Hey everyone

premedtim

premedtim

Forum Lieutenant
Messages
107
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Guess I'll do sort of an introduction here since I'm sure more than a few people will be thinking "why on earth is a pre-med here?"....basically, right now I'm in college doing general ed garbage on my way to get a bachelor degree so I can apply to medical school. Now to give you some history on myself, my best friend has been in medicine since he was like 13...did the CNA program and started working as a CNA when he was 18 I believe and then got his EMT-B certificate and started working as a EMT for AMR in Los Angeles. My friend was an EMT-B with some extra duties (because of his previous experience and CNA licensure) for a couple years and he's now in the EMT-P program in Sacramento.

As a result of knowing him, I've gotten a general idea of what EMTs are and what they do, and obviously since I have a keen interest in medicine since I'm pre-med, I'm wondering whether I should try the life of an EMT first before I plunge myself $160,000 in debt in medical school. The rationale behind this is that it's never been about the money with me; I want to help people. I'd probably apply to the paramedic program myself as soon as I was eligible since I want to "see how deep the rabbit hole goes" but atleast to start, get my EMT-B certificate, work as an EMT while doing some classes here and there just so I'm not completely stalled on my way to a bachelor degree and see if maybe EMS is a better fit for me. "Worst" case scenario is that I fall in love with being a EMT and I'm happy doing that instead and "best" case scenario is that I have EMT-B & EMT-P licensure as well as experience when I apply to medical school later on. I figure since I'm only 22 and people who are 50 get into medical school, I'm in no hurry, so I don't see too much harm in stopping to smell the roses. ;) What do you guys think?
 
We had an EMT that went on to be a doctor. She said it was the best experience she could get. She got to see things and do things in her first 6 months as an EMT that she didn't do in her first 5 or 6 years of college. She said she was in 5 years before they even took a BP. As a med student she didn't touch an IV catheter until a year after that. Go for it... and good luck...
 
From my personal experiences, I have seen very few that stopped to be a medic ever proceed to physician level. Even though, I am proud of EMS, I would never recommend it for those that are truly seriously about entering the professional field.

There is no comparison nor in anything in primary EMS that would be helpful for one entering the physician level. You described you have "grunt" level experience, that is good .. remember where you came from, when you reach the physician level.

My suggestion is to work at a hospital either at a lab, pharmacy, etc.. that has more scientific area.... for several reasons, EMS is quite addicting and one (I have seen several hundred) loose their purpose easily always describing they "will do it later"... to never obtain it. Including myself. Second, how high is your MCAT score and interviewing techniques? Entering medical school, is not all about good GPA, and a high MCAT level, otherwise there would be a lot of people accepted into medical school. Are you known and aware of in the medical community ? Many applicants do not get accepted their first attempt.. it would be best to have professional resources to endorse, refer, or write referrals for you.

What most EMS personnel do not realize, every other medical field has to obtain the general education of medicine prior to "approaching patients".. you will have plenty of time in residency after internship to "practice".. and after spending close to 80 to 100 hours a week in "clinicals" you will have plenty of exposures, so don't worry about exposures right now...maintain those high GPA and extra inorganic chem etc.. as well as looking into possible graduate school in case you don't make first round. Research and publication is definitely looked upon and favored for applicants.

Again, EMS is great, however very few once bitten by the EMS bug leave and follow through... as well it can definitely diverse your attention away from your goal.

Good luck in school....
R/r 911
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I know in my class we had a Pre Med student.... he said the classes varied but thought it would help him get his foot into the door..I guss in this scenerio it depends on whom you ask..EMS is definately addictive..suffice it to say I think the poor guy got addicted to what we do Maybe I should followup and see if he ever made it heh
 
Like Rid said... watch out! It will catch you if you like it and you'll go off to medic school instead of medical school ;)

Welcome to the forum
 
Ridryder911 said:
From my personal experiences, I have seen very few that stopped to be a medic ever proceed to physician level. Even though, I am proud of EMS, I would never recommend it for those that are truly seriously about entering the professional field.

There is no comparison nor in anything in primary EMS that would be helpful for one entering the physician level. You described you have "grunt" level experience, that is good .. remember where you came from, when you reach the physician level.

My suggestion is to work at a hospital either at a lab, pharmacy, etc.. that has more scientific area.... for several reasons, EMS is quite addicting and one (I have seen several hundred) loose their purpose easily always describing they "will do it later"... to never obtain it. Including myself. Second, how high is your MCAT score and interviewing techniques? Entering medical school, is not all about good GPA, and a high MCAT level, otherwise there would be a lot of people accepted into medical school. Are you known and aware of in the medical community ? Many applicants do not get accepted their first attempt.. it would be best to have professional resources to endorse, refer, or write referrals for you.

