med or not?

[taiga]

Do Medicine.

95% of other applicants don't do it for the right reason, so frankly I don't care if you don't either. If you're successful at what you do, you're successful. If you think you can translate your VCE success into success in MBBS, I don't see why you shouldn't do it.

You will also get ideally one awesome car, and a hot girl with an arts degree with no career direction; but probably a bit further down the track.

[slothpomba]

As many people have pointed out above, if you aren't sure you want to do medicine, don't do it. Medicine is a comparatively narrow degree compared to BA or BSc, if you don't really know what you want to do, doing a narrow course like medicine wont help you decide anymore. Do a much more general degree and who knows you might just discover something you really have a passion for.

Going into any degree saying things like "i never realllly wanted to do it" certainly isn't a recipe for success academically and can't really be counted as a win in fulfilling your personal dreams and giving you high career satisfaction. Philosophically, doing something you don't like for the rest of your life will leave you feeling very unfulfilled and it could even slowly wear you down.

As the bon jovi song says: "It's your life its now or never, you ain't gonna live for ever, live while you're alive, its *your* life." I think this holds very true for situations like this, you only live once and while you can change career paths later and all that do you really want to waste a decent chunk of your life doing something that you don't really like where you could be doing something you really enjoy. Sure, it may pay off (medicine is attracting less respect and the pay isnt as good as it used to be considering insurance and things like that too, according to an online doctors forum anyway) but if you're getting all that money and possessions you take joy out of from a career you really don't like its a futile exercise.

 If you want easy money with much less stress but still some respect or prestiege maybe dentistry might be your thing but as you said "i'm not super interested in science or anything." Thats generally not something someone who is heading into the medical field should be feeling, you shouldn't really do something like medicine unless you like/can tolerate the science behind it. Commerce or law may also be your thing.

I think the best idea in this situation is to take a more general degree and take time to explore your interests and then pursue them.

There are many people out there who truely really want to do med and would give it their all 110%, i know whilst you may of gotten a higher score than them just based on the previous statement it would be better to let the spot go to someone who truly wants it while you take time out to find what you really want.

[happyhappyland]

I know at JCU that the first three years of its medical program is pretty much a more advanced science degree...

[Russ]

Do Medicine.

95% of other applicants don't do it for the right reason, so frankly I don't care if you don't either. If you're successful at what you do, you're successful. If you think you can translate your VCE success into success in MBBS, I don't see why you shouldn't do it.

I agree with this. Start the degree. If you drop out after 1st year, no harm done and you can transfer to a Commerce degree or a Science degree or an Arts degree. You're at the stage of your life where one year either way doesn't matter much. Medicine is not always the brutal grind everyone makes it out to be, it won't kill you before you find out if you want to stick with it or not.

[IntoTheNewWorld]

I also agree with do Medicine.

I mean, if you're not interested in anything else, why not do the degree that guarantees you a job? If you hate it so much after one year, transferring is pretty easy.

[burbs]

wtf werdna...

Half the people doing med won't be doing it for entirely noble reasons, so you won't be alone. It's not going to really hurt to try it out - but I will say that medicine, IMO is something people know whether they want to do it or not, unlike other careers.

[Predator]

As many people have pointed out above, if you aren't sure you want to do medicine, don't do it. Medicine is a comparatively narrow degree compared to BA or BSc, if you don't really know what you want to do, doing a narrow course like medicine wont help you decide anymore. Do a much more general degree and who knows you might just discover something you really have a passion for.

Going into any degree saying things like "i never realllly wanted to do it" certainly isn't a recipe for success academically and can't really be counted as a win in fulfilling your personal dreams and giving you high career satisfaction. Philosophically, doing something you don't like for the rest of your life will leave you feeling very unfulfilled and it could even slowly wear you down.

As the bon jovi song says: "It's your life its now or never, you ain't gonna live for ever, live while you're alive, its *your* life." I think this holds very true for situations like this, you only live once and while you can change career paths later and all that do you really want to waste a decent chunk of your life doing something that you don't really like where you could be doing something you really enjoy. Sure, it may pay off (medicine is attracting less respect and the pay isnt as good as it used to be considering insurance and things like that too, according to an online doctors forum anyway) but if you're getting all that money and possessions you take joy out of from a career you really don't like its a futile exercise.

 If you want easy money with much less stress but still some respect or prestiege maybe dentistry might be your thing but as you said "i'm not super interested in science or anything." Thats generally not something someone who is heading into the medical field should be feeling, you shouldn't really do something like medicine unless you like/can tolerate the science behind it. Commerce or law may also be your thing.

I think the best idea in this situation is to take a more general degree and take time to explore your interests and then pursue them.

