 |
| Image from: Mary Ella of Mod Med |
I could tell you the average GAMSAT scores and GPAs needed to even be considered for med school. I could also tell you all the steps you need to know in order to actually become a doctor. Preferably, a good one. I could, and I will, but it'll be up to you to decide what you'll do with the information; it'll be up to you to decide whether or not you're up for the job.
〰
This isn't a guide. In fact, I don't know what this is. What I do know is that I'll be detailing what you need to know in order to become a doctor, how to become a doctor and what I plan on specialising in if I do get into med school. Just a word of warning, but this post is very Australia-centric seeing as that's my country of residency and therefore, where I plan to study medicine. However, I would expect that med schools from across the globe would share some similarities as med school is one of, if not the most, physically and mentally demanding fields of study that's on offer so the pathway to get there should be around that calibre of intensity.
Complete High School
Or don't.
There's a number of avenues available for one to get into med school, but I'll be outlining the "standard" pathway. Well, more specifically, the pathway that I'm planning to take and I graduated from high school. I think I have that one crossed off? So, yay, one step closer to med school . . .
However, if you manage to score an ATAR of at least 99, you could apply for assured pathway into med. I'm mostly talking about assured pathway into the MD Program offered at UWA, but the main premise is that if you score well on your year 12 exams, score a suitable UMAT score and smash the interview, you'll be in the running for a position many can only dream of.
Complete an Undergraduate Degree
This would be preferable (should I perhaps dial down on the sarcasm now? Sorry, I'm really feeling it at the moment). Anyway, I suppose the next step is to actually get accepted into university (you can read about the minimum required ATAR desired by Australian universities here).
A Bachelor of Science is advantageous, but if you're an Arts, Commerce or Design student, don't lose hope just yet. In saying so, you must be prepared to take on the extra study needed to make up for the many year's worth of information that Science kiddos have cultivated in their arsenal of . . . science-y things. Just being realistic here.
An Honours would be nice, too. Hell, even a Ph.D if you're that interested in research. One benefit from this is that if you screwed up in first year, but managed to hike up your grades in the following two years, Honours may boost your GPA as only the last three years of study is accounted for during the med application process.
Take the GAMSAT and Hope for an Interview
This should be taken in the second or third year of your undergraduate degree (seeing as the GAMSAT score you obtain is only valid for two years). I'll be releasing a "Guide to GAMSAT" post sometime soon but if you're taking the GAMSAT on the 13th of September . . . good luck, my friend. From the bottom of my heart, good luck. You can register for an account with ACER here if you're a prospective med student.
So, you've taken the GAMSAT and you have a GPA above 5.5 (realistically, universities look for at least a 6.2 but they say 5.5. to, I don't know, be nice? Mess with our heads?), the next step is to await for an email stating whether or not you've scored an interview.
What is this interview I speak of? Well, with specific regard to UWA, the interview is designed to test your "worthiness to enter med school" based on the following criteria:
➪ Communication Skills
➪ Motivation/Commitment to Medicine
➪ Presentation Exercise (where you're given a stimulus prior to the interview and must create a ~10 minute speech based on the however many minutes you get beforehand to plan this impromptu presentation)
Then UWA does this thing where it selects four other categories (sort of like a pick-n-mix) to test you on from the following topics:
➪ Awareness of Social Diversity
➪ Provision of Assistance
➪ Self-Awareness
➪ Trust and Trustworthiness
➪ Values and Ethics
➪ Working with Others
Let the Waiting Game Begin
This would be torture, I'd imagine. And whilst we're here, I thought it would be the perfect time to cover the stats and types of places that are on offer.
According to the UWA webpage, here, the average scores for the 2016-2017 admission cycle were as follows:
➪ Average GPA — 6.83
➪ Average GAMSAT score (overall) — 69.07
➪ Standard Pathway:
- Lowest GPA was 6.29 with a GAMSAT of 72
- Lowest GAMSAT was 62 with a GPA of 6.96
- Lowest GPA was 5.82 with a GAMSAT of 63
- Lowest GAMSAT was 57 with a GPA of 6.60
➪ Full-Fee Paying Places
➪ Commonwealth Supported Places
➪ Bonded Places i.e. return-of-service obligation
Check Your Priorities
Do I actually want to be a doctor? Am I only doing this to make those around me happy? These are the sorts of questions you should be asking yourself well before you even consider to apply for med school. Sorry, I have a real stick up my ass about this because I have a friend who used to work with someone who is studying medicine purely out of obligation to their parents. Yes, I know, how absurd!
