I'm sure this question has been asked hundreds of times this year alone, but I wanted to ask, just like everyone else.
I am an RN/paramedic with a specialty of pre-hospital transport, primarily flight. I have been an RN for 5 years and a medic for 12. I'm dissatisfied with my career simply because I decided to pursue it out of necessity rather than following my passion.
Being around the profession and all that it entails, I wake up every day with regret. I regret not making the decision to pursue medicine. Each day at work, the regret has turned to motivation to pursue that path.
I'm in my 30s. I've spent the past 12 years in the medical field doing everything but medicine. Each day I've had to make life or death decisions at 20,000 feet that ultimately could determine a person's fate. I would be lying if I said performing an emergent cric at that altitude while using night vision goggles wasn't exhilarating, but what is more exhilarating is the never ending quest for knowledge and understanding of medicine. You truly cannot know and/or understand it unless you have gone through the rigorous trials and tribulations one must endure to accomplish such a feat.
With all of that said, does anyone have any insight, suggestions, or advice for someone like me? Currently, I am taking a lot of upper level science courses to improve my GPA to show the adcom that I can not only handle the course load, but also excel. This is also an attempt to counter balance my 3.0 uGPA and 3.4 sGPA that was obtained only to gain a degree. Like I discussed earlier, my education and career was out of necessity rather than desire, so I never put effort into it.
Also, coming from a profession like mine, are there extra-curriculars that I need to involve myself in such as shadowing or volunteering?
Obviously, MCAT scores are important, so I know that I need to study hard and do the best I can.
Any advice is welcome, either positive or negative. I have wanted this for as long as I have remembered, and I lost track of where my heart wanted me to go. I'm not saying that I will get accepted into a medical school, but I am saying that I want to do everything possible that I'm capable of doing to help make that dream a reality.
Thanks for your time.
I am an RN/paramedic with a specialty of pre-hospital transport, primarily flight. I have been an RN for 5 years and a medic for 12. I'm dissatisfied with my career simply because I decided to pursue it out of necessity rather than following my passion.
Being around the profession and all that it entails, I wake up every day with regret. I regret not making the decision to pursue medicine. Each day at work, the regret has turned to motivation to pursue that path.
I'm in my 30s. I've spent the past 12 years in the medical field doing everything but medicine. Each day I've had to make life or death decisions at 20,000 feet that ultimately could determine a person's fate. I would be lying if I said performing an emergent cric at that altitude while using night vision goggles wasn't exhilarating, but what is more exhilarating is the never ending quest for knowledge and understanding of medicine. You truly cannot know and/or understand it unless you have gone through the rigorous trials and tribulations one must endure to accomplish such a feat.
With all of that said, does anyone have any insight, suggestions, or advice for someone like me? Currently, I am taking a lot of upper level science courses to improve my GPA to show the adcom that I can not only handle the course load, but also excel. This is also an attempt to counter balance my 3.0 uGPA and 3.4 sGPA that was obtained only to gain a degree. Like I discussed earlier, my education and career was out of necessity rather than desire, so I never put effort into it.
Also, coming from a profession like mine, are there extra-curriculars that I need to involve myself in such as shadowing or volunteering?
Obviously, MCAT scores are important, so I know that I need to study hard and do the best I can.
Any advice is welcome, either positive or negative. I have wanted this for as long as I have remembered, and I lost track of where my heart wanted me to go. I'm not saying that I will get accepted into a medical school, but I am saying that I want to do everything possible that I'm capable of doing to help make that dream a reality.
Thanks for your time.