…Yet. I recently got an e-mail from a young pre-med who was on the verge of submitting her AMCAS (American Medical College Application Service) for medical school admissions. She reached out to get some help with her personal statement. It was a little late in the game so I told her I would be happy to help but before we would discuss rates I wanted to know why she was submitting her application so late. She divulged to me she was struggling with going to medical school right now. “I want to do other things before going to medical school. See what is out there.” A self-inflicted gap year.
I love these students. Why? Because they are insightful enough to think about their life in a bigger picture. They understand the idea of delayed gratification. The only thing I had to do was let her know it was ok to take some time. And that is what she is planning on doing. And guess what? She will be better for it.
Here is why.
In this post I will show you how you are guaranteed to benefit from (at least) a year off before medical school.
Delaying matriculation is a very common thought among medical students. Very few actually express it though. From the moment you decide to go to medical school, you are consumed with prerequisite courses, hitting the benchmarks for acceptance (volunteering, shadowing, researching, etc.), and studying for the MCAT (medical college admissions test).
Your summers are consumed with it too. You have to jump through these hoops. I know many pre-meds have thoughts about missing out but they rarely express them in fear of people just reverting to telling them what to do and how to do it. They fear looking like a quitter.
Highlight to tweet –> It’s time you made some decisions for yourself and delay medical school.
Why not take some time for yourself? Once you start medical school you will be consumed with the material and, during the last two years, taking care of patients.
Is there a gap in your application? Fill it up with some application boosters.
Is there a country you want to visit? Go.
Are you extremely shy and fear talking to patients? Work on your personal skills by getting a job where you are forced to talk with people face to face with people with high expectations (high end resorts, country clubs, etc.)
You have to understand that once you start medical school it is very difficult to do some of these things.
The year off to improve yourself will pay off 10x that missed year during your career. It may be the difference between the residency you want and settling on something else.
If you are considering delaying medical school, here is what to do, how to do it and when to do it :)
Short answer is to delay matriculation one year when you have completed your prerequisites for applying, do something completely outside of medicine, and do some personal exploration. If you are at the stage the girl above is (all prerequisites completed, MCAT taken, etc.), you have some options.
So what do you do? Do something else. In fact, I recommend that anyone who has the ability to defer applications/matriculation to medical school one year do so. For at least 1 year.
If you have been studying for the MCAT, take it. Get everything done you can. In a perfect world you will be at one of the following places when you take time off:
1. You have applied to and gotten into medical school and have taken the option to delay matriculation one year. Sometimes a school will offer it, sometimes you will have to ask.
This will benefit you the most as you will not have to worry about having to explain your year off (a common worry) and allow you to really do something you have wanted to do with little risk as you have already been accepted.
The downside of this is it usually limits you to one year off before you have to make a decision about whether or not you want to go to medical school.
I recommend everyone take at least a year off. Even if they have no doubts about medical school
Get a real job, pay taxes, learn how things work out there. Go on a trip, explore yourself, improve yourself.
2. You have everything done and just need to apply. I recommend this to people who are applying late in the cycle. There is no reason to apply late in the game. It can only hurt you. So instead of applying late, take the time off and re-apply the following year.
This can allow you to not be tied down to just one year off. You will need to be careful about your MCAT expiring though if you take extended time off.
The downside is that you will have to explain what you did during that time off. However, this can be an very big strength and show a lot of maturity if you can articulate your reasons you have a gap. Do not tell them it was because you doubted your career in medicine.
The bottom line is the further along you are in the application process, the more relaxed you can be and the more options you will have.
Also, the less barriers you have to medical school after your year is over, the easier the decision will be to go if that is what you want to do.
The real question you need to ask is why you feel this way if you are having doubts.
The key to this and any self-discovery for that matter is honesty. Can you be honest with yourself? Can you block out all the other noise inside your head and really understand why you want to go or don’t want to go to medical school?
Do not google it.
Do not search forums.
Do not ask your family or friends or academic advisors.
Do not believe all the “what would you do if you didn’t have to worry about money/follow your passion” type questions.
Those phrases are all platitudes to get you feeling better right now.
Ask yourself why. Why are you hesitant to go to medical school? Is it fear of failure? Is it pressure from parents to go to medical school and you aren’t sure it is for you? Is it the money, prestige, etc? Is it change? Debt? Have you been hearing all the negativity and need something positive related to medicine?
Before school you can do anything, but once you start that first year, it gets extremely difficult to take time off except for a few reasons usually related to a study year/fellowship, family tragedy, or personal illness.
Beginning medical school is a big decision. It is a known path filled with uncertainty. I think the next 7 (family med) – 11 (neurosurgery) years is worth one more year to better yourself and make sure this is for you.
A lot of times students take a year off to improve their application. This can be beneficial but is much harder to navigate and is the topic of a future post.
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