Another 6 months have passed, meaning v2 of the highschool thread has been archived! Welcome to v3 of this thread - I believe this has been quite helpful to highschool students who are interested in medicine and has funnelled all highschool related information here for both convenience and accessibility.
As with the previous thread, please recognize that, given the current COVID-19 health crisis as well as a national push against BIPOC racism, the medical admissions process is volatile and likely to change. We may not have all the answers - please verify any concerns with medical school admissions personnel.
Previous post and questions can be found below. Prior to posting, please search through these threads and the comments to look for similar thoughts!
Thread 1: https://www.reddit.com/r/premedcanada/comments/bm2ima/high_school_student_thread_undergraduate_programs/
Thread 2: https://www.reddit.com/r/premedcanada/comments/hm2r0n/high_school_student_thread_v2_undergraduate/
Post Copied Below:
For all you high school students (or maybe even younger) considering medicine as a career in the future, this thread is dedicated to you.
Feel free to use this thread to ask about undergraduate program choices, admissions, and other information pertaining to the process of entering a program as a pre-med - the community will be happy to help you out.
I hope that this sticky will facilitate the transfer of constructive information for high school students with questions on what path they should take to arrive at their goal of becoming a physician.
I've tried to compile a few FAQ questions that have been discussed in the past - these are the collective view of the experiences on this sub-reddit and from my own - please feel free to comment any changes or suggestions.
Q: Will >Insert Life Science Program Here< at >Canadian University< get me into medical school?
A: You are able to get into medical school from any undergraduate program, not even necessarily life science. Provided you approach your courses with dedication, time, and commitment, and pursue your passions, you will succeed at any university. Absolutely, there are other factors to consider. Certain programs just statistically have a higher % of graduates matriculate into medical school (cough Mac health sci), but students from all walks of life enter medical school (hence all the non-trad posts). There are many other factors to consider when choosing a school: Tuition costs, accessibility to research opportunities, available student resources, campus vibe, proximity to home (whether you want independence or would like familial support) etc. While many of you may only look at the stats alone, if you end up stuck for 3-4 years at a school where you dislike the campus, method of teaching, classes, or more, this can (and likely will) affect your ability to succeed academically and get involved.
Q: Do I have to take a life science program to get into medical school?
A: No, plenty of students enter from non-life science, or even non science backgrounds. If anything, this differentiates you from the typical applicant and gives you a more holistic portfolio when presenting yourself to the admissions committee. If another program interests you more, take it - if you learn something that you enjoy, you will be more motivated to study, leading to academic success. Be prepared to explain your rationale behind taking that program, and perhaps see how you can link it to your pursuit of medicine. Make sure to take the pre-requisite courses needed for certain medical schools, and be prepared to self-learn concepts when studying for the MCAT (if you don't opt to take them as electives.) It may be more difficult to get life science research experience, but that is absolutely not a hard barrier. In addition, doing research in your own field, whether it be the humanities, other sciences, linguistics etc. all show the same traits in academia as defined in a "Scholar" as per the CanMEDS competencies.
Q: How do I get a 4.0 GPA, 528 MCAT, 5000 Publications, and cure cancer?
A: This is obviously facetious, but from what I've seen, this isn't a far cry from a lot of the content on here. If you've developed proper work ethic in high school, you should be more prepared than the rest of the entering class. However, don't be discouraged if your grades drop - considering many universities have first year course averages in the 70s, you won't be alone. This is absolutely recoverable, due a combination of the holistic review and alternative weighting schemes of many schools. That being said, however, realize university is different from high school. For most of you, you won't have your parents around, and your university professors for the most part won't care if you show up to class, do your readings, or even complete your assignments/quizzes/exams. There's a lot of independence, keep up on your workload, seek help (from TAs and profs at office hours), study with friends, and you should see the fruits of your labour. Don't worry about the MCAT now - most students take it in the summer after 2nd or 3rd year, after which in a life science program you would have learnt most of the material anyways. Focus on your academics and pursuing your passions, but don't forget self-care. Figure out what is your cup of tea. Maybe go to socials and talk to new people, or read up on the research of certain profs and contact them with your interest. Try to find your passion, follow it, and come medical school application time, you will have a strong story about yourself that you truly believe in.
