The feasibility of getting into medicine?

[ombrophile]

Is 'medicine' a plausible goal for a mediocre year 10 student?
This question has honestly been eating away my insides.
99.95 atar, is undoubtedly shooting for the stars and  landing a bulls eye.

Is it possible, for not necessarily an underachiever, as I am in one of  the two smart classes present in my school, but rather an un-gifted and talent less student to land in medicine? (Melbourne)

Any personal anecdotes, per say? *desperation*

Much thanks.

[vox nihili]

Is 'medicine' a plausible goal for a mediocre year 10 student?
This question has honestly been eating away my insides.
99.95 atar, is undoubtedly shooting for the stars and  landing a bulls eye.

Is it possible, for not necessarily an underachiever, as I am in one of  the two smart classes present in my school, but rather an un-gifted and talent less student to land in medicine? (Melbourne)

Any personal anecdotes, per say? *desperation*

Much thanks.

It's doable for anyone if they really want to do it Set your goals high, and the worst you can do is fall short. But hey, won't you do better than you would have without the goal in the first place?

[Limista]

Is it possible, for not necessarily an underachiever, as I am in one of  the two smart classes present in my school, but rather an un-gifted and talent less student to land in medicine? (Melbourne)

Hi there 

You are in that 'smart' class or accelerated class for a reason. It is certainly not because you are not talented - quite the contrary  . I don't even know you, but this modesty that you have demonstrated here is a vital part of succeeding in VCE. I also believe that being a modest person is indispensable when it comes to studying medicine and being a doctor, because that's what I envision a typical, affable physician personality to be like.

In my opinion, to get into medicine, you don't need to be excessively and unattainably intelligent. Instead, you need to have a strong desire and will to enter the field, as well as having the ability to work hard. Most importantly, believe in yourself and have faith that someday you will become a doctor. 

Definitely shoot for the stars, but  make sure that you are working to achieve your goals, rather than just dreaming.

I am not a medical student, nor am I a doctor, but I do believe myself to be in a similar position to you. 

[ombrophile]

Definitely shoot for the stars, but  make sure that you are working to achieve your goals, rather than just dreaming. 

You exude a sense of believability,
Or maybe Its just me trying to seek an aesthetic sense of assurance,
Nonetheless,
Thank-you, a lot.

[ombrophile]

It's doable for anyone if they really want to do it Set your goals high, and the worst you can do is fall short. But hey, won't you do better than you would have without the goal in the first place?

Wow, your living proof of such an entity.
Thanks.

[Gekko]

Some of the text below may come across as though I'm blowing my own trumpet but I think that I need to explain my situation to help OP.

Let me tell you a little bit about myself.

When I was a young child, everyone thought I was very intelligent. People would always praise me to my parents about how courteous, respectful, mature and intelligent I was. My parents got me started on learning quite early too so I guess lots of that helped. I cruised through primary school, consistently at the top of my class, still collecting much praise with no difficulty.

Once I hit high school, things started to take a turn for the worse though. Since I was at an elite private school, this was picked up on really quickly (especially given my past track record) and my parents were contacted immediately etc. Nothing really bad happened at all, I just became disinterested in studying hard any more. I really didn't see the point of it and preferred to spend my time playing music (classical guitar and piano), gaming and hanging out with friends.

My parents kept trying to "talk some sense" into me but to no avail. I was just lethargic.

My moment of sudden clarity and realisation was more of a dripping faucet at the back of my mind that increased in pressure over a long period of time during the middle of year 9 towards the start of year 10. I started thinking about what I wanted to do in life and what I wanted to achieve. Constantly slacking off and enjoying life "today" simply was not going to cut it.

I was fortunate enough to live a privileged life and this started playing into my thoughts too (as selfish and taboo as this sounds). I always knew that I would go to university but it was at that point that I decided that it had to be something good. I didn't want to go to university just for the sake of being able to say that I go or get some dead-end job that will take me nowhere in life.

That's when I decided that it was my goal to achieve an ATAR score of 99.95. People laughed at me, people mocked me, people ridiculed me and blatantly told me that I would never achieve that score. In the end they were right, I got an ATAR of 99.85.

In VCE I didn't really think too much about courses or university or anything. I just picked subjects that interested me and that I thought I would do well in.

I must say, I had a huge preconception about what VCE would be liked based on anecdotes from those around me. Long, sleep-less nights, tears, boredom, cramming like a mad hatter for exams..

But now that I look back at the whole experience, cool, calm and collected, it was nothing like that. I never really focussed on the big picture and didn't worry about anything while I was studying. I just focussed intently on the task at hand and ensured that I fully understood the intricacies and nuances of that concept in great detail. I didn't study excessive hours, still managed to hang out with friends every week and even managed to make it to the gym a few times a week.

With all of that said, I thoroughly enjoyed my subjects and pushed myself to study and study effectively during study hours so that I could enjoy other activities later. All of this made my parents very proud, also.

When the time came to put in my VTAC applications, I was perplexed. I always enjoyed quantitative subjects and really enjoyed accounting (it was also my highest raw study score) so I decided that I wanted to study a Bachelor of Commerce at The University of Melbourne.

