Am I too old?

[Learningbyspeaking]

Am I too old to go back to university and study medicine at 35? I've always wanted to study medicine but never had the chance, please help me decide

I think so, unfortunately.
I’m not sure but I also think most units have an age cut off for applicants (31?) but I could be wrong?

EDIT it looks like I am wrong re the age limit for applicants.

If you have the brains, time and finances to do it then why not? If you have DCs though I imagine it would be almost impossible.

Medicine takes 5 yrs so youll be 40. And you retire at what 65? I Think youre good to go!

No, absolutely not. You'd be a much, much better doctor than someone who trained just out of school.

There is no upper age limit to study medicine at Keele University!

If you can, then do it.
You don't want to be looking back wondering what could have been. No regrets

No upper age limit within the realms of reality and retirement. Go for it! Why not? Imagine getting to the end of your life and regretting not doing something you really wanted. You’re 35, not 85!

Medicals schools in the UK are no longer allowed to discriminate be age

"Am I too old?
Getting into medical school is certainly more difficult the older you are but there are lots of universities that encourage mature students, with or without a previous degree. Medical schools are no longer allowed to impose age limits and students in their 50s have been accepted in recent years – so don’t be discouraged if you are iin an older age bracket. There are hundreds of medical students starting their training in their 20s, 30s and 40s each year, so you are not alone."

www.medschoolsonline.co.uk/graduates-and-mature-students/

I teach English in a college and I have an access student who is 66! He is going to university in September. I wouldn’t even think twice, go for it.

My brother qualified as a chartered accountant and then decided he hated it and wanted to do medicine. He's now almost 43 and about to take his exams to become a consultant surgeon. It's very hard, the shifts can be brutal and the NHS is a difficult place to be at the moment, but if you are really sure, then go for it! He had someone on his course who was about 45 and just starting out, so no, it's not too late.

A friend of my parents' studied medicine in his 40s - and it was a pretty radical career change too, from the creative arts. So it's definitely possible!

I work in a university and I although I was pretty sure the answer was no, there isn't an age limit, I asked the office anyway and this is what they said:

"There are no age restrictions for entry to Medicine or Biomedicine. Medicine involves considerable patient contact in the first year and therefore we strongly recommend that if an applicant will not be 18 years old at the time they start the course that they consider deferring their entry for a year. The university has a policy for the admission of applicants under the age of 18 which applies to all degree programmes."

This might just be specific to my university, but I doubt it - like another poster said, I don't think they can discriminate based on age.

Plus, think about all the life experience you'd bring to the job (e.g. more empathic with patients, more people skills, transferable skills from your previous roles) - I think it sounds like a great idea!

Feel free to PM me if you want any more university related info

Exactly. That's one of my main concerns, I don't want to look back in 20 years time thinking what could have been. If I start now I could be a GP in my mid 40s.

I know someone who did it in her 40s with kids. She was v successful and is rich now ( and retired!)

It's not about whether you can do it, it's whether you are prepared to consider the sacrifices and the impact it will have on your life.

I considered going to medical school at exactly your age, and with my previous education and experience, I would have had a good chance to do so as part of some of the graduate schemes. I got very excited about it as like you, I wanted it so badly and was kicking myself for not considering it earlier.

That was until I faced reality. I was a single mum of two young kids. I would have had to give up a good income to take up massive loans. I would have had to do placements that could have been anywhere within 50 miles if not more. Commuting would have been impossible, then there was the issue of unsociable hours. Then I started to fear that I was glorifying being a doctor, especially as one of my best friend was a GP and looked as frustrated and miserable as me.

I decided that it really was all a fantasy and moved on, but amazingly, my DD decided to pursue it as a career herself and cross fingers, will be starting medical school in September.

The question is: Can you afford it, do you have the time, brain and energy to dedicate yourself to it?

Definitely not! A friend of mine did his first degree in languages and work for the RAF for 15 or 20 years, then swapped services, studied medicine and became an Army doctor.
If you have the opportunity and motivation why not?

DO IT!

I know someone that did it in their 50s!
you're still young
go for it

Yes, go for it and don’t prevaricate, or you’ll be saying” oh, I’m 38 , I wish I’d started at 35”

I don't think age is too much of a barrier, although the sleep deprivation may well be more difficult to cope with than in your 20's. Do you have children? If so it would be almost impossible without very flexible childcare and family help/a partner at home or who can work flexibly.

I’d say it depends on what qualifications you already have. If you have a degree, you could do Grad Entry Medicine.

If you’re like me and starting from scratch I’m 31 and have almost finished my Access Science course. I did the UKCAT and scored well. University of Leicester rejected me for Medicine straight up as they don’t accept Access courses - but offered me a place on Medical Genetics (I need 30 Distinctions out of a possible 45 and I currently have 24) with the option to transfer to Medicine after Year 1 if I pass Year 1 with 80% or over.

University of Nottingham rejected me (I applied for their Medicine with Foundation Year which is aimed at mature students) but there is only 12 places currently so v.competitive

I can’t apply further out due to having DC with a very hands on ExH however have a look on UCAS and see what other Unis have; I’d imagine there’s similar all over the UK.

Honestly it depends on what you want to do... medicine is a range of specialties and even sub-specialties!

GP yes, Neurosurgery or a Surgical specially no
It takes 5-6 years
2 years foundation
5-8 years sub specialty training vs 3 years General practice.

Surgical specialities are very very competitive. You will need an excellent CV for a consultant post which will mean even more sub specialty training in the form of fellowships which for my specialty adds another 1-2 years minimum so looking at 15-16 years including med school which takes you to 50.

I would not want the stress of a Consultant post at that age and you have to bear I mind your peers will mostly be in their late 30s becoming consultants.

Yes, it's all very well say 'go and do it' but medical school is very hard on young, responsibility free adults, so the demands of it should not be underestimated.

There were people your age on my course at med school! Definitely not too old.

I would encourage caution if you are looking to settle down and or have kids. Don’t mean to assume what your situation is based just on your age- but really life as a junior doctor gives you no stability. It’s enough to send me crazy at 24- if I were to be much older it would be too much for me.

Good luck if you go for it :)

If you really want to do it, go for it! Age is not a good reason. Who cares how old everyone else is?