Anyway, here's a whole list of attributes you need to consider before deciding on this perilous path. It's worth a couple minutes of your time as it outlines the desired skill sets required for med school. I should also note that you must be realistic about your chances of getting into med school. Yes, please try and try your absolute hardest to get there, but I always believe in having some sort of contingency plan in the back of your mind. For instance, my second major is Management (which I genuinely like) so there's that if the whole med thing doesn't work out . . . which, I really hope it does work out otherwise this blog would be pretty embarrassing, huh? (I'm joking about the last part, but I'm not going to explain myself right now).
The time dedicated to studying is innumerable and hundreds of dollars have been spent on coffee (at least you still get that student discount, a life-saver, I tell you), but you're finally a doctor. Albeit, a very tired one who's crippled in debt. Oh, and not to mention the fact that you still don't know what the actual heck the Kreb's Cycle is. So what next? Well, let's take a look at the "Life Cycle of a Doctor" as AMA likes to call it.
High School
I already talked about this, but it isn't necessary that you graduate from high school in order to become a doctor. So long as you have the passion, go for it. Just please, be serious about it. I ask that of everyone who is contemplating med school.
Undergraduate Degree
You're stuck in the foetal position, wrapped in a smelly old lab coat with a 1000-page textbook lying at the foot of your bed, for about three years (four if you're doing an Honours).
Med School
You're stuck in the foetal position, wrapped in a smelly old lab coat and your $300 stethoscope with a 2000-page textbook lying at the foot of your bed, but this time, it's for four years. Full-time, of course. Graduate degrees include MD, MBBS, BMBS etc.
Internship
One year spent in a hospital with rotations in medicine, surgery and emergency medicine.
Residency
This can take at least one year, but residency is where you find your ground in terms of specialities, you're not yet enrolled in one, but you're taking seriously your options.
Registrar
The amount of time spent as a registrar varies with a minimum of two years of experience but basically, this stage of the "life cycle" enables you to explore and train in your chosen specialty.
➪ GP Registrar
➪ Medical Registrar
➪ Surgical Registrar
Fellowship
Optional in some specialties but this is when you further expand on the knowledge gained within your specialty (i.e. from residency and from being a registrar). Minimum of one year, mostly two.
➪ GP (FRACGP or FACRRM, if rural)
➪ Physician (FRACP) — cardiologist, neurologist (which is what I hope to specialise in, well, it's either this or a neurosurgeon where working in a children's hospital would be absolutely incredible), oncologist, infectious diseases, nephrologist etc.
➪ Surgeon (FRACS) — cardiothoracic, neurosurgeon, ortho, plastics etc.
➪ Others — for example, FRANZCP (Psychiatrist) and FANZCA (Anaesthetist).
〰
Let's take a detour and delve into why exactly I wish to work in a children's hospital, specialising in neuro (I fluctuate between neurology and neurosurgery, but hey, I'm still in my second year of uni). I believe the neuro part is rather obvious, I'm simply intrigued by the thing that's suspended within our heads and how it does what it does. Interestingly so, we'll not hear of the mechanisms behind life with such accuracy, not in this lifetime, at least, because the brain is the most complex system of life to have ever existed. Its mystique is much like the question of extra-terrestrial life. How can we be so certain?
Working in a children's hospital would be incredible. I can't place my finger on why exactly so I suppose it's something that's indescribable, something only I can understand. I do know, however, when exactly I wanted to work with kids. It was during an episode of Children's Hospital (a 2010 documentary which follows the daily operations of the Royal Manchester Children's Hospital) where I watched a child, named Jack, undergo dialysis. He was a star, I can tell you that. The liveliest, most exuberant kid you ever did see. He knew he had it bad, indeed he did, but he never allowed it to ruin his day.
In 2015, Jack passed away.
Somehow, that affected me. And from that moment onwards, I wanted to work in a children's hospital. The fact that I had known only this year of his passing, didn't deter me from working towards my goal. That doesn't stop me from helping kids like Jack who have rare genetic disorders, or have been dealt with cards that won't go in their favour. It'll be my duty, my responsibility and obligation to hand them a card that they can finally play.
Fervidly,
No comments