Plan to take it easy until uni, then work hard to become a Dr - is it flawed? (1 Viewer)

[Beyblader]

is my thinking flawed or is it fundamentally correct, assuming you want to eventually do medicine?

It seems to me that it takes an inordinate amount of studying and outside school coaching/tuition to get a high enough ATAR to get into undergrad medicine and the only real benefit of doing all that work is if you want to get nto undergrad med/law.

The cost of getting such a high ATAR for most people that do so (unless you are a rare genius) is a marked restriction in extra curricular hobbies, socialisation and missing out on many of the potential joys of youth.

Assuming you are quite intelligent (eg IQ of 130) but not extremely so, and are willing to take a slightly longer path, would it not be better to enjoy childhood, work hard when at school but not undertake any external coaching/tuition and instead pursue whatever extra-curricular activities interest you, enjoy life as much as possible and get a good but not stunning atar eg 90 to get onto a suitable pre-med degree then really start worrying hard at uni and gamsats to get into postgrad medicine

With this plan you get to have a normal childhood experience and still get into medicine a few years later

What do you think about this?

 

[pistachioman]

• More Money
• More Time
• Plus its extremely difficult to get very high marks in Uni consistently throughout your whole degree.
• Gamsat is extremely difficult.

You are comparing 1 year of HSC vs 4 really difficult years of University.


If you get 95+ Atar then you may have a real good chance at getting into medicine at certain universities.

 

[Trebla]

If I'm not mistaken, undergrad med is a faster pathway to becoming a doctor than post-grad med.

There are also plenty of instances where people took a separate undergraduate degree with the aim to getting into postgraduate medicine (usually because they couldn't get into undergraduate medicine) but changed their mind along the way and ended up going in a very different career pathway to what they originally planned.

 

[jazz519]

I think that aside from the joys of child hood you need to really consider what that means down the road. If you wanted to do medicine but didn't get in through under grad you will have to go do it through post grad. Which means you spend already 4 years in uni doing a degree which probably is 40k HECs debt minimum.

Then later on you have to do another degree in medicine so more time in uni, and costs money as well

Personally, I would rather sacrifice like 1 or 2 years in high school, because in my opinion you don't really 'enjoy life' as much in school as you can when you are in uni and out of school, where you don't have to follow strict rules and have more flexibility and freedom and have the money/finances to go on holidays etc. that you can't really do as much as a school kid

It's a very big misconception that to get a 99 ATAR you have to kill yourself and study 24/7. Sure if you don't have the natural aptitude to do it that easily then it will be more difficult, but myself and many of my friends who got 99 ATAR, maintained a relatively good level of socialisation, hobbies such as sports and down time. It's all about using your time effectively and efficiently rather than studying all day long because that is not sustainable

So in terms of doing the med later then you if you decided to change your mind mid way through your under grad degree you will have lost an opportunity from before. Also, as mentioned above getting high marks in university which you will probably need to have any hope to transfer into a medicine degree, is very difficult because for one the subjects are harder and there isn't always a transparency in teaching in subjects (in terms of they don't provide you loads of past papers like in HSC). Additionally, you have to balance things like a job and study which means you can't just devote 70-80% of your time to study like you could in year 12, which is why even friends I know that got 97+ in the ATAR, only end up getting marks like 75-80% in uni

Best thing to do is just work hard in year 11 and year 12, and it will honestly make your life so much easier. Getting good marks then can get you things like:
- scholarships
- direct entry into your desired uni degree without having to do things you don't have interest in to transfer into a different degree
- faster graduation from uni

 

[iStudent]

is my thinking flawed or is it fundamentally correct, assuming you want to eventually do medicine?

It seems to me that it takes an inordinate amount of studying and outside school coaching/tuition to get a high enough ATAR to get into undergrad medicine and the only real benefit of doing all that work is if you want to get nto undergrad med/law.

The cost of getting such a high ATAR for most people that do so (unless you are a rare genius) is a marked restriction in extra curricular hobbies, socialisation and missing out on many of the potential joys of youth.

