Do nurses have an advantage in becoming a doctor?

Nurses General Nursing

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Obviously a nurse would have to go back to school and get a bachelor's degree (if they don't already have one) before applying to med school. Would a nurse be better equipped to handle pre-med undergraduate course work, and would a RN score better on the MCAT and have a leg up in the med school application process?

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It depends 100% on the person, not their education level.

No real point going into nursing, especially an RN program, if your intention is to be a doctor. Here, an RN program IS a bachelor's program, btw. Some places don't require a BSN to be an RN, though. That said, it also depends on where you are.

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Depends on the person. A registered nurse may have a few of the pre-med courses such as biology and calculus. However, many of the "hard" science courses are not included in the typical nursing curriculum. IMHO, nursing would not be helpful. If anything, you would spend more time obtaining your pre-med courses in addition to the nursing courses. If admission into a MD/DO program is your goal, I say spend all your time and effort on a dedicated pre-medical degree and studying for the MCAT.

In addition, I do not advocate for people entering nursing with the intent of leaving. The waiting lists for entry into nursing programs are long, and I would hate to see you take a slot from somebody who intends to stay in nursing. Nursing is a dedicated profession and not a stepping stone to other professions IMHO.

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In my opinion the answer is yes and no. It all depends on your studying habits. Premed courses are tough and the MCAT is tougher, so if you have your foundations down pat early, then it will be smooth sailing from there. Just stay on top of things at all times.

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Specializes in Pulmonary, MICU.

I would almost say nurses have a disadvantage. Nursing school is difficult...a lot of BS work and studying. Most people's GPA's suffer a bit going into nursing school. I think I graduated with a 3.3gpa. When I was premed (physics, calculus, Organic chemistries) my GPA was a 3.85. So yeah, if I wanted to go to med school I would have been better off to keep studying chemistry and such...my GPA would have been much better.

From the standpoint of now being a nurse...my experience in nursing would help minimally if at all in medical school. The degree that they learn stuff versus the degree they learn stuff is on an entirely new level. I know this because I have 2 med student room mates. We learn learn that warfarin is a "blood thinner" that "prevents clots." They learn the pharmacokinetics of it at the cellular level.

If you are thinking med school, a degree in biochemistry would be your best bet.

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No.

No.

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No, and i have talked to medical administration and they think nursing is A EASY major. The things nurses study and med students studies are nothing alike! The stuff nurses know, isn't going to help all that much (if any) go pre-med if your thinking of becoming a doctor, gpa will be better!

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of course because nursing job is harder than the doctors work,I assure you that maybe on the paper medical degree looks impressive and yes I admit those guys have to study their a...off in school however in real life nurses are the ones who take upon the greater responsiblity,multi task, and end up coordinating care.I'm sure a lot of individuals disagree with me,feel welcome I'm just sharing my personal opinion on this very matter.

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of course because nursing job is harder than the doctors work,I assure you that maybe on the paper medical degree looks impressive and yes I admit those guys have to study their a...off in school however in real life nurses are the ones who take upon the greater responsiblity,multi task, and end up coordinating care.I'm sure a lot of individuals disagree with me,feel welcome I'm just sharing my personal opinion on this very matter.

Ok then. How exactly does nursing experience help one get into medical school?

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Specializes in M/S, MICU, CVICU, SICU, ER, Trauma, NICU.

No.

Being smart and have great critical thinking skills give the advantage.

I wish more nurses were skilled that way. Some are not and never will be.

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No.

The competition for med school is intense. A powerful determination, excellent grades and a high MCAT matter more than being a nurse.

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Ok then. How exactly does nursing experience help one get into medical school?

Being a nurse DOES NOT HELP GET YOU INTO MED SCHOOL!!!!!!!

This is what a Medical School administrator said to me:

1) adcoms don't consider nursing to be a hard major. Actually it is considered easy. Chemical engineering is considered hard.

2) look at the stats from AAMC

http://www.aamc.org/data/facts/2008/mcatgpabymaj08.htm

Specialized Health Science majors have the lowest mean score in every section of the MCAT and gpas on the low side. This explains why while 42% of all applicants get admitted to medical school, only 31% of specialized health science majors do.

3) nursing philosophy is different than that of medicine. In my opinion nursing training is torture for someone who wants to think like a physician.

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