Whether you are a medical student trying to figure out what is coming soon, a pre-med student trying to decide if medical school is the best route for you, or anyone else looking to learn more about the journey to becoming a doctor, this is for you! This post is also helpful for friends and family members of medical students who want to understand the process from pre-med to residency.
The following is specific to the United States. Some countries have a similar timeline; however, there are often differences. Covering all these details is beyond the scope of this article.
After graduating high school and starting undergraduate college, students may decide to be pre-med. Being pre-med at some schools may require them to declare that track when they initially apply to college. Other schools may offer a pre-med pathway to opt into at any time. Other schools may not have additional resources, but students can still be pre-med unofficially just by scheduling all the classes they need to apply to medical school. At my undergraduate college, pre-med was an unofficial designation that allowed access to pre-med advisors.
A few schools designate pre-med as a major itself; however, at most schools, you will have a major in addition to being pre-med. For example, I was a biology and political science major while I was pre-med. Most pre-med students opt to major in the sciences (like biology) because many of the required courses overlap with the requirements for medical school. Students can also have more nontraditional majors without overlap; however, they must complete classes mandated by that major plus courses required for medical school. Some students can do this because they earned college credit in high school, took summer classes, or took longer to graduate.
The courses required for medical school applications vary between schools, but they typically require biology, general chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry, physics, genetics, math, English, and social sciences. Other popular courses for pre-med students include psychology, statistics, computer science, ethics, foreign language, anatomy, and physiology.
Pre-med students have to seek opportunities outside the classroom, too. Most medical schools require clinical experience. Most students achieve this through volunteering for a hospital or working as a medical assistant. Many schools also like to see research experience, though some schools do not emphasize this type of experience. Pre-medical students often accumulate additional work experience, leadership experience, and volunteer experience to strengthen their application.
I discussed my experience as a pre-med student in an episode of First Line.
Pre-medical students take challenging classes, earn a high GPA, and study for the MCAT. The average GPA for all medical school acceptances (osteopathic and allopathic) ranges from 3.5 to 4.0, depending on the school. The average MCAT score ranges from 500 to 522 depending on the school (which correlates to the 45th and 99th percentile, respectively).
Medical school admissions are very competitive. The average acceptance rate is about 6%. Some schools have acceptance rates as low as 1%, and the other end of the range is about 14%. When specifically looking at osteopathic medical schools (DO schools), they have the same average as overall medical school acceptances (6%). Osteopathic medical school don't dip as low in acceptance rates; the lowest acceptance rate at a DO school is about 5%. The average MCAT for osteopathic medical schools is about 505, and the average GPA is around 3.6. So, it is just as hard to get into an osteopathic medical school as an allopathic medical school (MD school). Allopathic schools have more range in competitiveness. You may hear terms like low-tier, mid-tier, and high-tier. Most osteopathic medical schools are around the same level of competitiveness, which is in line with mid-tier allopathic schools. Osteopathic medical schools, however, do have a reputation for reviewing applicants holistically, which makes it easier for nontraditional applicants, applicants without research experience, applicants with a high GPA but a poor MCAT score, or applicants with a low GPA but a strong MCAT score to earn admission to osteopathic medical schools. They otherwise may struggle for allopathic school acceptances.
Many students may opt for a gap year between graduating from undergraduate college and starting medical school. The purpose varies; some students want to use the time to study for the MCAT, some want to gain more extracurricular experience, and some want to recharge and travel or enjoy time with family. I took a gap year myself and discussed it in an episode of First Line (along with my interviewing experience).
Medical school applications are typically submitted to schools about a year before the classes start, usually in June or July. Many schools require secondary applications as well. Interviews take place in the fall or the early Spring. Schools have their timelines for interviews, acceptances, and deposit deadlines to reserve a spot in the class. Matriculation usually occurs in July or August. I discussed my experience applying to medical school in an episode of First Line. Learn more about how I can help you with your CV/resume in my article here.
Medical schools differ in the structure of the curriculum. Some schools do blocks based on discipline (histology, anatomy, microbiology, pharmacology, physiology, etc.), while others have a curriculum format based on the body systems (cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, nephrology, neurology, etc.). Since I preferred the body system structure, I chose a medical school with that curriculum type. Most schools also have longitudinal courses that continue alongside the curriculum, including a "doctor skills" class on how to take a patient history and perform a physical exam. At osteopathic medical schools, there are osteopathic manipulative medicine courses for students to learn and practice osteopathic manipulative techniques/treatments. To learn more about OMM/OMT, check out this episode.
Typically, the first two years of medical school are pre-clinical. Students usually attend lectures, but some schools incorporate self-directed or team-based learning. Years three and four are considered the clinical years during which students complete rotations at hospitals/clinics with experiential learning under the supervision of practicing physicians (attendings or residents). The third year is usually the start of core clerkships, a schedule that looks similar for most students to expose students to various specialties and treatment settings. These rotations typically include family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, psychiatry, surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, and emergency medicine. In the fourth year, students have more choice of what rotations to complete and focus on gaining more experience in their specialty of choice. At the same time, fourth-year students apply for residency programs in September and interview for residencies in the fall and spring.
Residency is the additional training that allows a physician to practice a specialty (family medicine physician, internist, surgeon, psychiatrist, radiologist, pathologist, etc.) that typically starts in June or July after graduating from medical school around April or May. Residency is usually 3-5 years, depending on the specialty. For example, internal medicine residency is three years, psychiatry residency is four years, general surgery is five years, and neurosurgery is seven years.
So in review, how many years does it take to practice as a doctor (DO or MD)?
High school + 4 years of undergraduate college + 4 years of medical school + 3-7 years of residency. That's at least 11 years after high school! Check out this post to learn how the training differs from other healthcare professions.
Pre-med to attending physician is a long road but is worth it if it is the right path for you. There is something special about being someone's doctor and spending most of your days caring for patients who need you. Good luck on this journey!
Listen to the related First Line episode on this topic here.