My parents always had dreams of me becoming a doctor and despite my non-existent desire to go into medicine, I decided that I would apply to James Cook University for a place (I didn't sit the UMAT and JCU doesn't require the UMAT). I did end up getting in but I didn't accept the offer.

I'm currently studying the BCom program at the UoM and I couldn't be happier. I employed the same study skills and habits I developed in VCE (although I studied a lot less) in semester 1 and I ended up doing okay.

So that's my story there for you.

All I can say is that do what you enjoy. Evaluate your priorities and set one or more goals. Work towards that and hopefully you'll get there.

Best of luck,
Gekko.

[vox nihili]

Wow, your living proof of such an entity.
Thanks.

That's very kind of you!

It really is the way to look at things in my eyes though. There's no point setting "sensible goals". Go nuts, dream and work for that dream. The worst you can do is fall short, just like I said! Doing all that work though and falling short is certainly going to put you in better stead than setting a crappier goal and falling short of that. If you want it, work for it. Med will be as feasible as you make it.

[abeybaby]

I would say to sit down, and think hard, and decide. If medicine is what YOU want to do, then don't let anything stop you. If it's not, then think some more, and work out what you REALLY want to do.

[Shenz0r]

If you have the willpower and drive to get into Medicine, there's a high chance that you will get there eventually. But it's all about not giving up, no matter how many times you fail.

Many aspiring medical students will fail in getting into Medicine at least once in their lives, but those who are eventually successful don't let their failures weigh them down. They try harder. You can either give up or keep fighting for what you really want. Yes, everyone who wants to be a doctor will always ask themselves "will I ever get into Medicine/do I even have a chance?", but focus more on the "doing" part and you'll be on your path there, someday.

I have read about people sitting the GAMSAT at least 8 times, and students beginning their graduate medicine course when they're in their 30s and 40s. It ultimately comes down to how much you want it, and if you want it really badly, you will get there. Eventually.

[pi]

Now I agree with a lot of the posts in this thread and the general vibe of the "if there's a will there's a way" type of thing, the need for deep thinking, and a high patience threshold.

But someone has to be the "bad guy".

Now what I don't like is:

Is it possible, for not necessarily an underachiever, as I am in one of  the two smart classes present in my school, but rather an un-gifted and talent less student to land in medicine? (Melbourne)

Ok so being realistic, I think getting into a course like medicine requires a few things, one of which is a willing to improve. Now, the first step to that is through believing that you can do well and you can do better. Every day is a new day and chance to improve. That's the ideal mindset of a medical student and probably for any one in general. Now I say this because being a "medical student" isn't "special", it's just about having an interest in the right things and being a good person.

If you, form the outset, believe you have "less talent", you're not going to make the cut. You can't get through the selection criteria with that sort of attitude. Now I know I sound pretty harsh, especially as this thread might have a purpose of changing this attitude, but a lot of it has to come from you and not from the words of randoms on the internet. Ye old "you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink" kind of thing.

The first step to medicine is having the attitude for it, and calling yourself "mediocre" isn't the best way to do that. Luckily, you have 2 years to turn that around. So if I were you, I'd put medicine as my goal (as you seem passionate about it, which is great) and try your best form this point on to turn yourself into someone who's above and beyond the "mediocre".

Why do I say act now? Because let's be honest, you don't want to be trying to get into medicine when you're 25 or 30 or 35 etc. You have a passion now, so you want to get in as soon as possible. Hence, start changing yourself now.

Regards.

edits: typos and some abhorrent grammar

[Ngage0]

[pi]

lol anyone can do med, i'm doing med and my atar wasn't even that high. Not doing it in Australia but overseas already in second year through the course, not a big deal really. Med just requires a bit of hard work and dedication.

Mate we don't all have parents with deep pockets to fund our educational gallivants around the globe

And some of us want to study/practice closer to home too.

[Gekko]

lol anyone can do med, i'm doing med and my atar wasn't even that high. Not doing it in Australia but overseas already in second year through the course, not a big deal really. Med just requires a bit of hard work and dedication.

Just adding to what pi has already said:

I hope you like the country you're studying in because if your ATAR "wasn't that high" and you couldn't get into medicine here then I think you're going to struggle with all the examinations you need to sit to practice medicine here.

Good luck anyway, though!

[Ngage0]

Yea, i like studying here and yes i know you have to write exams if you want to practice in Australia and i'll work hard and pass them. It's just another obstacle to becoming a doctor.  But thats not the point i'm making here. What i am saying is the course Bachelor of Medicine/ Bachelor of Surgery is not as hard as people making it out to be. Yes it does require some hard work but it's not an enormous amount which people seem to think.

[pi]

Yea, i like studying here and yes i know you have to write exams if you want to practice in Australia and i'll work hard and pass them. It's just another obstacle to becoming a doctor.  But thats not the point i'm making here. What i am saying is the course Bachelor of Medicine/ Bachelor of Surgery is not as hard as people making it out to be. Yes it does require some hard work but it's not an enormous amount which people seem to think.

I think you're also missing the point a bit.

I don't think the OP is necessarily worried about the difficulty of the course. It seems like the OP is worried about making the cut in Australian Medical Schools.

Whether you find the coursework of an Indian medical school to be difficult or not is largely irrelevant.