The Gum Tree for 2006 February

(6) Wed Feb 01 01:23:56 MST School Matched: UT Medical School--San Antonio:

It's Official. My number one choice is my matched school. I will be a doctor after all, caveat emptor!!!

(3) Thu Feb 09 21:42:25 MST Professional Student??:

So, I received a call today from a Dr. Martin Adamo who is the head of the MD/PhD program at San Antonio. He is interested in having me come down and interview. They will fly me down to let me see the program and interview. I looked on the website, and I am warming up to a PhD in Pathology (Neuropathology or Oncopathology perhaps) or Molecular medicine. I had expressed interest in the program when I was there interviewing in October.

The Skinny:

Tuition paid, book stipend

$21,000/year stipend (for 6-7 years)

Fringe benefits (insurance, parking near the school)

Additional money for summer research/teaching assistantships.

I took a medical specialty aptitude test a few weeks ago, by the way, and that test ranked my aptitude as follows

1) Pathology (Funny, Kristen gave me a little Ebola Virus plush doll for my birthday—how cute).

2) Nephrology

3) Hematology

4) Medical Oncology

5) Thoracic Surgery

Then there was Neurology, Neurosurgery, and on and on. Bottom of the list: Ophthalmology, General surgery, Orthopedics, Family practice, Pediatrics.

I guess I am just not the "patient oriented" kind of doctor. And I thought I was pretty empathetic and compassionate.

So, Perhaps this PhD will serve me well in a complex systems problem solving specialty—like pathology.

Louise is warming up to the idea, but is not quite sure if I should go through another 2-3 years of school on top of the 10 years I already have planned. That would make me almost 40 by the time I start to work!!! How's that for mid-life crisis?

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