What should I do with my life? Answered
Broad, I know but I've been between two careers for 3 years now and can't choose. I've wanted to be in theatre and the arts since I was a kid, but my mom is telling me I should be a surgeon. I wouldn't be totally opposed to that idea it's just that it doesn't feel right and I don't want to be stuck in medical debt if I realize it's not my thing.
Earn karma by helping others:
2 answers
Hi @Asmith
I don't know what country you live in but here in America, you can't apply to Medical school typically until you have an undergraduate degree. And these days Medical schools really don't care what your undergraduate major is. You can apply to a liberal arts college and study theater and the arts or a bigger city school like NYU. After a 3 years of doing theater and the arts, you can have a heart-to-heart with your mom and decide for sure if you want to study for the MCATs and apply to medical school.
For the time being, you don't have to disappoint her. Just tell her you are going to apply undeclared major to a bunch of colleges and if you are applying to Tisch or Julliard or Oberlin you'll have to submit a portfolio or video or something along those lines. Or maybe interview and try out as well.
College is expensive no matter what you study. I don't think worrying about medical school debt is something worth thinking about as an HS student when Medical school is so far off in the future.
Good luck.
Hi @Asmith!
Theatre and arts have been your passion for several years, so there's nothing wrong with making a career out of them. However, you and your parent(s) should be on the same page. (Especially if they're going to be paying your tuition)
If you feel that medicine isn't your niche and you're not interested in it at all, try to explain that to your mom (I know you might have tried this a lot of times already). Many people start college as pre-meds and change their plans. Some realize their mistake later while in med school. By then, a lot of time and money has been wasted.
STEM careers are becoming increasingly popular, and it's hard to remain insulated when the majority of people are talking about medicine, engineering, computer science, etc. That might be the case with your mom. You should confirm the reasoning behind her insistence. Just because the kid next door is aspiring to be a surgeon doesn't mean you should follow suit.
I'm not telling you to directly refuse the idea. If you're not yet a senior, you still have time to decide. For figuring out whether a career in medicine suits you or not, try shadowing a doctor/volunteering at a hospital/anything of that nature in the upcoming summer. Take your final decision after that.
In case you develop some interest in medicine but need more time to think, you can try double majoring in arts and a biology-related field or you can take one of arts/a biology-related field as a major and another one as a minor. Med schools don't care what you major in as long as you have the prerequisite courses. A double major or a minor can work as a backup if you don't want to attend med school after 4 years.
The last thing anyone would want is to be operated on by a surgeon who is disinterested in the job. Choose wisely!
Hope this helps!
Your chance of acceptance
Your chancing factors
Community Guidelines
To keep this community safe and supportive:
- Be kind and respectful!
- Keep posts relevant to college admissions and high school.
- Don’t ask “chance-me” questions. Use CollegeVine’s chancing instead!
Thank you, it does!