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For those who have a passion for helping others recover from injuries and sickness, a career as a doctor can be one of the most fulfilling and rewarding, as well as lucrative, available. This does not mean, however, that becoming a doctor is easy: as little as six years and as much as ten may be necessary before you can provide a single patient with care independently. Here are some tips to get over the first hurdle: getting into medical school itself.
High School Preparation
Not many high school students may know what career they want to pursue, but for those who are interested in medicine, early preparation will help. When in high school, spend time thinking about what universities you could get into that would best prepare you due to strong coursework and good reputations. Ask advisers about universities that have strong medical school placement rates. Look for scholarships to help pay your way through university, so that you spend less time worrying about paying tuition or working to support yourself.
Apply Yourself In Undergrad
A doctor needs to have many skills, but above all else they need to be very good at remembering information. Medical school, after all, can be summarized as instructors teaching students the entire book of human anatomy and known diseases. Thousands of different bits of knowledge need to be committed to memory, so students should begin to work on their study skills once they enter into college. Show medical school applicant reviewers that your time in a four-year university was well spent by doing your best to succeed in courses. Pursue a life science degree, such as biology or biochemistry, which will give you prerequisite knowledge for understanding what health and life really means, right down to the cellular level. You do not need a 4.0, but few medical schools will take applicants that do not get better than a B average.
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