Pre-med or Nursing?

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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I've recently come to an impasse in my choice of undergrad major. Do I really want to be a nurse or do I want to go to med school and be an orthopedic (or trauma) surgeon?

Nursing is on the one hand, a much shorter career track, even with a B.S.N. I like the idea of one on one time with patients and making them and their families feel comfortable, etc. On the other hand, as a nurse I don't get to do much hands-on work with surgeries. There's always been a part of me who wants to experience that thrill of performing a successful operation (cutting, suturing, etc.)

I really am fascinated by surgeries and every time I think of just being the person who hands the doctor his tools instead of being the one in charge, it makes me a little sad/disappointed.

What I'm wondering is will I truly enjoy nursing as much as I would being a doctor or a surgeon? I don't want to feel I'm settling for something or being less than I could be (not that nursing isn't a great and rewarding career choice). I just don't want to look back and think, what if.. Any thoughts on this?

1. Getting into med school is next to impossible considering the average pre-med. Most either drop out of pre-med or fail to obtain adequate stats for med school entry. 15-20% of 3000 of my freshman college class was pre-med (not exaggerating) and a total of 5 even made it into med school.

2. Orthopedic surgery is one of if not the most difficult residency to obtain.

A BSN with first assist in OR is a lot more realistic in my opinion if you want to get into surgery. They can suture, suction and do some various "Surgical" tasks depending on the surgeon.

Specializes in Hospitalist Medicine.

You could always go to PA school and specialize in surgery. Less time than med school. However, nearly as tough to get in to. All the same prerequisites for med school are needed for PA school.

The nursing model and the medical model of training are completely different, so it's really like comparing apples to oranges. Do you want to diagnose, treat, perform surgery, etc.? Then go to med school.

I know a couple of MDs who started out as nurses, then went on to med school after a few years of work. Both of them thought that their BSN and hospital work experience gave them a leg up over the folks who went the "pre-med" route. One of them had about three years worth of a Biology major before she switched and got into nursing school, and I believe the other had to go back and pick up a couple of chemistry courses before she applied to med school. One thing they both have in common is that they are really smart, driven people.

Interestingly enough, one of them joined another MD and opened up a private practice several years ago, and is questioning her sanity in doing it. She claims that after office expenses, staff, insurance and such she has two NPs who net nearly as much as she does without all the headaches of being a small business owner. Insurance billing is a nightmare, and they have already cut off any new Medicaid and Medicare patients, and worried about what the ACA will do to revenue.

Specializes in Prior military RN/current ICU RN..

My suggestion? Do what you want to do. If you are putting speed of getting done with school even in your brain then med school may not be for you. Nothing quick about it. Totally up to you. Good luck

Specializes in Critical Care, Transplant..

No way would I go the MD route, coming from a family of Physicians and Nurse Practitioners. Money, time, and the biggest of all, the loss of autonomy. Insurance companies and medical groups run it all and soon worse, the government. The only leg up MD's have is autonomy and that leg is slowly being gnawed off, hence my own personal choice.

2 cents.

Specializes in L&D, infusion, urology.

Have you ever spent time in surgery? I always thought it would be an interesting area of nursing- until I spent ONE day in that rotation. Nope. Boring as can be.

That said, when I was a Navy corpsman, I was performing outpatient surgeries on my own (not open heart surgery or anything, but I did a zillion toenail removals, biopsies, and even was the primary on a vasectomy- on my direct superior). I LOVED performing surgery, and THAT was very interesting. This was part of why I always thought it might interest me once I got into nursing. WRONG. I was in on a cool surgery (total knee replacement with hip hardware removal), and it was interesting for awhile, but I couldn't see myself doing it day in and day out.

If at all possible, try to job shadow in a surgery. See what it's really like. From there, do what feels right. If you want to be a doctor, do what it takes to make it happen. If you choose to be a nurse, do what it takes to make THAT happen. But DON'T go and be a nurse if you're going to be bitter about it and long to be a surgeon. You'll honestly live to regret it. Both roads are tough, and you need to have the chops to hack it. Only you know if you can do it.

Good luck whatever you choose!

Specializes in Reproductive & Public Health.

I love surgery. LOVE it. As an RN, you can train to be a first assist, and you will get to do a lot of hands-on surgical stuff, not just passing tools. You can suture, retract, suction, cauterize, etc. Very fun. There are also lots of minor surgical procedures you can do as an APN. For example, I am in CNM school and my preceptors first assist at c/sections, repair perineal lacerations (and cut episiotomies when needed), perform circumcisions (which is a whole other ball of wax, won't get into that here), some of them are trained to do LEEPs, and you can also do vacuum aspirations (most states disallow non-physicians from performing vacuum aspiration terminations, but you can do it for missed abortions).

I really struggled with MD/APN route, but ultimately decided that I would get more bang for my buck and a better work/life balance with the RN to APN route. I still sometimes question it though.

You could also train to be a surgical tech and see how you really like the OR. It's a brutal job; on your feet for HOURS and HOURS, and the work can be surprisingly monotonous and boring.

Specializes in ICU Stepdown.

I have been having the same dilemma, glad I'm not the only one. I've seen posts about this before and people have been like "they are two completely different tracks, you have to choose one or the other." What you can do is get your BSN, but while you're doing that, do pre-med pre requisites as well. When you are finished you should be able to know for sure what you want to get into. It may sound unrealistic to some people but really, what's a few more classes? :p

I second the PA idea if you want to do actual surgery. They work with a doctor, but are highly trained. (There are neurosurgery PAs).

I have been having the same dilemma, glad I'm not the only one. I've seen posts about this before and people have been like "they are two completely different tracks, you have to choose one or the other." What you can do is get your BSN, but while you're doing that, do pre-med pre requisites as well. When you are finished you should be able to know for sure what you want to get into. It may sound unrealistic to some people but really, what's a few more classes? :p

2 semester of Bio

2 semesters of Gen Chem

2 semester of O Chem

2 semesters of Physics

1-2 semester of Calculus

Various Bio classes to pad CV, genetics, comparative anatomy etc.

95% of these classes do not apply to nursing even know some people try to say the gen chem/bio are the same for nursing. Not true. Most are separate classes meant for SCIENCE majors only. I did admissions work at a local CC and many people assumed they were the same classes. Next try to take these classes during a BSN program (bye bye summers) or after you start working (bye bye sleep/life) and it's very very hard to do and much more than a few more classes.

How do I know this? I did it...

Im not gonna be a bearer of bad news or discouragement. Just have an open mind. Choosing either option, they are both going to have their own challenges. A lot will pan into your success whichever choice you make. My advice, shadow both positions. Interview them. Ask them how their job affects their life outside of the hospital. I wanted to be a cardio-thoracic surgeon, and sometimes, still consider it. I don't know what I will do for certain, but obtainging my BSN is my first step. You could get a BSN, and be able to apply to med school. Pre-Med offers some additional education, but what Pre-Nursing offers will help you regardless. You need a BS period to apply to Med school. But it doesnt HAVE TO BE a pre-Med degree. I chose nursing because It is a good start, and I might enjoy it enough to stay in nursing and specialize. Many discover what they really want while they are going to school (why so many change majors). I'd say go for nursing first. Get your BSN. If you enjoy that enough, that is where you will stay. Dont let the simple idea that handing someone else an instrument means you would enjoy standing in one place for 6+ hours cutting, cauterizing, or what not, and that that is your dream. Not to mention you would be miserable in rounds that are 2 days long, being away from family. That was a biggie to me. I miss them way too much on a regular day.

hope this helps

I hope you find joy in whichever you chose :)

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