M*A*S*H, E.R., Greys Anatomy, Scrubs Private Practice, All Saints, Heart of Dixie, Royal Pains and House, MD are all some of the most popular television shows that showed the fictional lives of a wide range of doctors. They are the types of shows that previously inspired, currently inspire and will continue to inspire little children, teenagers and even adults to become doctors or surgeons. Have they inspired you?
If the answer is yes, just like studying Law in college, there are steps that students need to take. Study medicine or surgery in Australia can be done through an undergraduate degree that lasts a few years. In the USA, students are always required to complete a bachelor’s degree with the completed prerequisite subjects required to study medicine. These subjects are almost always in the scientific field and include; biology, chemistry, organic chemistry, neuroscience and physics.
After completing these subjects students who choose to continue on need to register to sit the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). After taking the test students there are three options available to students to help applying to med school. They are; The American Medical College Application Service (AMCAS), which is required by most medical schools, American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medication (ACCOMAS) or through the schools, own application system.
The application process involves a review of the students academic records including completion of the prerequisite subjects, their MCAT scores, their extra curricular activities including sports, internships, volunteering and clubs they are involved in, work experience and a personal statement.
The top ten medical schools in the US are Harvard University, Stanford University, Johns Hopkins University (Tied 3), University of California-San Francisco (Tied 3), University of Pennsylvania, Washington University-St. Louis, Yale University, Columbia University (Tied 8), Duke University (Tied 8), University of Chicago (Tied 10), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor (Tied 10) and University of California-Los Angeles (Tied 10).