Medicine Career Path?

What career path should I choose?

• Unsure of what to do with my life. Graduated college with a BA in History and Political Science, was accepted into law schools but left after realizing I didn't want to pursue a career in law and have worked in city government before their budget got cut and now K-12 education. I took the GRE, did well, considered applying to graduate school in sociology to try my hand at academia but didn't take the leap because: A) No prior research experience on my CV B) Dim prospects of attaining a job as a sociologist with the current job market (more PhDs produced than positions open) C) At best, the only marketable skills (beyond arcane theoretical posturing) I would gain from sociological training would be statistical analysis and how to write ethnographies. I've since started shadowing doctors at a local research hospital and have applied to post-bacc pre-medical programs which will be *expensive* if I decide to enroll (appx. $30,000 and I currently have only $10k in assets). I'm increasingly becoming apprehensive about the future of the profession of medicine after reading accounts of non-traditional medical school applicants and the general malaise/depression of those in the profession (due to decreased reimbursements, hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt, no control over one's work/life balance, and feeling *stuck* once one goes down this path). In addition, my goal would be to be a medical scientist (MD), as I'm not a big fan of the clinical aspect of medicine-the only issue with this is that I would have no hope of ever repaying my loans on that salary. Since what originally drew me to the medical path was basic science research on malaria and tuberculosis, I am also now exploring basic science research (getting a BS) leading to a PhD yet note that basic science research in this country is just as broken a system as medicine, only with much lower salaries, and little, if any chance of getting a lab to run as a PI before the age of 45. Spending 10+ years as a postdoc doesn't seem that appealing in the long run. Currently, I feel as though I have only a few remaining options: academia, engineering, or minor healthcare/science positions. What options would you advise I pursue?

• Answer:

  Like you say, you need to figure out what you want in life. From what I read, your choices appear driven primarily by money and not by any passion or drive toward a particular career. Clearly you are intelligent, articulate, and energetic...but toward what end? Maybe you love learning simply for learning's sake (nothing wrong with that if you're independently wealthy). Before you begin yet another academic program, find a career coach or counseling psychologist who can help you narrow down what you really want/need, and the path to get there. Good luck. You sound like a very interesting person.