Assuming you are quite intelligent (eg IQ of 130) but not extremely so, and are willing to take a slightly longer path, would it not be better to enjoy childhood, work hard when at school but not undertake any external coaching/tuition and instead pursue whatever extra-curricular activities interest you, enjoy life as much as possible and get a good but not stunning atar eg 90 to get onto a suitable pre-med degree then really start worrying hard at uni and gamsats to get into postgrad medicine

With this plan you get to have a normal childhood experience and still get into medicine a few years later

What do you think about this?

Think your life is yours to live - but just keep in mind that around half the spots are are reserved for high school students (who take the UCAT).- including UNSW. Doing the GAMSAT route does mean you give up these spots and hence lowers your overall chances of even having a shot.

HSC defs not the be all and end all, but it is prob the easiest and most straightforward route to a career u want.

And tbh, I'd say give it your all when you're in high school and actually get into medicine - once you're in you can take gap years enjoy the good years of your life you sacrificed.

Perhaps should also question whether medicine is something you really want to do given lifestyle seems to be an important factor. A career in medicine is prob not the best career to enjoy your youth (essentially donating good proportion of your 20s to the hospital lol).

 

[Beyblader]

• Plus its extremely difficult to get very high marks in Uni consistently throughout your whole degree.
• Gamsat is extremely difficult.

You are comparing 1 year of HSC vs 4 really difficult years of University.

If you get 95+ Atar then you may have a real good chance at getting into medicine at certain universities.

My impression is that to get a really good ATAR (99+) to get into a good undergrad med course would take a lot more than 1 year of HSC. I thought those kids that get 99+ generally have been working very hard and having regaulr external tutoring from age 12 (and often earlier from age 8 onwards), with the tutoring hours progressively increasing until HSC
- i see the HSC years as just the tip of the iceberg as many years of ground work led up to the HSC

so I think of the equation not as
"1 year of HSC vs 4 really difficult years of University." but more like
6 years of prime youth/constant tutoring/hard work at school/social opportunity costs vs 1 or 2 extra years of universitiy (perhaps a little more difficult intensity but not a lot more than you would be doing anyway)

or do you think I'm overestimating the work involved to get ATAR 99+ ?

 

[Beyblader]

If you wanted to do medicine but didn't get in through under grad you will have to go do it through post grad. Which means you spend already 4 years in uni doing a degree which probably is 40k HECs debt minimum.

Then later on you have to do another degree in medicine so more time in uni, and costs money as well

Personally, I would rather sacrifice like 1 or 2 years in high school, because in my opinion you don't really 'enjoy life' as much in school

It's a very big misconception that to get a 99 ATAR you have to kill yourself and study 24/7. Sure if you don't have the natural aptitude to do it that easily then it will be more difficult, but myself and many of my friends who got 99 ATAR, maintained a relatively good level of socialisation, hobbies such as sports and down time. It's all about using your time effectively and efficiently rather than studying all day long because that is not sustainable

So in terms of doing the med later then you if you decided to change your mind mid way through your under grad degree you will have lost an opportunity from before. Also, as mentioned above getting high marks in university which you will probably need to have any hope to transfer into a medicine degree, is very difficult because for one the subjects are harder Additionally, you have to balance things like a job and study which means you can't just devote 70-80% of your time to study like you could in year 12, which is why even friends I know that got 97+ in the ATAR, only end up getting marks like 75-80% in uni

Best thing to do is just work hard in year 11 and year 12, and it will honestly make your life so much easier. Getting good marks then can get you things like:
- scholarships
- direct entry into your desired uni degree without having to do things you don't have interest in to transfer into a different degree
- faster graduation from uni

If it really was just a matter of working crazy hard in year 11 and 12 to get a 99+ ATAR then I would definitely say thats the way to go but my impression was that only the super intelligent kids could do that without having had to go through many years of coaching in the 3-4 years prior to year 11. I agree that using time effectively and efficiently is the best way but i also think that the only people that can be super effective and efficient are the super intelligent ones or those that have done huge amounts of work in to know how to be so effective/efficient

what ATAR would you say someone with an IQ of 120-130 who is moderately hard working during school but without tutoring and who is involved in lots of extracurricular sports/hobbies would get if they really started trying very hard only in year 11-12 and dropped all extra-curriculars in year 11-12?

