Nursing to Med School

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Has anyone actually considered this path? If so, currently where are you now?

Are you in Nursing school still in hopes to continue on with the education?

What is your opinion on it?

I don't follow you in this one.

I was also a pre-med concentration with a biology major in undergrad. I took the MCAT. I went through medical school admissions. I elected to defer and changed my career path. That was 10 years ago now. None of this experience makes me more qualified to speak about medical training. I have none. Does you pre-med concentration entitle you to speak for physicians?

On top of that I have a MSN, I practice in advanced practice both primary and tertiary settings, and I am nearing completion of my DNP so I am qualified to an extent to speak about that.

If you read the original purpose of this thread, the question was if the OP should go from nursing school to medical school. Having done a similar path I weighed the pros/cons of the decision for them. I relayed the difficulties in shaking the nursing label for med school admissions and the problems of working full time and doing classes. I have personally sat down with former med school admissions officers and gotten their take on the whole transition process.

In none of my posts am I talking about "medical" training only the process to get there. On that platform, I do know what I am talking about.

To summarize (as you said you did in undergrad) it is easier to pick any other major but nursing to gain med school admission. My first post in this thread explains it pretty well.

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Specializes in Emergency.

Well, you certainly got the physician personality down. Guess it's a good thing you didn't stick with the nursing path.

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I don't follow you in this one. I was also a pre-med concentration with a biology major in undergrad. I took the MCAT. I went through medical school admissions. I elected to defer and changed my career path. That was 10 years ago now. None of this experience makes me more qualified to speak about medical training. I have none. Does you pre-med concentration entitle you to speak for physicians? On top of that I have a MSN I practice in advanced practice both primary and tertiary settings, and I am nearing completion of my DNP so I am qualified to an extent to speak about that.[/quote']

This above makes a lot more sense than any other "I know better than you" posts ;)

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Well you certainly got the physician personality down. Guess it's a good thing you didn't stick with the nursing path.[/quote']

But wait he is a nurse :( not a physician

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Specializes in Pediatrics, Emergency, Trauma.
This above makes a lot more sense than any other "I know better than you" posts ;) Sent from my iPhone using allnurses.com

Agreed. ;)

*munches popcorn*...

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whoa Nelly, calm down, I do see Dranger's point. Basically he's just saying that the nursing profession keeps tacking on more and more credentials to do essentially the same job. For example, I am interested in eventually becoming a nurse midwife. Currently, one needs a Master's for it but there is talk of making it so you have to have a PhD. What for? I really hope that isn't the case because I really don't want to get a darn PhD for what people with lesser credentials have been doing for ages.

Likewise, LPNs are getting phased out and it's getting harder and harder to find a hospital that will hire a nurse with an associate's vs a BSN.

It's not that those that have their BSN, PhD, DNP or what have you didn't work hard for it, it's that it's a silly grouping of letters after your name that mostly just shows you spent a ton on school to appease some people that decide that all of a sudden you need those letters after your name when nobody did before. Make sense now?

Anyway, back to the OP. I've been lurking and it seems like you've made a lot of posts alluding to the fact that you'd rather be a doctor. What's scaring you off? If it's that it might be too hard, go for it. You won't know til you try and I'm of the opinion that school has a lot more to do with how hard you work than your natural skills. If you aren't sure which you'd enjoy more, shadow, decide and pick one. Nursing and pre-med are very separate and it's better to just jump into one or the other.

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But wait he is a nurse :( not a physician

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Nursing buzzwords: Critical thinking, it's important when you begin to think for yourself and learn that not everything in the nursing profession or leadership circle for that matter stands for better patient care.

Yup I am a nurse hoping to transition to NP/CRNA or MD but since you are so set on being an RN ( even without any serious introspection into the progress of the profession) here take my badge and work my shift tonight in critical care (You know the one with buzzes, rings, cords, lines and flashing screens). Your perspective will change 180 degrees, but hey you always know what you don't know right?

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Specializes in ICU, step down, dialysis.

Closed for staff review.

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Specializes in ICU, step down, dialysis.

Thread reopened; please stay on topic or thread will have to be permanently closed. Thanks :)

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Nursing buzzwords: Critical thinking it's important when you begin to think for yourself and learn that not everything in the nursing profession or leadership circle for that matter stands for better patient care. Yup I am a nurse hoping to transition to NP/CRNA or MD but since you are so set on being an RN ( even without any serious introspection into the progress of the profession) here take my badge and work my shift tonight in critical care (You know the one with buzzes, rings, cords, lines and flashing screens). Your perspective will change 180 degrees, but hey you always know what you don't know right?[/quote']

Please do not talk about my desire of being an RN as a careless decision "even without any serious introspection into the progress of the profession" as you state it. You don't know me, but going by your previous posts, I see the constant disagreements and discontent of your comments. And I don't want to take your shift in the critical care unit, it won't change my perspective 180 degrees in the way you think. I want to be better, help others, and never ever think of myself as a KNOW-IT-ALL, and UNDERVALUE others perspectives and opinions.

And I already think for myself! That's exactly why I disagree with your comments.

I believe It is wrong of you to call DNPs a sham of a doctorate. It is well earned, and it's their decision if they want to be called doctors.

But who knows maybe the WORLD IS WRONG, AND YOU ARE THE ONE WHO IS RIGHT. Could be.

As for the OP. How about some shadowing? More research about your options? In person interview ppl who went from nurses to docs?!

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This has become less about the op and more into egos of nurses feeling underappreciated and disgruntled with doctors. Reading some of these replies the undertones scream "I can do a doctors job, they're not so special".

Majority rules on it being insensible pathway, but not an impossible one. Those who oppose it have given fact after fact about why its just not practical and meanwhile the retort from all proponents has been

"You can do it if you believe."

Obviously you can. The question was, is it a good idea.

So let's drop all this talk about DNPs, workloads, and MDs vs ARNPs (which none of us are, and if you are an MD, you're in the wrong forum Lol) and all the hornblowing about who's got the bigger gauge and get back to the issue at hand.

Who here sincerely thinks its a practical route, timewise, effortwise, and moneywise, to purposely pursue nursing as a stepping stone to med school??

And as a sidebar, how many of you bare ACTUALLY familiar with the difference between the nursing model vs the medical model ? How many of you have had to actually switch gears between the 2?

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I agree with the people that said it's not a good idea. Just go to med school if that is what you want. They are two different careers. It seems like a waste of time and money if you feel that you really want to be a doctor. It doesn't seem that having a nursing degree would help you if you decide to pursue medicine later. There is some overlap, but the focuses are different.

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