You want to go into medicine...you sure about that?

Girl--"OMG, how much do you hate inorganic chemistry? I don't even want to THINK about having to take Organic Chemistry with Dr. ---- next semester...seriously, I don't even know why I am taking this class hahahah I actually hate science!"

Pearl-- "oh yeah? well..I mean inorganic isn't a prerequisite for most degrees..why don't you just talk to you advisor? I am sure he can get you put in another class: it's still early enough to switch."

Girl--"oh naw that's cool. I have to take it eventually cause I'm going premed, so I figure I'll just get it over with now!"

....

WTF.

There are so many things wrong with that scenario.
For those of you just tuning in to this feed, wondering to yourselves "what have I stumbled into here? I am not some bitter e-netter attempting to dissuade young starry-eyed freshmen from going into the medical field. I promise you, that is not the case at all. I'm not usually like this. In fact, I actually make serious attempts to avoid whining or complaining on this blog (those of you who have been here a while know I don't always succeed) But when conversations like the one posted above are had with someone who is seriously considering going into my beloved field, a girl has to worry. 

Things might have been different if she had just disliked inorganic chemistry. A lack of fascination with the synthesis of inorganic compounds? Totally understandable. I might have even tolerated a brief dislike of chemistry as a whole. But this goes beyond that, people. What we are dealing with here is an individual that has an utter disdain for the entire field of science. When I asked her what she actually was interested in? She replied "business management."

Now allow me to repeat my initial sentiments of Whatttttttheeeeeeeeeeeeeeffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff.

Upon talking further with BusinessGirl (we'll call her that for now), I found out that she had failed the Intro to Biological Sciences course, and was under the impression that if she could maintain her solid 2.5 GPA, her prospects of getting into John Hopkins would definitely increase. In my eyes, this is a classic case of "youradvisorscrewedyouover." It would seem natural that, if you are interested in business management, you should probably pursue a degree in....business management; but somewhere along the line, this girl got some misguided advice and was lead to believe that medicine was the field for her.  Now I am not saying that she wouldn't make it in the medical field ( I'll put that out as a disclaimer before I have a hundred angry followers jumping on me about being so insensitive). Who am I to judge? I haven't even made it into the medical field yet. But I do know, that if you are not a big fan of science, can't pass the beginner level courses, and have obvious other passions? You should probably consider looking into those "other passions" before medicine. 

 With the average med school student debt being about $156,000 before actually breaking into the work force, the decision to go into the medical field is not exactly one you can afford to be unsure of (literally.) And with the field of medicine requiring about a 12 year stint in school (4 years undergrad, four years medical school, and anywhere from 3-5 years residency), before you can actually take on the title of "doctor", it is important to make sure that you are well-advised and well-motivated to take on the long road ahead of you. 

I would also like to think that there is a certain amount of fondness for the field, that is necessary to pursue a career in medicine, but that might just be me being overly romantic (yes, I did use the words "medicine" and "romantic" in the same sentence...) I mean of course, there will be days when you just want to take all the science textbooks you own and use them as kindling for your marshmallow bonfire (we've all done that before...right?) Or rip out all the pages and watch them fluttering down as you chuck them out your window for sport. But in these frustrating times, actually being interested in making explorations in science will definitely help to keep you on the medical track as the "going gets rough."

So, in conclusion, talk to people before wandering blindly into the hardcore premed courses at your university. Talk to your advisor, talk to medical students, and talk to other advisors to see if there is an alternative field that would better suit your interests. By all means, I even encourage you to "test out the waters" by taking some introductory level science courses and observing how you fare. If you float, maybe try out a couple more and see if the sciences are really for you. If you sink, I still say try out at least two more courses, this time with a different professor (often it makes a difference) But after two or three courses with the same result, it may be time to think about other options. After all, those undergraduate level courses cost money too, and don't know about you, but I'd rather not add to my college kid poverty by pouring money into unnecessary coursework!