. I have narrowed it dow to 4. Firstly I could be a medic...or a Med-A as they are called..which would be great I think for applying to med school, but from I was thinking I would like to do something different, from what I will be doing for the next 10 years of my life. So i was thinking of going into either a field engineer unit, or possibly an infantry unit. At the same time I love the ocean and have been thinking of joining the navy reserves. but then maybe the whole reserves thing isn't such a good idea..I just don't know..can anyone help me..Please! is being in the military frowned upon, or is it something that would look great? Would the different trades make a difference??? Any help would be most greatly appreciated! Cheers Tommy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest notold Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 Hi Tommy, I don't think med school would see the military as a negative. In fact I think it would indicate a degree of commitment and discipline. As far as choosing what to do I can only suggest going for what you think you'd like the most. If for any reason you did not get into med school you would have an alternate career plan underway. The military also has options for med students you might want to look into if you have this dual interest. My son plans on joining the reserves next year and tying in his career goals with the military, though he has no interest in medicine. If he goes to RMC he will have his education paid for. I think it is a good plan for those who have an interest. Have you talked with recruiters and explored all the options and ins and outs? best of luck! Tommy here is a thread specifically discussing military and medicine: pub125.ezboard.com/fpreme...=319.topic notold Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Dub Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 Hey Tommy, As a reserve medic in the Canadian Forces while attending university, I'll just give you my two cents. I think it's a great idea for you to join the reserves. There is no way that a medical school could possibly look down on military experience, as you will learn much from it: i.e. Teamwork, discipline, determination, motivation, the list goes on and on. As for which branch of the Forces you should join, I say ARMY all the way! (Ok maybe I'm a little biased since I'm in the army) But seriously, My advice would be to join whichever trade/branch you feel you would like best. I personally, have had an absolutely great time as a medic. If you join a medical company, you will still get to do all the fun "typical army" stuff, but you will also get valuable medical experience - It's a good mix. Definitely consider enlisting, it's a great part-time job. Good pay, (mostly) fun times, what more could you ask for? Also, they will pay for up to $2000 of your university tuition each year... with no service commitment! That helps a lot, trust me! If you have any medical or general questions pertaining to the reserves/military, just post 'em up on this board and I'll try to answer them ASAP. btw. which city do you live in? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest driedcaribou Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 Medical related trades are now under the newly established Medical branch. Previously, most medics in the Reserves belonged to the Army... now as a medic, you should still be able to do all the fun stuff if they are still going to make you take the SQ which is the course after the BMQ. SQ= Soldier Qualification where you get to shoot a bunch of different weapons. BMQ= Basic Military Qualification where you learn dress and deportment, drill, the C7 Service rifle etc. I would suggest you join as a medic to see if you actually like doing medical related stuff. You won't get to do medical stuff for at least a year and a half later. Even then, it would be paramedical training and you won't get to do clinical training until a year after that unless your unit is on top of things and you get loaded on a QL4 after your QL3. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest capblues Posted October 19, 2003 Report Share Posted October 19, 2003 Thanks guys for all your usefull information. Dub, just curious, but what unit are you in? I agree with you, if I join it will probally be in the army, but I am still don't really know between infantry and medic. Can you tell me what you guys do on the days you parade? and on the weekend training sessions. Also I am worried that if I join it will be too much of a time commitment, as school is top prioroity. The one night a week is not an issue, but the one weekend a month could be. What if I have exams the next week, I would not be able to take the whole weekend off....Is that an issue? Thanks for all your help once again! Cheers Tommy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest driedcaribou Posted October 20, 2003 Report Share Posted October 20, 2003 Tommy: Dub was a medic in the army branch. However, you cannot join as a medic in the army branch anymore because the medical branch is seperate. If you want to be a medic you cannot be in the army. You however can be a medic tasked out with an army unit. The Canadian Forces consists of the following branches: Army Air Force Navy Communications Medical The Medical branch has been newly established... Infantry = close in and destroy the enemy. You basically do section attacks, patrols, offensive and defensive roles. It's very hard on the knees.... Medic = provide medical support to the Canadian Forces. Fights in self-defence and in defence of casualties. Traditionally, medical units have fairly slack field exercises esp. compared to the Infantry. You still won't get much sleep but you won't have to do nearly as much as the Infantry does. Now, you do not have to attend weekend training if you have other commitments but it does affect the unit's perception of you which matters when you want to get courses in the summer etc. We aren't like the US Reserves in a sense that they have mandatory training.... There's no contract in our army as Dub stated before. Go visit a couple units, talk to everyone there and then make your decision. Remember, you can leave anytime so it really doesn't hurt to join. But you won't get anything out of it if you aren't prepared to make some time for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest capblues Posted October 21, 2003 Report Share Posted October 21, 2003 Thanks driedcaribou for all your help! I am still having difficulty deciding between infantry and a med tech though, as they both have differant qualities that I Would enjoy. BUt when it comes to applying to med school, I have a feeling the med tech might be more in my favor. Do you have any idea what a med-tech would do on a weekly basis? Or on the one weekend a month? Also what kind of summer courses are available for med-a's? Thank you very much cheers Tommy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest driedcaribou Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 HTML Comments are not allowed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest capblues Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 What is an HTML comment? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest driedcaribou Posted October 22, 2003 Report Share Posted October 22, 2003 Darn. I wrote a HUGE reply too. I must have put some brackets in there unintentionally. I shake my fist at thee EZboard >: To paraphrase my huge post.... All 'army' trades (medics may have their own courses in the future) BMQ- Basic Military Qualification SQ- Soldier Qualification Medic courses: QL3-paramedic skills (they took out IVs this year.. they may put them back) QL4-clinical skills (they took out injections, blood draws and EKGs this year...) Infantry courses: QL3-AFV recognition, Scouting, Patrols, Platoon Hasty Attacks stuff like that I think QL4- this is a bit different in a sense that you take different courses that can fulfill the 'role' of this course which allows you to be promoted. The most common course taken is the machine gunners course. There are other course like recce etc. The QLs hold you for about a month and a bit in the summer- duration keeps changing. There are more courses but I'm not going to write them again in case it gets DELETED again. Medical taskings: MIR duty - Medical Inspection Room Awesome gig for learning how to deal with patients. You can work at a cadet camp for kids or you can work at an actual military base helping with patient exams etc. It can eat up your whole summer if you're lucky. Med Support - Go out and be a first aid attendant in the field- this happens throughout the year for other units as well. You might even get to work on a ship if you live on the coast. Ambulance Driver - Drive the crappiest truck in the Canadian Armed Forces... the LSVW.. which coincidentally is the ambulance for the Reserves.... Infantry taskings: That guard duty thing in Ottawa - I don't know the official name but you have tourists bug you all day while you do drill. Enemy force: Exactly what it sounds like- pretend to be the bad guy for a course Other misc stuff: Stuff like being a soldier for some officer's commander course All trades: GD- General Duty- do anything they tell you to do- like mop the floor or work in the kitchen or even be enemy force. Driver- Drive. Maybe the Major, maybe some cadets, maybe some people on course. You need your 404s for this though (military driver's license). Misc. Courses- Communications courses, jump courses (as a medic? hahahahah good luck- better luck as an infanteer) etc. Misc Exercises- i.e. joint exercises with the Americans or Brigade wide training exercises- combat simulations etc. Instructor on a course- usually you have to hold an instructor qualification before you're allowed to teach other army courses... Range Control etc. You can only change trades 3 times during your career. If you stay that long that is... :lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.