Is it important to have a 'Plan B'?

Chuchoter

I'm in 5th year and I really want to do medicine after the leaving cert. I was talking with my mum today and she said I should have some other options on my CAO other than just medicine and I should be looking at other courses too. Frankly, I really only want to be a doctor and can't really see myself being happy at anything else. Is it important to have some other course on your CAO when you know it will always be 'second best'?

the_syco

Check if "2nd best" will allow you into the course you are trying to do? You may not get all the points you need, so instead of doing the degree straight off, would doing a cert, then the degree be an option? Someone here may have a better opion. Also, naming the course/college that you're aiming for may allow the posters here to give more relevent info.

chanste

I think you should decide if you are willing to repeat the leaving cert should you not get what you are looking for. If you are willing to repeat (and if you are planning a career which truly is lifelong learning I shouldn't see why this should put you off) then I don't think you should put other options down. Repeating itself will be the backup plan. I mean it won't cost you anything to have the extra places filled in, but if you get an offer for something you don't want in August you might take it and regret it later... best decide from the outright and stick to your guns IMO.

I think if you have a look at the CAO website you will find that there is plenty of
courses in the Institutes of Technology which would be great starting points to pursue a pharmaceutical specialty. These would be a good start for life on a GEM programme, and you might decide at this point your happy enough not to go any further.

Be aware that if you decide to do the Grad entry route you must have a 2.1 hons degree, which despite what some people may tell you is not going to be a walk in the park, and if you fail to get that then you won't be able to apply for med school unless you go back to leaving cert again.

Chuchoter

I either want to go to TCD or UCD and do medicine. Now I could be completely wrong, but if I go do some other degree, then continue on and do medicine through that, do I not have to pay fees? I don't think I would mind repeating as long as it wasn't in my current school. I'd rather spend a year doing that then 4 years at a course I have no interest in pursuing further.

I mean I think I am capable of getting the points, I've started studying and I'm a hard worker, and so far I've yet to get below 90% in any of my tests, but I still have a lot of doubts that I'm ever going to be good enough to get the points and then there is the HPAT to consider as well.

Biologic

If you're set on medicine that's fair enough, but it would be a bit short-sighted to only put that on your CAO. Hopefully everything will go well for you but all it would take is the flu on the day of HPAT to have you on the dole for a year. At least put a 3-year arts degree down so you're eligible for grad entry. That way if things go wrong you'll be an intern within 7 years of your LC, only one year longer than LC entrants (GAMSAT pending of course).

bythewoods

I'd advise putting down a few other options, for sure.
I know people who got 600 points and didn't get in, it ain't always easy.

Also, you'd be CRAZY not to put down NUIG, UCC and RCSI as well.
Medicine's medicine wherever you go, and by the time you're in 3rd year you're not even on campus anyway, so whatevz.

There's a lot of courses which are similar to Medicine. It depends what aspect you're into.
Physio, OT, Dentistry etc etc.

Chuchoter

Oh no, I'd put down all the colleges and if I got any of them brilliant, but UCD or TCD would just be easiest logistically.

But I mean...is it better to just repeat or do 4 years of something else, like science or French or something? And if you did do that would you have to pay fees and would they be very expensive?

Do you think that its bad to only want one thing and not have some sort of back up plan in the scheme of things, like if medicine simply didn't work out at all? Everybody else is like well I might do x or y or z and I'm not, I really don't know what else I would want to do, and I hate the idea of being 50 and in a job I hate and didn't really want to do to begin with. I mean I know I might hate medicine, but at least I picked something I wanted at one stage, if that makes sense.

bythewoods

crayolastereo wrote: »

Oh no, I'd put down all the colleges and if I got any of them brilliant, but UCD or TCD would just be easiest logistically.

But I mean...is it better to just repeat or do 4 years of something else, like science or French or something? And if you did do that would you have to pay fees and would they be very expensive?

Do you think that its bad to only want one thing and not have some sort of back up plan in the scheme of things, like if medicine simply didn't work out at all? Everybody else is like well I might do x or y or z and I'm not, I really don't know what else I would want to do, and I hate the idea of being 50 and in a job I hate and didn't really want to do to begin with. I mean I know I might hate medicine, but at least I picked something I wanted at one stage, if that makes sense.

Well, I repeated. It was totally pointless, because I'd already gone over the 550 points limit the first time around. I did my LC in '08, so I was a little bit in Limbo.
If you get lower than 550, I'd advise you to repeat. If you hit that, or go over it, then don't waste your time for the sake of a maximum of 10 points.