What ATAR do you need to have a reasonably good (>75%) chance of getting into medicine assuming you interview well and can present as a well rounded person - would 97 o r 99.00 be enough?

 

[Beyblader]

And tbh, I'd say give it your all when you're in high school and actually get into medicine - once you're in you can take gap years enjoy the good years of your life you sacrificed.

Perhaps should also question whether medicine is something you really want to do given lifestyle seems to be an important factor. A career in medicine is prob not the best career to enjoy your youth (essentially donating good proportion of your 20s to the hospital lol).

one reason I'm thinking the slower easier postgrad route may be better is because I know many Drs and the career path is long so theres no reason to rush into it, as you say, you will be essentially dedicating all your time/energy into medicine once you get in so it makes sense to maximise life experiences (i.e. enjoy youth and have a gap year) before you get in

 

[Drdusk]

If it really was just a matter of working crazy hard in year 11 and 12 to get a 99+ ATAR then I would definitely say thats the way to go but my impression was that only the super intelligent kids could do that without having had to go through many years of coaching in the 3-4 years prior to year 11. I agree that using time effectively and efficiently is the best way but i also think that the only people that can be super effective and efficient are the super intelligent ones or those that have done huge amounts of work in to know how to be so effective/efficient

what ATAR would you say someone with an IQ of 120-130 who is moderately hard working during school but without tutoring and who is involved in lots of extracurricular sports/hobbies would get if they really started trying very hard only in year 11-12 and dropped all extra-curriculars in year 11-12?

What ATAR do you need to have a reasonably good (>75%) chance of getting into medicine assuming you interview well and can present as a well rounded person - would 97 o r 99.00 be enough?

HSC is rewarding to those who work really hard. ALL HSC subjects except one are a memorization with little focus on gaining an understanding. The only subject where a persons actually intelligence/iq(for that subject) is heavily tested is Maths Extension 2.

Other than that, even if your not highly intelligent/gifted, you can get a high ATAR. Not saying people who get high ATAR's are all unintelligent, but you too could get one despite IQ or any of that crap. Its the wrong mindset to have, just work hard and you'll get there.

 

[jazz519]

My impression is that to get a really good ATAR (99+) to get into a good undergrad med course would take a lot more than 1 year of HSC. I thought those kids that get 99+ generally have been working very hard and having regaulr external tutoring from age 12 (and often earlier from age 8 onwards), with the tutoring hours progressively increasing until HSC
- i see the HSC years as just the tip of the iceberg as many years of ground work led up to the HSC

so I think of the equation not as
"1 year of HSC vs 4 really difficult years of University." but more like
6 years of prime youth/constant tutoring/hard work at school/social opportunity costs vs 1 or 2 extra years of universitiy (perhaps a little more difficult intensity but not a lot more than you would be doing anyway)

or do you think I'm overestimating the work involved to get ATAR 99+ ?

Yeah I would say you are overestimating it. Of course it is hard work but like you don't have to sacrifice your life completely for that long. Just for some context I was always fairly smart but from year 7 - 9ish barely getting into top 20 in most of my subjects, but gradually started gaining ranks. Even in year 11 before I started I thought maybe 93 would be my goal. Then end of year 11 thought maybe I would get like 97ish. Year 12 I worked very hard and pulled off the 99 but even in year 11 didn't take it so serious really until maybe last term and a half, where I realised how much easier my uni thing could become if I got a scholarship or something

In terms of tutoring, honestly you don't need tutoring for anything for year 7-10. All the subjects you do and exams you do up until then literally mean nothing. The best tutoring you can get in those years is just associating yourself with people who do their work and participate and class, because you learn a lot by just asking each other questions when you get stuck on the homework. Like look at this like this way half the assessed things you do in those years are random projects in groups where you film videos, do power point presentations, make models and debates

For some perspective year 10 math I was getting maybe 70-80% and probably 20-30th ranked roughly and then later in year 12 ended up coming first with like 98-99s in all exams. Another example was English that was probably my worst subject (probably in rank 30-50), and even when I got to year 11 I still screwed up the first term and got like 8/15, improved gradually and was outright first in my school in year 12 by 5% or so overall in the school assessments. Science probably was my only one consistent thing in terms of did well in that since year 7, because I was very interested and watching random things on YouTube and documentaries on tv.

