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The road to becoming a physician starts with a college education. With very few exceptions, acceptance into medical school requires a four-year bachelor’s degree. Any degree will do (yes, any degree – you could major in basket weaving if you wanted to) but most medical schools in the US require you to take the following courses as part of your degree or otherwise:
Another requirement that all medical schools in the US have is the MCAT (Medical College Admissions Test). Everyone who wants to go to medical school is required to take this exam and although it may be taken at any time before being admitted to medical school, it is to the applicant’s advantage that it be taken in a timely manner after the college pre-requisite courses have been completed and before applying to medical school. I discuss the MCAT in more detail in later sections but briefly the test includes the following sections:
Volunteer work and clinical experience are also requirements for almost all schools. Although most schools do not necessarily publish this as something that is required for acceptance, it is generally acknowledged that someone applying without any clinical or volunteer work has little chance at getting into medical school, regardless of how stellar his or her scores are. Once accepted into medical school, an aspiring physician must pass through four more years of schooling in order to obtain a doctor of medicine (MD) or doctor of osteopathic medicine (DO) degree. Unfortunately, an MD or DO degree alone entitles a person to very little in terms of clinical practice. After graduating from medical school, most doctors go on to complete residency training lasting anywhere from 3-7 years depending on the chosen specialty. As you can see, becoming a doctor takes a lot of time and effort. From start to finish the process can take well over a decade. For those who are truly passionate about medicine, however, these sacrifices are well worth the rewards.
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