What most EMS personnel do not realize, every other medical field has to obtain the general education of medicine prior to "approaching patients".. you will have plenty of time in residency after internship to "practice".. and after spending close to 80 to 100 hours a week in "clinicals" you will have plenty of exposures, so don't worry about exposures right now...maintain those high GPA and extra inorganic chem etc.. as well as looking into possible graduate school in case you don't make first round. Research and publication is definitely looked upon and favored for applicants.

Again, EMS is great, however very few once bitten by the EMS bug leave and follow through... as well it can definitely diverse your attention away from your goal.

Good luck in school....
R/r 911
Click to expand...

I already work at a hospital in the sense that I just started volunteering at the surgery recovery desk right outside the OR at my hospital. I wouldn't say I'm well-known in the medical community but I have connections I suppose...my stepdad is a very prominent dentist in the next town over and I've already been introduced to several of his friends, one a dermatologist, another a surgeon, etc....he basically has a friend in every different type of medical specialty.

Interview techniques and MCAT-wise, I haven't taken the MCAT yet since I haven't done my 1 year of chem, 1 year of organic chem, etc. yet. I haven't done any sort of interview prep since I haven't even transferred to a university yet but I've always interviewed very well.

That's the biggest advantage I see in doing the EMT-B & EMT-P thing first...like you said, most people don't get accepted their first time, and I'm not really too keen on the idea of putting my life on hold for several years while I try to get accepted, I'd rather be doing something useful. Plus, if someone likes EMS enough that they never get around to applying to medical school, doesn't that mean they found their dream job already?
 
I agree with Rid and would add this...MD and Paramedic are two very different professions. The prerequisites for medical school are too hard and time consuming to be sidetracked by ems. Also, medical schools really aren't that impressed by an emt or paramedic certification. My advise would be to sit down and look very closely at the two separate professions and decide which one you like best. My opinion, medical school beats paramedic school every time. Plus, when you decide that becoming a doctor is too hard (like 99.9% of "premeds"), then you can always come back to ems later.
 
I'll give my .02. I would love to see more docs out there with their EMT certs. I get sick and tired of hearing all the docs complain to us EMT's about something we did or didn't do for the simple reason THEY DON'T KNOW WHAT GOES ON IN THE FIELD!!!!!!!! I wish you the best of luck with whatever you do!
Eric
 
I know 3 co-workers who are in MD/DO school now.. they all seem to be loving it, and I'm sure all 3 will be good Dr's...

Look at the Street Medicine Society - Many of the nation's most active Medical Directors' started off as EMT's and Medics...
 
Thanks for all the replies guys. It looks like I am going to end up taking the EMT-B course through the local college here. Ironically, what Guardian said (despite how it came off as somewhat insulting) is a very good point...99.9% of premeds don't make it and some of that percentage is from med schools turning them down repeatedly. The way I see it, if I already have my EMT-B certification and I keep it current, then if I get turned down when I apply, I don't have to do more school to get a job since I already have the cert. Plus I'm going to use it plenty anyways since I plan to volunteer as much as possible as an EMT after I get the cert as well as look for a part-time job as an EMT while I'm at UCSC. The input from everyone definitely helped!
 
When I went through my EMT program at a local community college over the summer there were three distinct groups. You had the fire fighters, EMTs, and pre-meds. It was about 80% FF, 15% EMT, and 5% pre-med.

I had a nurse in my program that had been working the floors for years but wanted to get back in emergency nursing. They made her take the EMT course, and she then quit her job that paid $100k+ and started working on an ambulance as an EMT. I can only assume she went on to find another nursing job.

At my private service there are a couple of people working on their medical degrees (in medical school). One graduated a few years ago and still works an odd shift. I don't think you can ever truly leave EMS.
 
Coming from an EMT/Pre-Med

I'm currently a sophomore in college going for my bachelors degree in Biology. I consider myself pre-med because i will be taking MCAT's next year and taking all the pre-reqs for med school.

I just got my EMT-B and volunteer at two agencies depending on if im home or at college..when im at school i ride on a MICU with PA's and Medics..at home i ride BLS and assist medics in chase vehicles..soon I'll be an ER tech at a local trauma center. I'm also an interior firefighter at two volunteer fire departments. Im running a 3.6 gpa right now and let me tell you I feel im on the right path to the medical field.

Some of the best trauma docs I've met used to be medics. They know how it goes out in the field and I bet you that experience in the field as grunt work is what softened them as the person behind the doctorate degree. Dont get me wrong, being a doc and a medic/emt are definitley different jobs. But one thing ALWAYS stays the same..You are dealing with people when they need you the most, and you will be put into positions to perform actions that mean whether they live or die.