Maybe year 11 you can start tutoring but even then I did only math at that time (but that was the case because I was doing the accelerated course at the time so was sitting math HSC that year). Only really started going to tutoring for things like chemistry, physics and english in last term of year 11 (but mainly to just see if the tutoring place was good and a good fit for me so I didn't have to like test stuff out in the middle of year 12 and realise it wasn't as good as I thought It would be)

But I guess one main factor in my success was although I didn't probably do as well in year 7-10 because I didnt really like half the subjects I was doing but was still intelligent but just didn't have a work ethic and was very distracted by video games and stuff

But in terms of your other thing in terms of intelligence and link to ATAR, I won't lie there is probably some link in terms of getting a certain ATAR, but that is only really when you get to 97+, where to get that type of ATAR you need to get band 6s in everything and 99 usually need at least 2 high band 6 results. Up until then you can achieve the ATAR with just working hard and having efficient and good study techniques/habits

In terms of the ATAR to get into medicine I couldn't tell you anything about that because I never considered wanting to do it or sat any of the UMAT etc exams. But I do know that some of my friends had to get like 95+ or something and do interviews to get in to it. I do know one person who got in with probably 94-95ish ATAR, who had a lot of extracurriculars like he was on the swimming team (went to many of those inter school and interstate carnival things). The universities they applied at was like uws and Newcastle I think, cause getting into usyd or UNSW med I think the median ATARs are like 99.70 or something in that region

 

[jazz519]

Honestly, though in the end if your goal is to get into medicine then it's fine to try do it the post grad route as you still achieve what you wanted to do in the beginning, but you might as well work hard in year 11 and 12 and see what happens because you might just do a lot better than what you think you could do, but for that you will never know unless you are willing to put that effort in

 

[Beyblader]

Yeah I would say you are overestimating it. Of course it is hard work but like you don't have to sacrifice your life completely for that long. Just for some context I was always fairly smart but from year 7 - 9ish barely getting into top 20 in most of my subjects, but gradually started gaining ranks. Even in year 11 before I started I thought maybe 93 would be my goal. Then end of year 11 thought maybe I would get like 97ish. Year 12 I worked very hard and pulled off the 99 but even in year 11 didn't take it so serious really until maybe last term and a half, where I realised how much easier my uni thing could become if I got a scholarship or something

In terms of tutoring, honestly you don't need tutoring for anything for year 7-10. All the subjects you do and exams you do up until then literally mean nothing. The best tutoring you can get in those years is just associating yourself with people who do their work and participate and class, because you learn a lot by just asking each other questions when you get stuck on the homework. Like look at this like this way half the assessed things you do in those years are random projects in groups where you film videos, do power point presentations, make models and debates

For some perspective year 10 math I was getting maybe 70-80% and probably 20-30th ranked roughly and then later in year 12 ended up coming first with like 98-99s in all exams. Another example was English that was probably my worst subject (probably in rank 30-50), and even when I got to year 11 I still screwed up the first term and got like 8/15, improved gradually and was outright first in my school in year 12 by 5% or so overall in the school assessments. Science probably was my only one consistent thing in terms of did well in that since year 7, because I was very interested and watching random things on YouTube and documentaries on tv.