There are many people out there who truely really want to do med and would give it their all 110%, i know whilst you may of gotten a higher score than them just based on the previous statement it would be better to let the spot go to someone who truly wants it while you take time out to find what you really want.

This post has a lot of sense in it that many people forget in the world of today.
I also agree with the part in that general degrees are good for people who are unsure of what option or career path they want to go down.
This is why I am looking at one along with many of my friends as they know that if they aren't too fond of a subject in the arts/science/commerce course they can choose not to major in it whereas as if someone was to something completely dedicated to that they would have little option to change the course completely or stick with it and completely hate on it.

[kenhung123]

I also agree with do Medicine.

I mean, if you're not interested in anything else, why not do the degree that guarantees you a job? If you hate it so much after one year, transferring is pretty easy.

I agree. Just try it out and maybe you'll like it? I mean if you don't try it and later in life figure out you want to do it, it may not be that easy to get into it anymore..

[werdna]

Hmm.. good points there guys. This is very true - it's bloody hard to get into Med, and if the OP got in without any passion or commitment to do so, imagine how successful they would be if they actually come to enjoy the course and therefore develop a strong passion for it? I've changed my mind.. just give the course a try .

[Bonifacio]

In terms of undergraduate medicine, I simply think that though many want to do medicine, not many are willing to accept that they are not 'intelligent' and that feel it's hard to do well on the UMAT. It's not hard at all, if you are are 'intelligent' you will be offered a place in medicine due to your high UMAT score. If you are not 'intelligent' like 93% of the people are deemed by Monash, you will find it sooooooo hard, your studying will come to little avail.

[iNerd]

In terms of undergraduate medicine, I simply think that though many want to do medicine, not many are willing to accept that they are not 'intelligent' and that feel it's hard to do well on the UMAT. It's not hard at all, if you are are 'intelligent' you will be offered a place in medicine due to your high UMAT score. If you are not 'intelligent' like 93% of the people are deemed by Monash, you will find it sooooooo hard, your studying will come to little avail.

Are you speaking from experience? (have you even done the UMAT?) That is an outrageous generalisation to make. Several 'intelligent' members on this forum (for eg - stonecold (99.85) ) got owned by the UMAT - does this mean they are not 'intelligent' ?

[Bonifacio]

In terms of undergraduate medicine, I simply think that though many want to do medicine, not many are willing to accept that they are not 'intelligent' and that feel it's hard to do well on the UMAT. It's not hard at all, if you are are 'intelligent' you will be offered a place in medicine due to your high UMAT score. If you are not 'intelligent' like 93% of the people are deemed by Monash, you will find it sooooooo hard, your studying will come to little avail.

Are you speaking from experience? (have you even done the UMAT?) That is an outrageous generalisation to make. Several 'intelligent' members on this forum (for eg - stonecold (99.85) ) got owned by the UMAT - does this mean they are not 'intelligent' ?

99.85 doesn't mean absolutely anything about his intelligence. A 99.95 can be achieved someone of low intelligence. I have discussed the UMAT extensively with many people, I myself will be sitting the UMAT next year. All medical schools clearly state they are looking for intelligent and empathetic doctors. This is what the UMAT aims to find, if you are not naturally intelligent and empathetic, there isn't much you can do. This is why is seems soooo hard to get into medicine. 

[werdna]

It's not hard at all.

Please back this up. Right now, it seems like nonsense.

99.85 doesn't mean absolutely anything about his intelligence. A 99.95 can be achieved someone of low intelligence.

How denigrating.. of course at least a hint of intelligence was required for these students to gain such high scores. But if it wasn't intelligence, then it must've been an immense level of dedication and hard work. Please give these students some credit.

[iNerd]

A 99.95 can be achieved someone of low intelligence.

Um...okay then. I look forward to seeing your ATAR (if its not 99.95 then you have less then low intelligence)

[Bonifacio]

It's not hard at all.

Please back this up. Right now, it seems like nonsense.

99.85 doesn't mean absolutely anything about his intelligence. A 99.95 can be achieved someone of low intelligence.

How denigrating.. of course at least a hint of intelligence was required for these students to gain such high scores. But if it wasn't intelligence, then it must've been an immense level of dedication and hard work. Please give these students some credit.

The University of Queensland doesn't even look at your ATAR in terms of selection if you pass the threshold. For someone who does a LOTE and Specialist Maths, they need an ATAR rank > 94.95, this isn't too hard to achieve. After that, selection is purely on UMAT scores.

The level of difficulty in the conceptual part of VCE is quite low, I've never met anyone who actually doesn't understand the theory. High VCE subject scores are obtained through diligence and eradicating stupid little errors. I think that this has been discussed to death on the forum.