The Long Path to Becoming a Physician - Time Out #327

So, you or someone you know wants to become a medical doctor?

The path is an incredibly long one. Also, healthcare has drastically changed in the past 20 or so years. Even with all these significant changes in the human-healing arts, people still want to attend medical school. Last year at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, they had a record number of applicants; almost 3,000 for 165 available class slots. How well do I know about Our State's oldest (1900) medical school? Because I was graduated from OU long ago ( I started before OSU's Osteopathic Medical School (1972) was established). And, I have so much respect for OU Medicine, I have been an active member of the interviewing admissions committee for a quarter century. Each year I interview several applicants for the next entering class. The personal interview is the last obstacle an applicant has to successfully accomplish before he/she is accepted into the prestigious first-year class.

During my 43 years of solo private medical practice, I have counseled/mentored many prospective individuals with various interests in healthcare. Some have asked me for educational guidance while they are still in high school. Most, however, are in various stages of their college education.

How does it all unfold to become a physician, dear readers in Our Town and far beyond?

I do not have that answer for all medical schools, but feel the way OU Medical School does it is probably the same as most medical schools in the U.S.A.

First, an applicant does not have to have an undergraduate college degree. The fact is, however, almost all successful applicants do have at least a bachelor's degree. Some have master's degrees, and a few have non-medical doctorate degrees. What is required are certain college-level courses, about 40 credit hours. Required college classes are general chemistry, general physics, math, various science, and some social science courses, too. Once these so-called required prerequisites are taken and completed with at least a "C" grade or higher obtained, medical schools do not care what other coursework you complete. Simply, your ultimate college major and minor may be in any area. It is true, most applicants get science-type undergraduate degrees, but many other successful applicants have degrees in engineering and non-science majors.

The next significant requirement is taking the most-difficult, standardized, Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), offered many times each year at various testing sites over the USA. It is truly one of the most challenging examinations anyone may take, and not only is it difficult, in order to get a medical school interview, one needs to score in the highest percentiles. Many prospective medical school students take the test several times to try to improve their scores, and many pay several thousand dollars for preparatory courses, such as the Princeton or Kaplan, in an attempt to make an excellent score.

Coupling the MCAT score with the student's undergraduate science classes grade-point-average (gpa), OU comes up with an overall numerical ranking for all its applicants. From this top-to-bottom ranking, approximately 325 personal interviews are conducted each year, usually from late October until early February. This is the final step in the process of getting offered a spot in the following August first-year classes at the Oklahoma City or Tulsa campus sites.

During the 4 years of medical school, not only do the students have to successfully complete the difficult coursework, but they also have to pass 2 national proficiency examinations. These are given during their 4-year path. Following being graduated from medical school, the "new" doctors enter their post-graduate (residency) specialty training. These range from 2-8 years depending on which specialty they choose. Each medical specialty requires their graduates to take a comprehensive examination in order to become board-certified in that particular specialty. And, in the "real" world, in order to maintain their specialty board-certification, they have to continue taking re-certifying examinations every few years.

So, this is the long and arduous educational path to becoming a doctor. This journey definitely is not for the faint of heart. You certainly have to have lots of passion to finish the years and extensive requirements.

It has been a wonderful lifetime experience for me. My passion continues.