- Joined
- Nov 18, 2007
- Messages
- 863
I'll start with echoing everyone else that you should definitely accept the nomination.
As for deciding USAFA vs straight to medical school - a couple additional things to consider that might impact your choice. For context, I am a physicist and never had any interest in medicine BUT, my dad is an anesthesiologist and did a 3+4 program, my older sister is a pediatrician, and my younger sister is finishing up her first year of her doctor of pharmacy degree
1. Debt. Medical school is EXPENSIVE - someone else mentioned this, but don't underestimate it. If you pick a specialty that pays very well, this may not matter, but those come with extensive training requirements (for example, neurosurgery is usually a 6 or 7 year residency). Other specialties don't pay as well (but often have higher quality of life) and you will be paying off loans for a while. My sister finished medical school with something like 300,000 in debt...not great
2. Specialty choice. This may be somewhat more limited if you become a doctor through the Air Force than it would be otherwise
3. Just like USAFA, you want to be absolutely sure about your choice to be a doctor to pursue that career. My sister has known since she was 9 that it was her dream, but she had classmates that bailed because they just weren't as committed as they needed to be, and med school is tough. I say this, because while you can (although it is a little harder - but totally doable) become a doctor after USAFA, if you find yourself not interested in medicine at your alternative choice, at that point you probably can't go to USAFA
As for deciding USAFA vs straight to medical school - a couple additional things to consider that might impact your choice. For context, I am a physicist and never had any interest in medicine BUT, my dad is an anesthesiologist and did a 3+4 program, my older sister is a pediatrician, and my younger sister is finishing up her first year of her doctor of pharmacy degree
1. Debt. Medical school is EXPENSIVE - someone else mentioned this, but don't underestimate it. If you pick a specialty that pays very well, this may not matter, but those come with extensive training requirements (for example, neurosurgery is usually a 6 or 7 year residency). Other specialties don't pay as well (but often have higher quality of life) and you will be paying off loans for a while. My sister finished medical school with something like 300,000 in debt...not great
2. Specialty choice. This may be somewhat more limited if you become a doctor through the Air Force than it would be otherwise
3. Just like USAFA, you want to be absolutely sure about your choice to be a doctor to pursue that career. My sister has known since she was 9 that it was her dream, but she had classmates that bailed because they just weren't as committed as they needed to be, and med school is tough. I say this, because while you can (although it is a little harder - but totally doable) become a doctor after USAFA, if you find yourself not interested in medicine at your alternative choice, at that point you probably can't go to USAFA