Becoming a doctor might be a dream job for most but very few have the grit to go through the entire process to realize their dream. The process is quite complicated and yet if you have a planned strategy and keep at it systematically, you should have no problem reaching to the heights of the field. Here are a few tips to help you do just that, when you are training to become a doctor.
Start early and keep at it
You will need to prepare for medical school as best as you can right from your undergraduate training. A competitive university or college program is essential during this stage. While you can opt for any major of your discretion, you should comply with core science orientation and take on course work for
- General chemistry (with lab)
- Organic chemistry (with lab)
- Biology (with lab)
- Physics (with lab)
- Mathematics
- Calculus
- English
You will also need to plan your extracurricular activities during this time with the sole perspective of building up your portfolio. Relevant experience in subjects that are ideal to a medical career will help you move up fast through the channels on your journey to become a doctor.
Commitment or continued excellence
A well-rounded personality is extremely important if you want to excel as a medical professional. It is not important to just plan, you have to commit to going through the steps of becoming a Doctor of Medicine (MD). Use your education well by planning every step and excelling at your grades to get through to the top schools. At this point recommendation letters from your teachers and supervisors will also be essential for a strong portfolio, so build a consistent rapport with them.
MCATs and the enrollment in medical school
MCATs or the Medical College Admission Test is a precursor to enrolling in an elite medical college. The exam is a multiple-choice format, which will take stock of your cognitive thinking, problem solving as well as knowledge of scientific principles. Once you have cracked the MCATs and enrolled in a premier medical college, expect a 4-year rigorous program that combines actual course work and medical rotations to give you a well-rounded education. You will have first two years of medical law, ethics, microbiology, genetics, physiology and anatomy classes. The final two years you will be interning with any of the several medical programs in teaching hospitals.
Final run for Surgical or Clinical residencies
In your final run, you will need to decide the areas of medicine that you want to specialize in. During the last year of your med school, you will interview with various residency programs. During this, you might be accepted as a candidate in one or more than one specialties. The residencies will rank all the candidates that interviewed on the same day. You will also need to rank all the programs that you interviewed for according to your favored priority. At the end of the day all data is compiled to give the “Match Run” which lists the matches of candidates to their residencies.
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