Maybe year 11 you can start tutoring but even then I did only math at that time (but that was the case because I was doing the accelerated course at the time so was sitting math HSC that year). Only really started going to tutoring for things like chemistry, physics and english in last term of year 11 (but mainly to just see if the tutoring place was good and a good fit for me so I didn't have to like test stuff out in the middle of year 12 and realise it wasn't as good as I thought It would be)

But I guess one main factor in my success was although I didn't probably do as well in year 7-10 because I didnt really like half the subjects I was doing but was still intelligent but just didn't have a work ethic and was very distracted by video games and stuff

But in terms of your other thing in terms of intelligence and link to ATAR, I won't lie there is probably some link in terms of getting a certain ATAR, but that is only really when you get to 97+, where to get that type of ATAR you need to get band 6s in everything and 99 usually need at least 2 high band 6 results. Up until then you can achieve the ATAR with just working hard and having efficient and good study techniques/habits

This is a fantastic answer and gives me a lot of hope that its possible to get a good mark without having to give up childhood and by going for the kill in year 11-12
- i kind of always have thought that an intelligent person could do what you outlined but its hard to be certain especially when i see so many kids being heavily tutored in years 5-6 in an attempt to get into selective school so the fear is that if all these smart kids are starting tutoring and going hell for leather with almost full time studying from year 6-7 then how is it possible for anyone to catch up with them by the time you start in year 11

- but i guess as the mind and study habits improve you can catch up in the same way that a 2-4 year old kid could spend many hours a week in swimming lessons to learn to barely swim but a 7 year old who has never swum before could probably learn to swim with 3 or 4 lessons as well as a 4 year old thats been having weekly lessons for a year can?

- but aiming for a normal childhood with a plan to go hard from year 11-12 takes a leap of faith

 

[Trebla]

Honestly, though in the end if your goal is to get into medicine then it's fine to try do it the post grad route as you still achieve what you wanted to do in the beginning, but you might as well work hard in year 11 and 12 and see what happens because you might just do a lot better than what you think you could do, but for that you will never know unless you are willing to put that effort in

Pretty much this. For most people the whole “youth experience” thing happens in uni, not high school.

 

[iStudent]

one reason I'm thinking the slower easier postgrad route may be better is because I know many Drs and the career path is long so theres no reason to rush into it, as you say, you will be essentially dedicating all your time/energy into medicine once you get in so it makes sense to maximise life experiences (i.e. enjoy youth and have a gap year) before you get in

I think it's fair if you think you will definitely get in, but reality is that most people don't. It is easy to talk to doctors and all those who have succeeded, but for each doctor who has succeeded there are probably 10 out there who have failed and given up or are still trying the GAMSAT (and these people are also intelligent people with a uni degree behind them).

Perhaps the reality for most people is that they will never get in despite how hard they try - even despite an IQ of 130 (which apparently is approx top 2.5%?). I think to be so confident to think you will definitely get in, you'd want an IQ much higher than that... - even then, it depends on work ethic and interview skills. Hence I think it is quite a waste of to give the chance of getting in through the undergrad pathway (a pathway which is lost once you start uni - for most unis at least). Gap years can come after you get in if that is what you want.

 

[enoilgam]

The cost of getting such a high ATAR for most people that do so (unless you are a rare genius) is a marked restriction in extra curricular hobbies, socialisation and missing out on many of the potential joys of youth.

Assuming you are quite intelligent (eg IQ of 130) but not extremely so, and are willing to take a slightly longer path, would it not be better to enjoy childhood, work hard when at school but not undertake any external coaching/tuition and instead pursue whatever extra-curricular activities interest you, enjoy life as much as possible and get a good but not stunning atar eg 90 to get onto a suitable pre-med degree then really start worrying hard at uni and gamsats to get into postgrad medicine

Definitely agree with what other posters have said in this thread. Something else to consider though is doing well in high school sets you up for uni. Whilst HS and uni are different, if you go into uni with strong study habits and an understanding of how to get the best out of yourself, you are going to be in a far better position to succeed. Keep in mind, medicine is extremely competitive and once you get to university, you will be up against people who most probably would have worked hard throughout high school. If you have chilled throughout high school and put in no effort, I wouldnt expect to just fly out of the gates at uni and suddenly achieve great marks

Perhaps should also question whether medicine is something you really want to do given lifestyle seems to be an important factor. A career in medicine is prob not the best career to enjoy your youth (essentially donating good proportion of your 20s to the hospital lol).