It's all about the HPAT after that. I don't know much about repeating the HPAT, because I was lucky enough to have done reasonably well in it the first time 'round. I know a few people who repeated it and went up, and others who stayed the same or even dropped. Who knows?

I would recommend you throw down a few related courses after Med on your CV, as opposed to just doing a random arts degree- have a look at other Health Science courses- Pharmacy, Radiation Therpay, Speech & Language Therapy, Physio, Occupational Therapy, Human Health & Disease Science (TCD) or Biomedical Science (UCD), Dentistry, Vet., Nursing and so on.
Unless of course you also have a passion for Arts and stuff (I know I considered doing English studies and Engineering as back ups, and there's plenty of people I know who had Law etc as a back up)

You can get into graduate entry medicine if you manage a 2.1 in a degree (GAMSAT depending)- tbh, I don't know much about this route, as I'm in undergrad med and there's no graduate entry Med in Trinity at the moment.
You could also get in somewhere as a Mature student- I think the fees are about 10grand ish (maybe?) for Irish mature students (And a lot more for internationals!)

I'd recommend going along to college open days and finding out more about these courses, or asking your career guidance person in school or whatever.

Med's not all it's cracked up to be- make SURE you want to do it for all the right reasons! (As I'm sure you do, just saying, it requires a certain passion.)

tallaght01

I would say repeat and go for it.

But otherwise just do a medically related degree...physio/pharmacy/biomedical sciences. If you're nailing anything close to the points required for med in the LC, then you'll almost certainly get a 2:1 undergrad degree, and then you just sit GAMSAT after that.

But, personally, I'd advise going the 5/6 year undergrad route if you can get in.

As far as a plan B is concerned, you can wait a while before doing that. Someone scoring well into the 500s in the LC can usually get into med one way or the other nowadays, if you have the time and money.

If it comes to a plan B, you could do nursing, as nurse practitioners are starting to replace junior docs and GPs in most developed countries, and that's a trend that's starting to be seen in Ireland, and is likely to become the norm by the time you qualify, so that could be a good career.

mcdermla

If you really really want to do medicine it shouldn't bother you which route you go. Have you considered doing it in the UK? If so then I'd start doing some voluntary work (go to your local nursing home, that sort of thing) and work on your interview and personal statement. You mention paying fees quite a lot, I'm sorry that's an issue for you but as a doctor you'll pay to do exams, so you may as well get used to it now. Also, what's the rush?! God forbid you don't get medicine in the LC, you should definitely repeat, or do an undergrad like the others suggested. I also liked the suggestion of being an Advanced Nurse Practitioner, this mightn't appeal to you but it's well paid, well-respectes, you can do it anywhere and honestly they know everything. Nice hours too. I think it might help if you got the opportunity to talk to some doctors and find out more about the job and the team of people they work with in the hospital (nurses, physios, etc) and you can see for yourself what your plan B should be. You'd be surprised how much you could consider other careers.

opinion guy

crayolastereo wrote: »

I'm in 5th year and I really want to do medicine after the leaving cert. I was talking with my mum today and she said I should have some other options on my CAO other than just medicine and I should be looking at other courses too. Frankly, I really only want to be a doctor and can't really see myself being happy at anything else. Is it important to have some other course on your CAO when you know it will always be 'second best'?

Ok I'm older than you and have about 5 different careers so far. Take a word from the wise. It is always, always, always advisable to have a plan B. Or in other words - always have an exit strategy for whatever you choose to do.

Chuchoter

Thanks so much for the advice everyone, I think I will get thinking about something else in the offchance I simply can't get in or I decide in August of 6th year I don't want to do medicine anymore!! :D

Blatter

The only problem with having a plan B is that you may be inclined to to give plan A your all, with the knowledge that you have plan B. During plan A, when/if your going through a rough patch, you could say to yourself ''Ah, shur I have x,y and z to fall back on''

My point is, if your going to have a plan B, don't let it become a distraction from plan A.

Just my 2 cents.

Chuchoter

SOCCER4LIFE wrote: »

The only problem with having a plan B is that you may be inclined to to give plan A your all, with the knowledge that you have plan B. During plan A, when/if your going through a rough patch, you could say to yourself ''Ah, shur I have x,y and z to fall back on''

My point is, if your going to have a plan B, don't let it become a distraction from plan A.

Just my 2 cents.

Very true, but tbh plan B is really like a plan....Y or something :P