You will have two kinds of Docs...Book Smart and Street Smart. You want to be a good balance in both, leaning towards street smart. You'll never be street smart if you focus tottaly on gettin your degree and doing goon on your MCAT's. You need to start learning how the medical field works, and what it truly feels like to save but most important learn to cope with loosing a patient...

Imagine a doctor who was provincial in their studies, never had field experience. They go through all that studying and all their work, and now its time for their internship...and they are thrown in the room with a crashing trauma victim..Arterial bleeds, cardiac arrests of a pediatric..etc...and it is THEN that they realize they cant handle it. What are they going to do now?

In my opinion the best thing you can do is broaden your understanding of what you are going to deal with and see now because with the road you're taking you will be dealing with it for the rest of your life. Get your EMT-B, and go volunteer at a local agency. For all that BS that medical schools dont care on accepting people with that, dont listen. Because they arent accepting an MCAT score or a GPA only, they are looking at the entire person...If they see volunteer, they go wild, and then they see you have experience in the medical profession, hands on with dying patients..cmon who wont like that?

I talked to a PA I work with. He was in the military for numerous years, and had his paramedic degree after. Drexel was willing to accept him if he took the MCAT's and took the few course requirements. He said they had a hard-on for people who already know the in's and outs, who push drugs on a daily basis for dying patients and have years of experience in the field.

Stay strong and dont let the tough road change your route. You'll thank yourself one day.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
jalbanese said:
I'm currently a sophomore in college going for my bachelors degree in Biology. I consider myself pre-med because i will be taking MCAT's next year and taking all the pre-reqs for med school.

I just got my EMT-B and volunteer at two agencies depending on if im home or at college..when im at school i ride on a MICU with PA's and Medics..at home i ride BLS and assist medics in chase vehicles..soon I'll be an ER tech at a local trauma center. I'm also an interior firefighter at two volunteer fire departments. Im running a 3.6 gpa right now and let me tell you I feel im on the right path to the medical field.

Some of the best trauma docs I've met used to be medics. They know how it goes out in the field and I bet you that experience in the field as grunt work is what softened them as the person behind the doctorate degree. Dont get me wrong, being a doc and a medic/emt are definitley different jobs. But one thing ALWAYS stays the same..You are dealing with people when they need you the most, and you will be put into positions to perform actions that mean whether they live or die.

You will have two kinds of Docs...Book Smart and Street Smart. You want to be a good balance in both, leaning towards street smart. You'll never be street smart if you focus tottaly on gettin your degree and doing goon on your MCAT's. You need to start learning how the medical field works, and what it truly feels like to save but most important learn to cope with loosing a patient...

Imagine a doctor who was provincial in their studies, never had field experience. They go through all that studying and all their work, and now its time for their internship...and they are thrown in the room with a crashing trauma victim..Arterial bleeds, cardiac arrests of a pediatric..etc...and it is THEN that they realize they cant handle it. What are they going to do now?

In my opinion the best thing you can do is broaden your understanding of what you are going to deal with and see now because with the road you're taking you will be dealing with it for the rest of your life. Get your EMT-B, and go volunteer at a local agency. For all that BS that medical schools dont care on accepting people with that, dont listen. Because they arent accepting an MCAT score or a GPA only, they are looking at the entire person...If they see volunteer, they go wild, and then they see you have experience in the medical profession, hands on with dying patients..cmon who wont like that?

I talked to a PA I work with. He was in the military for numerous years, and had his paramedic degree after. Drexel was willing to accept him if he took the MCAT's and took the few course requirements. He said they had a hard-on for people who already know the in's and outs, who push drugs on a daily basis for dying patients and have years of experience in the field.

Stay strong and dont let the tough road change your route. You'll thank yourself one day.
Click to expand...


This is probably the best advice I've gotten yet since you're doing exactly what I want to do...thanks Jal. I have an appointment on the 3rd to get my BLS certification and then it's just a month or two wait to start the EMT-B course. Definitely appreciate the input though...that's what my friend who's in the paramedic program in Roseville thinks too...getting hands-on experience as an EMT is one of the best things a pre-med can do.
 
premedtim said:
This is probably the best advice I've gotten yet since you're doing exactly what I want to do...thanks Jal. I have an appointment on the 3rd to get my BLS certification and then it's just a month or two wait to start the EMT-B course. Definitely appreciate the input though...that's what my friend who's in the paramedic program in Roseville thinks too...getting hands-on experience as an EMT is one of the best things a pre-med can do.
Click to expand...
Just a word of advice: It's always the "best" advice when it's exactly what you were looking to hear in the first place.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top