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Visits to HPA
Hey HPA - I’m a freshman who attended the Orientation talk you guys gave last weekend. It was unclear to me how often I should come into your office for advising. I’m taking CHM this semester but I’m not sure yet whether I’m going to stay pre-med. Should I set up a regular appointment or something?
Answer: Our main role as pre-health advisers is to make ourselves as available to you as possible when you need us. Most pre-meds find it useful to check in with us once per semester. You can update us on how you’re doing (and on your thinking about medicine as a future career path), and we’re able to alert you to upcoming events, opportunities, and deadlines that you may not be aware of. Bare minimum: visit us once a year. We do see advisees more frequently than once or twice a year, certainly, when they are experiencing academic difficulty or when they have something fun to share with us—like a med school acceptance!—and we always welcome that. Even if you decide to step back from the pre-med curriculum at Princeton and do postbac work to complete your requirements, we’d still like you to make yourself known to us as an aspiring physician or veterinarian or dentist. And we are always happy to talk to you about clinical and service experience. Don’t be a stranger! Our best wishes to everyone for a successful fall semester!
Paying for Medical School
Q: Dear HPA: I keep hearing about how expensive med school is. I know of at least one pre-med who has decided to do something other than medicine since he doesn’t feel like he can afford med school. I’m on financial aid here. Do med schools have financial aid? Is the cost really that bad? I hope to work part-time while in school to help pay for it.
A: Most medical students graduate with over $100,000 of debt. So yes, it is pretty “bad”—that amount of debt can be scary. You need to know as much as possible about the financial commitment you’re making and the options available to you. The first thing you should do is go to http://www.princeton.edu/hpa/applying_financing.html and click on “Financing Medical School.” Read this handout in full. We’ve included info about online resources, service repayment programs (like the Nat’l Health Service Corps), and other sources of funding. The link to the info provided by the AAMC is also helpful. Generally speaking, medical students take out loans to pay for medical school—not grants or scholarships. These loans are most often federal loans, and their interest rate is relatively low. As an aspiring physician, you are considered a “good risk” by the government, someone who will be able to repay loans and still live comfortably as long as careful budgeting is in place. Also, make sure that you seek out the Financial Aid personnel at the medical school you attend. Cultivate a true advising relationship with these people, if possible, as the financial climate in this country is ever-changing and by the time you’re a first-year med student there may be new financial options—and those options may change over the course of your four years in med school. It is not too soon, during your med school interviews, to ask about the Financial Aid office, learn who these people are, and get a feel for what type of interaction they have with current students.
Pre-dental Students
Hello, I am interested in becoming a dentist after college, not a doctor. What does your office do for pre-dental students?
Answer: Good to hear from you. If you are pre-dental, make sure you email Jennifer at HPA@princeton.edu and let her know, since the first thing we do for pre-dental students is maintain a separate email list in order to keep you notified of any academic or application-related information pertaining specifically to you. Most commonly, we answer pre-dents' coursework questions and help you complete the requirements for dental school. When the time comes to apply to dental school, we do the pre-application interview, help you compile a list of schools, and write the letter of evaluation for you that goes with your letters of recommendation to dental schools via the online application service called AADSAS. In the meantime, please come by drop-in hours so we can check on your progress through the pre-dental curriculum; also, while you're here, make sure you read through the "ADEA Official Guide to Dental Schools" and verify that you're completing the requirements for any dental school you aspire to attend.
Extracurricular Activities
I am a freshman, and am seeking some advice concerning my
extracurricular activities. I am very serious about the violin
and have won some orchestral competitions, and take regular
private lessons with members of the Philadelphia Orchestra in
Philly. I auditioned, and was accepted to the Princeton
University Orchestra. The problem is, the rehearsals often
conflict with other activities in which I am interested. It
was mentioned in the freshman orientation meeting that being
committed to specific activities is very important. I would
like to know how important it is to have orchestra on my
resume were I to apply to med school. Would being a member of
the school orchestra have a huge impact on my application?
Would the schools still view my playing the violin in the same
light if I were not pursuing orchestra here at Princeton?
Thank you
Answer: You should do what you LIKE to do. You seem to have
a wonderful talent. The orchestra here is outstanding. You
may not have time to be engaged with music in this fashion
again, so if you want to play the violin at Princeton, by all means do so. As you go through Princeton,
you will find nooks and crannies of time to pursue other
activities if you desire. You can take care of health-related
experiences in the summer. Health professions schools admire
passion and commitment. Follow your heart on this one.
Summer Suggestions
Q: I’m a freshman pre-med student and I’m wondering what I should do this summer. I’ve already done hospital volunteering in High School. Should I work in a lab?
A: There’s no one way to answer the question of what you “should” do this summer. Instead, we might ask you to think about what would you enjoy doing? What would give you a new and different kind of experience from what you have done in the past? What would help you develop interpersonal skills and an ethic of service? What would allow you to recharge your batteries? While your high school volunteer experience may have been helpful in your decision to pursue the pre-health path, it will be important to continue to develop clinical exposure (either as a volunteer, or by shadowing physicians) in order to enhance your own understanding of what it means to practice medicine, and in order to convey to a medical school that you have deepened your engagement throughout your college years. You may choose to gain more clinical exposure in the summer, but you may prefer to do this during the academic year, and do something entirely different during the summer. Doing benchwork in a lab prior to medical school is certainly not essential (unless you are pursuing an MD/PhD). If you are passionate about lab work and want to pursue it, that’s fine. But don’t spend your summer in lab because you think you “should.” No matter what you want to do this summer, start thinking about it now if you haven’t already. Be sure to check our website http://www.princeton.edu/hpa/opportunities_summer.html for ideas about summer experiences. And, if you do something great that’s not on our list yet, by all means let us know!
