Admission Re-Post: Why do you want to be a doctor?

Hi there, ramennekko!

I’m going to answer your question in 3, THREE parts! Because you bring up what I believe to be three critical components to this classic question that really needs to change. So I’m glad you brought this up!

So this post is part 1 of 3 of my answer to you.

My personal opinion is that NO ONE SHOULD GO INTO MEDICINE FOR THE SOLE PURPOSE OF GAINING PRESTIGE OR MONEY. Do what you love, and those things tend to follow. 

These are my personal reasons:

1. Money means nothing in the face of student loans. After getting his first real job as a physician, most of my dad’s income went to paying off his student loans. For nearly ten years. Doctors these days are worse off. Growing up, I saw some very decent doctors I knew as a child become jaded, angry people because they wanted to keep up the illusion of a moneyed physician by making a few extra bucks here and there, causing them to sacrifice precious time with spouses, children, family, and friends.

2. You can be a prestigious anything so long as you are passionate, dedicated, and give your all. But having an ‘MD’ at the end of your name doesn’t give you a right to people’s respect. Respect must always be earned. Would you respect a person who:

-passed out his/her business cards at a funeral

-called up strippers to his/her hotel room during a conference

-cheated on his/her spouse

-went on television as an ‘expert physician’ and started plugging his/her research on air?

These are 4 physicians I knew. How do you respect that? You can’t. So a title can’t buy you prestige. Only your character, integrity, and actions can do that.

So I know I didn’t answer your question, but I want to start this conversation off by first addressing these two things. Why? Because too many pre-meds want to do medicine for these two reasons, only to be seriously unhappy and disappointed when they realize that being in medicine does not inherently bring either one. And if I can help anybody out there by stressing these points, I aim to!

My next post will be my answer to your actual question, so thank you for the great question and thanks for your patience!

Love,

md-admissions