Pre-med students from Wayne State University and Michigan State University visited WHS to educate on the many challenges of being a pre-med student.
The group came in and discussed different topics to know before considering this track of education, because not only is the material challenging, but the risks you take are astronomical. They advised that you must know these barriers before you try and become one of very few who do break them down.
First, the basics were established: what being a doctor is, who is a doctor, and the education you need to become a licensed physician. Along with that, alternative career specialties were talked about, such as becoming a nurse practitioner or a physician assistant, and what they entail.
They then went on to talk about the money that you’re going to have to put into your education, and they even compared the net worth of ages 18-32 pre-med students, to that of plumbers ages 18-32. To show this, a pre-med student’s net worth at the age of 26 is about -$295,117, while a plumber’s net worth at this age is about $308,586. With this, reactions started to arise amongst listeners, and this was the point where many ruled out becoming a pre-med student. Though these numbers may seem like an insurmountable difference, the reward of being a physician is much greater than that of a plumber, and most other careers at that.
As students in high school, the first worries when it comes to a pre-med track are usually the workload and the level of success that needs to be achieved to be able to thrive.
To emphasize these concerns, senior Shayna Danyo explains, “The testing and time it takes to actually get into a program seems the most intimidating. Patience, time, studying, and supportive people would make this challenge much more manageable”.
There’s a stereotype that comes with people considering this track that you have to be among the most intelligent to be able to succeed in pre-med or any pre-occupation. Even current med students had feelings that they weren’t fit to be doctors.
Current Michigan State med student Amar Sandhua said in his presentation, “Almost made me think I wasn’t cut out of medical school, but I pushed through it and am currently a happy third-year med student.”
Medical students will face challenges throughout their education, but Sandhua briefly explains that it’s about perseverance and believing in yourself.
There are many different pathways you can take when it comes to medicine, but in the end, it comes down to one thing, Sandhua concludes, “The most important thing is to love what you do.”
With that, there are so many obstacles that you’re going to face when going through the stressful journey of med-school, but the desired results will arise and there’s no better feeling than helping other people live a happy, healthy life.