Definitely agree with this, from reading this thread, I really get the feeling that you dont understand the reality of being a medical practitioner. I think the mistake many students make when choosing a career is that they fall in love with the idea of a profession, not the day to day reality. Medicine is a very demanding profession physically, mentally and emotionally. It takes many years of hard work before you are fully qualified (9-15 years and more depending on your field) and the work during this time involves long hours and usually is not very glamorous or high paying. Even when you fully qualify, the job isn't just about driving to work in a Porsche, seeing a few patients and collecting $2k a day. If you are in private practice, you often are essentially running a business on top of the medical related work, which believe me isnt easy. It's also much harder to take leave at short notice or take time off sick, as rearranging a whole days worth of patients is a nightmare even with a secretary. Furthermore, seeing a patient every 15-20 minutes might sound like a breeze, but trust me, it can be very draining and tiring (in an old role, I spent several whole days meeting employees in 1-1 sessions which lasted about 15 minutes and that was one of the most draining things Ive had to do).

Added to that, you are responsible for people's lives and their health, the two most precious things they own. If you have a bad day, the consequences can be serious and potentially fatal, even in more benign specialties like Dermatology. For a lot of other professionals, a "bad day" might result in their company losing money or maybe a lawsuit.

Given your attitude in this thread, I dont think you really grasp the sacrifice involved in being a Doctor, because if you did, you'd realise that the sacrifices you will make in High School arent that much compared to a career in Medicine.

I think it's fair if you think you will definitely get in, but reality is that most people don't. It is easy to talk to doctors and all those who have succeeded, but for each doctor who has succeeded there are probably 10 out there who have failed and given up or are still trying the GAMSAT (and these people are also intelligent people with a uni degree behind them).

Perhaps the reality for most people is that they will never get in despite how hard they try - even despite an IQ of 130 (which apparently is approx top 2.5%?). I think to be so confident to think you will definitely get in, you'd want an IQ much higher than that... - even then, it depends on work ethic and interview skills. Hence I think it is quite a waste of to give the chance of getting in through the undergrad pathway (a pathway which is lost once you start uni - for most unis at least). Gap years can come after you get in if that is what you want.

As a side note, this is a brilliant post and something which you rarely hear from many people. From my experience pursing medicine, so many people feed you the whole "If you believe and work hard, you can achieve anything". Whilst it's a nice sentiment, I actually think it's quite misleading, condescending and at times, damaging. The reality is, Medicine is extremely competitive and only the best make it - some people simply arent good enough to make it despite their best. I was very fortunate, after my third (failed) attempt, my Dad sat me down and told me that "At your best, you are a 95 student and to do Medicine, you need to be a 99 student, so it's time to do something else". I ended up taking his advice and to be honest, Im so glad I did. Dont get me wrong, Id still love to be a Doctor, but by moving on, I was able to get ahead financially and with my alternate career. At the end of the day, the conversation with my Dad made me self-reflect and I realised that really, I just wasnt even close to the level required.

Ive known a lot of Medicine hopefuls over the years and for every one that makes it, there are a heap that dont. A lot of the ones that dont make it end up spending years pursing it - time which is mostly wasted as they are putting their lives on hold professionally and financially. Worst still, Ive seen the "Believe and you can succeed" mentality lead people down the road towards feelings of despair and inadequacy. By all means, if Medicine is your dream, you should pursue it with everything you have, but you need to know when enough is enough. My advice would be you need to be honest with yourself and you need to be able to know when it is time to move on and pursue other goals.

 

[Beyblader]

think it's fair if you think you will definitely get in, but reality is that most people don't. It is easy to talk to doctors and all those who have succeeded, but for each doctor who has succeeded there are probably 10 out there who have failed and given up or are still trying the GAMSAT (and these people are also intelligent people with a uni degree behind them).

Perhaps the reality for most people is that they will never get in despite how hard they try - even despite an IQ of 130 (which apparently is approx top 2.5%?). I think to be so confident to think you will definitely get in, you'd want an IQ much higher than that... - even then, it depends on work ethic and interview skills. Hence I think it is quite a waste of to give the chance of getting in through the undergrad pathway (a pathway which is lost once you start uni - for most unis at least). Gap years can come after you get in if that is what you want.