Q: Ok, but you didn't tell me how to get a 4.0 GPA.
A: There are people who have 4.0 GPAs, and many with close to 4.0 GPAs. They do not all study the same way, and their approach may not apply to you. There are similarities: these students tend to attend class, stay engaged in lecture, and keep caught up with the material. I've seen people fall on a spectrum between three main 4.0 types: 1) The Good Student: never misses a class, asks questions, attends office hours, re-reads notes and concepts after class, and starts review for an exam in advance. 2) The Crammer: usually goes to class, absorbs and understands the information at the time, but does not have time to read notes after class - slowly losing track of earlier concepts. As the exams near, crams two months of materials into a few days. 3) The Genius: goes to class as they choose, seems to never need to study, understands concepts immediately. You will meet some students like these - material comes easier to certain people than others. That's life, we all have our strengths, use them as motivation to keep studying. Don't compare yourself to others, compare yourself to yourself, set your own goals and find that motivation and drive.
Q: What extracurriculars (ECs) should I get involved in?
A: Everyone says this, but find what you're passionate about. People typically go with the cookie cutter: hospital volunteering, research, and exec of some club. While there's nothing wrong with this, many other applicants will have similar profiles, making it hard for you to stand out. If you're passionate about food, see if you can get involved with a local soup kitchen, a food bank, Ronald McDonald House Charities etc. If you're passionate about singing, join an acapella group/choir/sing solo. If the opportunities aren't there, be proactive - maybe it's up to you to start your university's baking club (if you do, send me some pastries pls). By getting involved with ECs that you are passionate about, you'll find yourself more engaged. Going to your commitments will be less of a drag, and come interview time, you'll be able to genuinely talk about how the experiences have shaped you as a person.
Q: How many times can I write the MCAT?
A: There is a seven time lifetime cap to write the MCAT. In terms of if it will penalize your application, it depends where you are applying. Canadian schools for the most part don't care if you re-write multiple times (although 10 does seem a bit excessive). As pulled from the UBC website: Test results from April 17, 2015 onward are valid for five years. In accordance with AAMC regulations, applicants must release all scores.Taking the MCAT ~3 times is nothing abnormal, although if you're re-writing 7 times, you might need to consider changing your study method! US schools will scrutinize re-writes, and if your score doesn't seem to go up, it can hurt your application.
Q: Hi can any med students on here tell me what they did in undergrad?
A: As mentioned above, many medical students have followed their passion. What works for one person may not work for you. Many have research experience, but others may not - you do not necessarily need research to become a physician (i.e. FM). Others will have hospital experience. Most will have some involvement with some sort of student organization, from clubs and societies to being student representatives and playing sports. There is no perfect way to medical school, because if there was, we'd all have taken it.
Q: I'm actually not in Grade 12 yet, I'm just trying to plan ahead. What should I do to become a doctor?
A: First of all, commendations to you for looking ahead. Medicine is a difficult journey, and recognizing that gets you far already. But no point in thinking ahead if you mess up the present. Focus on making sure your current profile is competitive enough to get you into the undergraduate program of your choice. Once you get in, no one will care about your high school marks. Don't have a job? Most don't. Haven't volunteered at a hospital? Most haven't in high school. Focus on getting into an undergraduate program first, and then consider the other points above. Pursue your hobbies and passions in high school while you still have the time.
Q: Is ___ program at ___ school better than __ program at __ school? > OR < Should I go to ___ program or ___ program? > OR < anything along these lines!
A: These types of questions are very specific and may be difficult to give an objective response given that they essentially require someone to have personally attended both sites to give an accurate comparison. As mentioned before, there are many factors to consider when choosing a program and school, including access to opportunities, student experience, research, volunteer atmosphere, student wellness resources, campus vibe/environment, proximity to friends/family etc. What may be most useful is trying to touch base with students at each site for their opinions of the experience!
As mentioned above, please comment below with any other questions, and I'm sure the community would be happy to help you out!
*Please feel free to contact any members on the moderation team with any suggestions, questions, or comments on this process so that we can improve it!
