Becoming a doctor and serving fellow citizens is a dream of many. But for one reason or another, several people aren’t able to go to medical schools. However, most of them don’t lose passion and still hope to become a doctor well into their middle-age, something which seems pretty impossible at first glance.
Becoming a doctor at 50 is definitely possible. There are several drawbacks, such as family and financial issues, but if you’re really passionate about becoming a doctor, these obstacles are worth overcoming. Plus, at 50, you’re a much more responsible and mature person than you are in the mid-20s.
In this article, we’ll talk about a couple of steps to get accepted into a medical school. But before that, let’s look at the pros and cons of becoming a doctor at 50, so you can decide whether it’s worth the effort.
Advantages of Pursuing a Medical Career at 50
You Are Emotionally Stable
It’s a well-known fact that emotional intelligence matures with age. A 50-year-old will easily be able to deal with the upheavals of college life as compared to a 22-26-year-old. By this age, you’ve weathered financial ups and downs, grown your family, and faced various challenges. All of these have given you a better judgment of situations, something crucial for a career in medicine.
You Are More Experienced in the Real World
Admission officers realize that a person has gathered enough real-world experience by age 50 to excel in the practical areas of a medical career. Plus, they know that if someone older than the typical age of application is applying, their drive comes from real passion and not family pressure or temporary, naive ambition. Teachers also prefer older students as they’re sophisticated, focused, can be a leading figure, and value their professor’s efforts.
You’ll Be Trusted More by Patients
By the time you’ll be done with your studies, internship, and residency, you’ll be well over 58. This is the minimum age, considering you study full-time and pass without repeating a semester. As you approach the age of being a senior citizen, patients will trust you more. They’ll be comfortable knowing that they’re being treated by someone very experienced in their field (even if you aren’t), and you’ll be able to relate to patients of all age groups.
You’ll Be Better at MCAT
Passing the MCAT exam is necessary to get admitted to any prestigious medical college. As an older person, you’ll be able to pass this easily for a number of reasons. The first is that you’re much more adept at handling stress than 20-something year-olds. Secondly, you’ll do great in the CARS section, which can be tricky and demands careful observation and suspicion. Lastly, if you’ve worked as a nurse, biologist, pharmacist or chemist, you’ll have to refer to books less.
Disadvantages of Pursuing a Medical Career at 50
Family Issues
At 50, people are well into their middle age. Most middle-aged men and women are married and have kids in their teenage/early adulthood. Pursuing a new field as hard as medicine will require the full support of your family. Talking to them is important, not only because of the finances, but you’ll be absent for most of the day, either engaged in studying, taking classes, going on training rounds, or working part-time to support your dreams.
You’ll also have to understand that you’ll be at least 58 by the time you become a doctor. If you have kids, they will have moved out by that time, and you might be becoming a grandparent. You’re going to miss a lot of their adolescence and young adulthood. Make sure your decision leaves you with no regrets.
Financial Problems
Before applying to a medical school, create a working financial plan. It’s necessary to think the plan through, especially if you have kids and other dependents, in which case you’ll have to fund both your medical school and support them while studying and training. You can secure loans once you are admitted to a medical school, but providing for the family will still be hard. Luckily, loans can be partially forgiven to doctors once they start working in hospitals.
Education Level
Your education level can be another hindrance to your goal of becoming a doctor at 50. If you have a high school level education, an arts degree, or an unrelated bachelor’s degree (non-biology or chemistry), then you’ll have to apply for pre-med courses or an undergraduate degree in a related field (biology, nursing, pharmacy, etc.). You should get in touch with the medical schools you want to apply to for this matter.
Low Acceptance Rate
One other major disadvantage medical candidates of older age face is the low acceptance rate. Generally, seats are given to younger applicants with the idea in mind that they’ll serve for a longer period. The number of middle-aged students is very low because of this. You’ll have to apply to various schools to be picked by one. You’ll also have to show great passion. If you have a background volunteering in hospitals, you get a slight edge over other candidates.
How to Pursue a Career in Medicine at 50
Sit the MCAT
The MCAT is a standard exam that medical schools use to assess the potential of applicants. MCAT is notably hard, so you should take a preparation course ahead of the exam date, especially if you worked in a different field.
You should sit the MCAT in the spring season and apply for medical school in summer so you could have the results ready by the time of applying. The minimum score you need on your MCAT exam to be considered a serious candidate by most colleges is 30 (old MCAT score) or 509 (new MCAT score). A grade-point average of 3.6 or more is considered worthy.
Collect Letters of Recommendations
This is another important step. Most medical schools will ask you for letters of recommendation. If you worked at hospitals (voluntarily or as nursing staff) or in a related field, ask your manager to write you a letter of recommendation. Even if you worked in an unrelated field, your boss could mention your great work ethic and reliability.
If you can get in touch with your old high school or college teachers, ask them to write a letter. If you take on pre-med courses as a prerequisite, ask those teachers for the letter.
Work on Your Personal Statement
Next, you’ll have to work on your personal statement. This will be a little different from the one you write as a fresh bachelor’s degree holder. Applying for medical school at 50 is a different case, and as such, requires a special personal statement that gives a detailed view of your aspirations of becoming a doctor. You can take advantage of your age and outline your stability, work experience, maturity, and wisdom.
Send Your Application
Now it’s time to send your application to different medical schools. You can send it through the American Medical College Application Service. Again, apply to a range of schools, so you get better chances of being accepted.
Prepare Yourself for the Interviews
There’s no denying that the interviews are going to be awkward. You’ll have to prepare yourself mentally regarding the answer to the questions about your age and the choice to pursue medical training so late in life. In the interview, you should show passion, answer spontaneously, and demonstrate that despite your age, you can succeed in studies with a responsible nature.
Conclusion
Medical is a very well-respected profession that many want to be a part of. Like it’s popularly said, “It’s never too late to chase your dreams.” However, because you’re putting too much on the line, making certain that pursuing a degree in medicine is what you really want is important. If this is your true goal and passion, then nothing should stop you from becoming a doctor at 50.