 |
Web Hosting by Netfirms | Free Domain Names by Netfirms |
|
Skip to: site menu | section menu | main content
You need a university education to apply to medical school. College degrees are not accepted, and credits earned at college that are transferred to university are not always accepted.
There are a few different strategies that people take when applying to university:
1) Apply to a school with a good reputation, more difficult to get into:
Pro: will probably get a good overall education, excellent libraries, access to professors doing interesting research. If you are not accepted to medical school it may be easier to continue with a grad program. If you do not get into medical school your degree holds a little more authority when applying for other jobs. As well, there are often ample opportunities for extracurricular activities.
Con: the marking scheme at “hard to get into” schools will often deflate your marks, and you may be able to achieve higher grades elsewhere. The medical school application does not discriminate based on what undergrad university you attended, and the marks are not “reinflated” if you attended a “harder” university. Marks are a big part of the medical school application.The atmosphere at many of these schools is often quite competitive as many people will be applying to medical school, and only 1/10 will be accepted.
2) Apply to a professional health care program like nursing.
Pro: you will graduate with a degree that allows you to work in the field of health care, regardless of if you are accepted to medical school or not you are guaranteed to spend time working with patients.
Con: the program may be more structured and it may be more difficult to take courses outside the curriculum that your need to apply to medical school, such as calculus and organic chemistry. You may need to do these during the summer or only apply to medical schools that do not have required courses. As well, you may need to justify your change from one professional program to another on your med school application
3) Go to an “easier” undergraduate university
Pro-:if you have very high marks in high school, then you may be offered a scholarship to attend, which not only alleviates some financial burden, but also is seen as an achievement in of itself. Your marks may be higher at this university than at a “harder” university.
Con: there may be fewer research opportunities and extracurricular activities. Your degree may not carry as much weight when applying for jobs if you do not get into medical school. It may be more difficult to apply to grad school if you are not accepted to medical school.
4) Attend a Northern Ontario university (Laurentian or Lakehead) to achieve Northern Status.
Pro : the Northern Ontario Medical School has location of residence as a major determining factor in choosing its medical class. Attending a northern Ontario school counts as having a rural or Northern community your place of residence.
Con :this may not be enough criteria on which to pick a school where you will spend the next 3-4 years.
5) Choosing a school you feel happy at, you can visualise yourself living at for the next 3-4 years and offers the courses you want to take:
This should override any other strategy, if you are not happy where you are, you will do miserably at school and have a rotten university experience. It is hard to be miserable and be accepted into medical school, or into any program for that matter!
Applying to University
Things to do in High School
Highschool (4yrs)
University (3-4ys)
Application Cycle (1yr)
Medical School (3-4yrs)
Residency (2-6yrs)
Fellowship (1-3 yrs)