Aspiring Nurses: Why not Med School??

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Many of the courses required for Nursing Schools and Medical Schools are the same, as many of you are aware. What made you choose the Nursing route over the MD? They are both challenging and require lots of commitment, but MD gets more prestige. So why Nursing? Enlighten me! :idea:

I wish I could get to medical school but you obviously have to have excellent foundation of advance chem and physics, like someone else stated before its not easy to get into medical or law school!!!

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Specializes in ED, ICU, PACU.

A 24 year old, finishing graduate school in Chemical Engineering or physics, would likely pummel a nurse of 25 years, on the MCAT.

I think comparing nursing to med school is like comparing an Attorney to a Paralegal. One not "better" than the other, however the * RIGOR * of training is VERY different.

And, I think that the chemical engineer or physicist that you mention would fall flat on their face trying to take the NCLEX [in addition to the biology/organic section of the MCAT]-NCLEX is way harder than the MCAT. The only thing hard about the MCAT is the reading speed you need to have to complete the passages and answer the related questions in the time limit for the section. The closest MCAT comes to critical thinking is the essay portion where you have to have to develop a thesis-antithesis argument.

As I said earlier, the pre-medical school degree was easy. College physics and organic chem were simple because they are cut & dry. If you understand the basic principle behind the topic and memorize some set of formulas/rules to apply to a particular problem, you don't need to go further. Nursing, on the other hand, played havoc with the high GPA I brought into nursing school. I had to fight/work hard for my grades in nursing school. With my first degree, it was effortless to walk away with an A. So, the 'RIGOR of training' for nursing school was much more than it was for medical school. It all boils down to what comes easy for an individual. What is hard for one, may just be easy for another. Nursing appears to be more physically and emotionally demanding to medicine, where medicine is more time and mentally demanding to nursing-professions that are really uncomaparable to each other.

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Time, money, , and I love bedside care.

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Specializes in ICU.

Im 23, and have never been so glad to be done school...I coudn't even imagien being in school for more years ( med school ), then making a whopping 30,000 at most for the NEXT 4 years as a resident...ew, not for me...All I know is, when I'm 30 I want to have money saved and NOT be paying off my student loans...plus..only having to work 3 days a week is pretty sweet !!! and last but not least...I don't have to hand over my money to insurance companies...I love nursing

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Specializes in ortho/neuro/general surgery.

No desire whatsoever to be a doc.... more time with my family, less years of school, less school loans, no calls all hours of the night when I'd be the one 'on call'... no thank you...

Plus, I like being at the bedside.

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Specializes in dialysis, OR.

You are comparing apples to oranges

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Definitely. It's a symbiotic relationship. Each profession offers different things, one is not better than the other, and one cannot function without the other. You make your choices based on your personal beliefs and circumstances and there's nothing wrong with that at all. In fact, I think a physician with nursing experience would be an awesome team member. Good luck to you!

i now two people who are RNS that did it while they wait for their spot to open for thier surgical schooling - ( no clue what they need lol) they have all thier prereqs that made them able to get thier nursing dgree ( due to they take much of the same i suppose) and to get into actual surgical school there is quite a list i guess- go figure,,, they do feel it will help them in thier carrer and i too belive it will help them be more sensitive and appreciative towards their nurses

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these are two very different professions with two very different scopes, and one cannot survive without the help of the other. Besides, for those of us that love variety, nursing is the place to be. You can be in Hospice with a dying 80 year old one day, and in L&D with a brand new baby the next. It all depends on how flexible and willling to learn you are. I used to work at a busy Level 1 trauma center in MN. Those critical care nurses were so smart and experienced, they even told the doc's what to do. Education can't buy you that kind of confidence, only time can.

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Might as well ask "why not Biomedical Engineering? Or Medical Law? Or Physical Therapy"

Yes, they are THAT different.

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I am not a nurse as yet but as a mom I decided to go the nursing road b/c I have a family I want to spend time raising. I know many docs who have nanny's, sitters and daycare who care for their kids. I am not trying to say this is wrong we all have our own opinion but I know myself I could not leave my kids in the care of someone else for such a long time. Plus NP's do similar work and if diagnosing is what you want why not do it in lesser yr and have it all. Just my opinion

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I did not go to Med School because...

I want to be a nurse. :)

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I always wanted to go to med school. However, the reality is that doctors really don't have it better than nurses or NPs. I wanted more autonomy and the prestige. But the view of doctors is changing to a lot of people, and pharma and HMOs are in charge anymore, it seems like the doctors less. Add in the cost and inconvenience of med school while having little kids and calculus, and nursing looks better and better. The hours are better, you get more patient interaction...it just depends on what you're in for.

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