I can see your logic and think that theres certainly some truth in it but I also think that the sort of person that has the intelligence/work ethic to make it into undergrad med would find it even easier to get into post-grad med (as the quality of competition is lower after the best have been filtered out by going into undergrad med).

So assuming someone with a 130 IQ could work hard enough and get into undergrad med - that same person is still giving up a lot of the essence of normal youth to accomplish the task. If they are in no rush (and I genuinely think they shouldn't be in a rush but that takes the wisdom of age/experience to appreciate it) then having a 'normal' childhood and going the postgrad med route may be a better route for them in the long run as they will be a more balanced person and have experienced a richer life. I think its easy to underestimate how precious your youth is and how formative those years are.
If that person was good enough to get into undergrad med they will definitely be good enough to get into postgrad med. If they are not good enough to get into undergrad med but try, then they've lost their youth for nothing.

 

[Beyblader]

Whilst HS and uni are different, if you go into uni with strong study habits and an understanding of how to get the best out of yourself, you are going to be in a far better position to succeed. Keep in mind, medicine is extremely competitive and once you get to university, you will be up against people who most probably would have worked hard throughout high school. If you have chilled throughout high school and put in no effort, I wouldnt expect to just fly out of the gates at uni and suddenly achieve great marks

To an extent thats true, but the reality is that many of the kids that had heavy tutoring and high ATARS to get into med don't do particularly well once they get into medicine as they burn out a lot quicker. The intensity at which they studied takes its toll and can't be maintained long-term.
Theres the occasional superstar genius type who gets a top at ATAR and is top at med school but thats very uncommon. If you are self motivated enough to get yourself into postgrad med without the benefits of extensive tutoring that undergrad applicants have then you are a self motivted learner and that is the type of person that ultimately does the best at med school

Definitely agree with this, from reading this thread, I really get the feeling that you dont understand the reality of being a medical practitioner.

I actually have an in depth understanding of being a doctor and know as much about the realities of medicine as anybody can

I think the mistake many students make when choosing a career is that they fall in love with the idea of a profession, not the day to day reality. Medicine is a very demanding profession physically, mentally and emotionally. It takes many years of hard work before you are fully qualified (9-15 years and more depending on your field) and the work during this time involves long hours and usually is not very glamorous or high paying.

its true that med is demanding and on paper takes years of hard work - but its only hard work if you aren't really suited to it. The reality is that its fascinating, intellectually stimulating, exciting and rewarding work so it doesn't feel like work, it feels like an adventure

Even when you fully qualify, the job isn't just about driving to work in a Porsche, seeing a few patients and collecting $2k a day. If you are in private practice, you often are essentially running a business on top of the medical related work, which believe me isnt easy. It's also much harder to take leave at short notice or take time off sick, as rearranging a whole days worth of patients is a nightmare even with a secretary. Furthermore, seeing a patient every 15-20 minutes might sound like a breeze, but trust me, it can be very draining and tiring (in an old role, I spent several whole days meeting employees in 1-1 sessions which lasted about 15 minutes and that was one of the most draining things Ive had to do).

Given your attitude in this thread, I dont think you really grasp the sacrifice involved in being a Doctor, because if you did, you'd realise that the sacrifices you will make in High School arent that much compared to a career in Medicine.

its true private practice business can be hard but a majority of drs in private practice work as associates or for corporates and really don't have to be too concerned with the hassles of running a business if they don't want to. As drs mature and get older and medicine becomes more routine for them then they often turn their attention to academics, research or the business side of private practice and that can give their careers a second wind

if you are suited to medicine then the sacrifices are nowhere near as bad as a lay person might think, the sacrifices are in time, opportunity costs and having to move around for different rotations/fellowships/jobs etc but that is during your 20's/30s when you are not tied down by family so its actually exciting/stimulating not really a sacrifice neccessarily.
Losing your youth to exam comptition and tutoring is a genuine sacrifice which you may never appreciate until you are older.

