I want to be a Pediatrician but don't know how to do it.?

Question

I'm in college and i'm double majoring in Nursing and Theather. After I'm done with my Majors what should be my next step to become a pediatrician? I want to make sure I have my bachelors in Nursing in case I don't make it through med school I have something to fall back on. Did I make a right desicion in that? And I have had dreams of being a famous actress but that doesn't pay the bills in case I don't make it at that either but that isn't my concern right now I just want to plan out everything and map out everything correctly so that I have a chance at everything and there are no WHAT IFS. you know? So What should I do when i'm finished with my majors step by step to become a pediatrician?

Answer 1

While few schools have a Pre-Med major -- most have a program for those who want to go to medical school. Talk to the head of that program. He will be able to tell you what courses you need to take. You might have already had some of them in your nursing program -- but it is likely that you will have to take more advanced biology, chemistry (particularly organic chemistry) and math classes. Most premed students major in biology or chemistry -- but there is no requirement to do so.

If your school does not have a program like this -- talk to one of your Nursing Professors to get advice.

Studying theater is nice -- but the premed classes are more important -- if you really want to do this. It is a lot of work -- you might need to make some hard choices.

Answer 2

*Although the preparation for becoming a physician doesn't officially begin until college, it unofficially begins much earlier. Every decision for excellence, from high school onwards, impacts your chances of getting into medical school. The college or university you attend will be considered when applying for medical school -- the more prestigious the school the better.

*During college you can either complete a pre-med major or a major in almost anything else. Whatever your major, you must take courses in the core premedical sciences. These include organic chemistry, general chemistry, physics, biology, and calculus. Your grades in these core courses will be particularly important for medical school admission. They will also help prepare you for the MCATs (the standardized testing which plays a significant role in medical school admissions.) To have your medical school application seriously considered, outstanding grades and MCAT scores are important.

*Once your application is considered, one of the things that will be looked for is your exposure to the world of health and medicine during your undergraduate years. Particularly favorable are a track record of medical research and volunteering in a medical setting. For pediatrics it is especially useful if the volunteer work you have done is with children.

*With four difficult years of undergraduate education completed, and an acceptance into medical school, you will settle in for four probably even more difficult years of education. The first two years are primarily focused on the study of basic sciences such as anatomy, physiology, pathology, pharmacology, microbiology, immunology, etc. The second two years are focused on the clinical sciences of medicine, surgery, neurology, psychiatry, obstetrics/gynecology, and of course pediatrics.

*In the same way that you worked at excelling during high school so that you could get into an excellent college or university, and then in college you worked at excelling in order to get into medical school, during medical school you must work hard in order to get into a pediatric training program. To get a good pediatric training position it is important to score well on the National Medical Board examinations, to have solid academic performance in medical school, and in particular to have honors during the pediatrics rotations that you take.

*During medical school there is plenty of opportunity to change your mind as to which area of medicine you would like to go ultimately into. More people change their minds and decide to go into pediatrics after having been exposed to the pediatric rotation, than those who come to medical school with the desire to go into pediatrics and instead pick something else.

*After four years of undergraduate school and four more years of medical school comes Internship -- that one year which involves more learning than the previous eight years combined. Night and day you eat, drink, and breathe pediatric training. It is a long and difficult year! You will be almost continually sleep-deprived. Internship is followed by another round of National Medical Board examinations. Upon the successful completion of internship and National Boards, you are ready to complete a Residency -- an additional two years of intensive pediatric training. During these years you are always at the hospital (Resident implies somebody who lives at the hospital because you spend so much time there that you might as well live there!). After all this training many people pursue a fellowship in some particular area of pediatrics or further residency training as a Chief Resident.

Having completed all these years of training, you are finally ready to embark on a journey as a pediatrician. A well chosen path my friend. Goodluck Rachelle.

Answer 3

Ask a pediatrician and they will tell you what to do.