medical school

[Shakerlackerboomboom]

Hello I'm a student nurse in my second year and I've really decided that I want to study medicine and become a GP but I'm wondering how I go about this as it doesn't seem to be much literature on the subject and I'm getting incredibly frustrated!
I'm also wondering if it's going to be possible as a single parent?

I suspect you need to speak to careers advisor at a University & possibly some med school admissions tutors. Funding is the big problem, you're already on an NHS-funded course.

There's a desperate shortage of GPs, though, that part is in your favour :).

Thank you

There are graduate courses for medicine, four years. You need a degree plus need to do a special test called gmat I think test. It's very very competitive to get in.

What A-levels do you have? You'll need A/A* to include chemistry , ideally biology (though not always compulsory) and one other decent subject which doesn't have to be a science if you want to drop out of nursing and reapply. Otherwise it would be finish your nursing degree, get at least a 2:1 and then apply to the four year graduate courses. They are very competitive.

I'm a GP. I will be very unhappy if my kids do medicine. Most doctors I know think the same. My advice to you would be to graduate nursing then look at nurse practitioner or physician's assistant roles. Med school as a single parent will be hideous and as a junior doctor you move every 6 months and can be based anywhere in a Deanery area that may be hundreds of miles across. The S London rotation includes Brighton. Unless you have gold plated childcare I wouldn't do it.

That's really insightful thank you

My advice would be to complete your nursing degree unless it is really making you miserable. You could then apply for accelerated (four year) medical courses as a graduate. If you aren't successful, you can continue working as a nurse (gaining experience, contacts, and applying every year if you want...) as well as seeking opportunities in advanced roles, e.g. as a Nurse Practitioner. During that time you would be gaining experience and your child(ren) will be growing up. You could apply to medical school every year if you wanted - lots of students on graduate entry courses are in their 30s and 40s (and 50s...!).

One consideration is whether you are free to move across the country. All medical courses are very competitive and you would be very restricted if only able to apply to one or two. Leicester Medical School has a course that specifically recruits graduates from other healthcare degrees (nurses, physios, etc).

Another possibility is to look at the emerging Physician Associate role. Graduates applying to the Manchester programme do not pay fees and receive a (reasonable) salary during their two year training: www.mhs.manchester.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-certificate-diploma/courses/physician-associate-studies-pgdip/?pg=1#course

As brokenmouse said, medical training is possible as a single parent but would be very difficult. Having said that, it's presumably not easy as a nursing student either with placements in different hospitals and anti-social shifts?

In any event you need to do your research very carefully. Getting into medical school isn't just a matter of having the right grades - a lot of people spend a year (or many years) getting together everything they need, e.g. varied work experience, carefully selecting the right medical school, sitting admissions tests, etc. You will obviously be ahead in terms of having some clinical exposure but it would still be worth shadowing a GP to see whether the grass really is greener on the other side.

Some good resources are www.thestudentroom.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=195 and the book "So You Want To Be A Doctor?" by Dev, Metcalfe, and Sanders. Course websites should also state their selection requirements very carefully.

DOI: SpR in a surgical specialty and still enjoying my job for the most part...

Another GP here suggesting nurse practitioner is the way to go. They do the work of GPs in many surgeries now, and the work of casualty officers in small A&E (minor injuries units) etc. Think I'd prefer their job frankly.

(I also agree with the others that you should investigate the scope of extended roles available to you as a nurse as well)