 

[iStudent]

I actually think someone with 130 IQ who works hard still probably only has <10-20% chance of getting into undergrad medicine. Avg IQ of med hopefuls is higher than the avg population and admission rate is only like 5%.. (of UCAT candidates). Back when there was no UMAT/interview, the flat atar requirement for UNSW medicine was like 99.8+ (or top 0.2% of the average population).

Post-grad is less competitive, but not 'easier'. 3+ anxious years where most fail or give up. The avg USYD med student is 22-23 (or took 4-5 tries before being successful). Also, GAMSAT tests different attributes to the UCAT. Success in one does not mean success in the other (ie dont give up your shot at standard entry so easily, you may be better at UCAT than GAMSAT who knows). While percentiles for an interview through the GAMSAT is lower than the UCAT, it doesn't mean it is easier - the number of GAMSAT candidates is half that of UCAT. So while a UCAT percentile of around top 10% is needed for an interview, you can see why a GAMSAT percentile of around top 20% (i think?) is needed. Probably just as difficult given GAMSAT applicants are probably more determined and hardworking given it requires much more time and money to sit the GAMSAT than UCAT.

Your argument makes sense had you wanted to avoid trying at the HSC for other degrees because transferring into any degree only requires a distinction or so in uni. However, not so much for medicine!

Also there is a life while studying med- absolutely your years as a med student is not just all in the books (perhaps except your first clinical year). I think I spent like 1 day a week studying back in 1st year?. Bumped up to 2 in 2nd year lol. It's really not that bad. Srsly, I think I would have had a rougher time doing a non med undergrad gunning for HD averages compared to doing medicine where you just need a pass (and pass rates are quite high, hovering around 95%...)

Avoid the min 3y (likely 4-5 if you even get in) if you can man. Besides, if you really wanted to do medicine, you would seek to maximise your chances through all avenues - and definitely not squander a rare opportunity at standard entry that holds half of all med school positions.

 

[iStudent]

To an extent thats true, but the reality is that many of the kids that had heavy tutoring and high ATARS to get into med don't do particularly well once they get into medicine as they burn out a lot quicker. The intensity at which they studied takes its toll and can't be maintained long-term.
Theres the occasional superstar genius type who gets a top at ATAR and is top at med school but thats very uncommon. If you are self motivated enough to get yourself into postgrad med without the benefits of extensive tutoring that undergrad applicants have then you are a self motivted learner and that is the type of person that ultimately does the best at med school

Just going to dispel this myth as someone who actually studies medicine - this is not true. Most people get through. The faculty supports students very well and there is lots of support from other students. The people who fail medicine (ie only around 5%) are typically those who never wanted to study medicine in the first place - and in some unis nobody fails because they let students re-sit exams if they fail. Also, grades in med school (at least in NSW) are about as meaningful as what uni you went to (ie meaningless)- everyone receives the same qualification and same internship job at the end of it.

 

[Trebla]

I don’t understand this obsession with “losing your youth” in Year 12. Honestly, Year 12 is not really “youth”. The real enjoyment of “youth” (so to speak) happens in uni - especially once you and your peers turn 18. I’m sure most people will agree with me.

You can still study medicine at uni and have a life (a lot of people do). You have way more free time in uni than in high school. Not to mention there is less incentive to get top marks at uni (as long as your uni marks are “good enough” you’ll get the degree).

However, if you’re trying to go down the post-grad route then you have to work harder and “sacrifice your youth” at uni (where the whole “youth” experience matters most) rather than high school. The stakes are higher and risker - especially if you have no fallback option. Not to mention the additional costs of time and money (uni fees, study material and transport costs etc for doing an extra undergrad degree) into taking the longer study pathway.

From an opportunity cost perspective, you’re far better off holding off “enjoying your youth” until uni. You should give it your best now and at least seeing if you can get into med at all whilst the opportunity is still available (it’s not just about ATAR but also interview performance and UCAT etc). The last thing you want is to regret not working harder at such a crucial high stakes junction of your education/career - especially if you happen to get a lower than expected result.