Ok, so I'm now going through a dilemma that I'm sure is not too uncommon: I have no idea what I want to do after college. I am a junior planning on 5 years, and I am majoring in math, physics, and french. My original plan when I came to college was to go to graduate school in physics. I've recently decided that I do not think physics graduate school is right for me. This is for two main reasons: 1. I haven't been thrilled about the research experiences I have had; they were not all that exciting to me. 2. I have recently become very interested in medical sciences. When I hear about some new study with the brain, or the HPV vaccine, or any new medical development, I get very excited.
So, I was thinking of medical school as a possible option. However, problems with this include 1. I may be more interested in the research aspect of things, so getting an MD makes slightly less sense than getting a PhD. 2. Med. school is hella expensive, and although I have heard you can easily pay off the loans on a doctor's salary, I would want to do pro bono work in Africa or somewhere like that for a while once I get done with med. school, but I would be flat broke :(
I considered an MD/PhD program, which is good because 1. get the MD and research, and 2. It's free! However, it is impractical because 1. it is nearly impossible to get into, and 2. it takes about a million years to finish.
Also, medical physics does not seem like a great option, because it seems somewhat limited in scope (meaning if I got a PhD in it, I'd be working with radiology machines my whole life.)
So, I am opening my future up to the class. Anyone here interested in medical research? What are you plans? Any suggestions?
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3 comments:
I hate being an adult. I wish it was as easy as asking mom or dad what to do and them giving an answer.
Basically everything you said are things I have been saying for the past year (except I'm majoring in Genetics, I can't speak French, and I dropped my math major last semester). I was really thinking about MD/PhD but I want to start having a life at some point in the next 10 years. Right now I'm doing research in an Oncology lab and I really like it but I still feel like I would enjoy doing more medical/clinical research more. I think all you can do is wait it out and see where life takes you.
I'm a junior also, and the thought of having to start real life fairly soon gives me the willies. I'm doing Genetics and Film, which are kind of far apart. It's pretty much just to have a backup plan, but a mixture of the two could be pretty interesting; or incredibly boring. Maybe you should think about a combo career, like teaching French kids math, or teaching physics kids French. Two gems right there.
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