National Health Service Corps
Q: I’m interested in becoming a physician who practices in an underserved area. I think I've heard that I can get assistance with medical school financing if I am headed in this direction. How would this work?
A: You’re probably talking about the National Health Service Corps (NHSC). The NHSC was established in 1972, in order to provide primary health care programs to underserved populations, in what they call "health professional shortage areas" (HPSA) as designated by the Department of Health and Human Services. They have a loan repayment program for med school. According to the NHSC website, http://nhsc.bhpr.hrsa.gov/:
The NHSC LRP recruits fully trained health professionals who agree to provide primary health services in NHSC community sites. In return, the NHSC LRP assists clinicians in their repayment of qualifying educational loans that are still owed. The NHSC is seeking clinicians who demonstrate the characteristics for and interest in serving the Nation’s medically underserved populations and remaining in HPSAs beyond their service commitment. It is important to remember that service to medically underserved populations is the primary purpose of the NHSC LRP and not the repayment of educational loans.
For medical and dental students oriented toward this type of service, there are also scholarships, residency opportunities, and "ambassadorships" available in conjunction with the NHSC. We encourage you to explore these opportunities in more detail at http://nhsc.bhpr.hrsa.gov/join_us/students.asp. Of course, making a commitment to the corps should only be done after a great deal of research, consideration, and soul-searching. There are significant penalties for joining and breaking contracts. On the other hand, if you do eventually join the NHSC, we'll be interested to hear about your experiences and to have you come back to campus to talk to other potential Corps members!
Types of Research
Hi. I just had a question. I’ve heard that med schools are looking for people who have done some research in a “lab.” What makes a “lab”? Does it have to be molecular studies with a lab coat and a plate of cells? Can it be a psychology lab, or somewhere else?
Answer: Any research experience, of any type, will be of interest to medical schools. They are interested in your analytical ability, your ability to synthesize information, your ability to produce results and explain them. Intellectual curiosity is also demonstrated by pursuing research. Princeton students tend to fare well in this area because of your JP work and senior theses. We have sent humanities and social science (including psychology) concentrators to the top medical schools in the country with no more research on their applications than what they’ve done in a library or psych lab. Psych research definitely “counts,” don’t worry. However, that said, it is important to note that the medical schools at more research-oriented institutions may ask you some day why you haven’t done any “bench” work—hard science research in a lab with a lab coat—and if you were curious about this type of work but never pursued it, then you may find yourself stumbling in your answer. They do not mean only molecular studies, but also chemical, physical, or biochemical. If you’ve never been curious about this type of research and have no interest in pursuing medical research in the future, be prepared with an answer as to why, and how you know this. In essence, it comes down to whatever career goals you may have and how thoroughly you know yourself. Lastly, we should point out the obvious: if you're interested in the MD/PhD (or MSTP's) then in-depth research in a biology, chemistry, or physics lab is required. Excellent question!
Graduating Early
Hi HPA,
I'm having a somewhat difficult time deciding whether I'd like to graduate in 4 years, or in 3 years with Advanced Standing. I believe I have enough AP credits to make me eligible to finish in 3 years, but I'm not sure if I know all the pros and cons of the two paths. The main reason I'd like to graduate early is time-related, and another is tuition-related. The way I see it is that if I decide to apply to medical school and then become a resident, and maybe a fellow, I will be spending a lot of time "not working." So, the earlier I can finish my schooling, the better. And, it would also be nice to save my parents one year's worth of tuition. But the other half of me wants to stay here at Princeton so I can enjoy my senior thesis, finishing with my original class, and taking in the social scene. Also, I'm afraid I might miss out on something if I'm rushing through college, and then my application won't be as strong for medical school.
Answer: We haven't had any medical school applicants in the past two years applying to go to medical school early, meaning they were graduating in 3 years and headed straight on for more schooling. This is indeed rare with Princeton pre-meds and with the same population at most top colleges in the country. A main disadvantage is the lack of maturity you may exhibit, frankly, when presenting yourself as an applicant (compared to peers). Nearly 2/3 of Princeton applicants take 4 years to graduate and then take a year off before medical school, so you would be interviewing at age 20 or 21 alongside 22- and 23-year-olds. Also, medical schools might question why you didn't take full advantage of the cultural, intellectual, and yes, social offerings at Princeton; you may not encounter such offerings again in your lifetime. And we're not sure what to make of your comment that being a resident and fellow isn't "working" (!). If the financial situation is extremely serious then medical schools would surely understand your decision to limit your college to 3 years, but generally speaking, we do not recommend graduating early unless it is for these purely financial reasons (and dire ones at that). In the end, of course, the decision is yours.
Katrina
I know that Princeton has some Tulane [undergrad] students
here this fall and I know a lot about what happened in New
Orleans from watching the news. Does your office have any
information about the medical schools down there?
Answer: Some form of the above question has come from all
sides lately - from entering freshmen as well as current
medical school applicants (seniors and alumni), and everyone
in between. The two medical schools in New Orleans,
Tulane and LSU, are in the process of relocating, at least for
the fall. There is very little information about the state of
their facilities in New Orleans since officials from those
schools have yet to return to the sites, but there has been an
enormous, impressive effort to move medical students and
residents, find clinical and lab space, etc.
Visit these
sites for more information, if you're curious:
AAMC general Katrina website:
http://www.aamc.org/katrina/start.htm
Tulane's website:
http://www.som.tulane.bcm.edu/content.cfm?menu_id=119
LSU's website:
http://www.lsuhsc.edu/no/events/emergencynotices/default.htm |
Miscellaneous