Why do so many Asians take the Medicine/Dentistry route?

Asians make practical decisons. they just dont think, oh i really like art and im good at painting so thats what im gonna do. They take into account what they are going to earn, is it a safe job as in there isnt a fear that you mite be made unemployed any time. Will u be able to support a family and live life decently. And also is a cultural thing and parents keep that in mind.

(In b4 politically correct and brainwashed morons fishing for rep say something along the lines of: "Yeah but you're generalising, blah blah blah."
Or an Asian who isn't doing Medicine/Dentistry tries to discredit my argument with:
"I am an Asian and I'm doing Sociology, therefore, despite being a rare exception to an obvious trend, your argument is stupid"

There are a lot of exceptions you know- more than you would think. Two of my aunties were born in Pakistani villages and now have masters in English Literature and Psychology respectively...

In Indian/Pakistani/Bangladeshi society having a doctor and/or an engineer in the family means a lot...

, their third and fourth generations are moving fast in the new fields of science, technology, arts and social sciences with higher number of youth taking admissions in different universities.

Parents in most cases have already decided that their kids are gonna do medicine/ engineering and most of them are forced into it without having any passion or desire.

Parents in most cases have already decided that their kids are gonna do medicine/ engineering and most of them are forced into it without having any passion or desire.

And by Asians I'm mostly referring to Indians/Pakistanis, then maybe throw in a couple of Chinese/Korean.

Lets not beat around the bush here, a lot of Asians take the Medicine/Dentistry route. I'm not saying that most people who apply for these courses are Asian but you have to admit, most Asians will apply for those courses or go down the Biochem/Biomed route with the hope of getting into Medicine - but why?

It is prestige? Do people in the community look up to you because you're studying Medicine and Dentistry? Or is it just money? This is a genuine question because every single Indian/Pakistani person from my college is either studying Medicine/Dentisry/Biomed, aspiring to study either of those or doing something in Business/Accounting (which is still typical). I think it's disgraceful to be honest.

Here you have Kid A, who takes genuine pride in serving their community. Ever since they could walk, Kid A was deeply intrigued by the inner workings of the body. They see the human anatomy as a grand vessel for knowledge and the idea of working with people firsthand, giving them advice, curing them and even performing surgery on them appeals to them very much so they do everything to achieve their goal.

However, now you have Kid B. Kid B is doing their GCSEs/A levels and doesn't know what to study in university so their parents tell them to do Medicine/Dentistry because it's the bee's knees. Now the thing is, Kid B doesn't actually care about the implications of taking on such a challenge. Kid B is of above average intelligence and despite having absolutely zero passion for Medicine or Dentisry, Kid B decides to do it anyway just for prestige, even if it means spending countless hours pretending to enjoy work experience in some smelly retirement home or skimming through science journals, only to memorise and recite a few key phrases in a Medicine interview in order to brownose the interviewers. The disturbing thing here is that Kid B doesn't care about serving his or her community. They just want the title of 'Doctor'.

In case anyone didn't understand my euphemisms, Kid A is someone who has a genuine passion for Medicine and Kid B is a typical Asian.

(In b4 politically correct and brainwashed morons fishing for rep say something along the lines of: "Yeah but you're generalising, blah blah blah."
Or an Asian who isn't doing Medicine/Dentistry tries to discredit my argument with:
"I am an Asian and I'm doing Sociology, therefore, despite being a rare exception to an obvious trend, your argument is stupid"

are you kidding me? why would it be disgraceful...?



does that necessarily make this person the one who deserves to get into medical school and become a doctor? I mean, real life isn't really about who's the most passionate, or who's the one who researches about anatomy for hours on end? Does the fact that he liked the human body at 5 make him a better candidate? Real life doesn't care about who puts in the most effort. It's about who's the best. And they have criteria, and the admissions pick who they like. It's not an ideal system, but what can be done about that?



look, yes many Asians want to be in these sorts of professions. But is that such a bad thing?

I mean, doctors are well respected in these cultures, in asian cultures, the work ethic is very powerful and asians are brought up with ambitious attitudes. Is that such a bad thing? I mean, you're right, there are many asians who just want to be doctors for example because of their parents. But then there are also those who are encouraged by their parents and do actually make great doctors. Is that such a bad thing?

just chill ok?

Tiz a prestige thing Though not everyone would say dentistry is prestigious

Well the OP doesnt like this sort thing happening in UK. But trust me its even worse in India. Parents in most cases have already decided that their kids are gonna do medicine/ engineering and most of them are forced into it without having any passion or desire.

But those people who are 'forced' don't ultimately become leaders in their fields of specialization. There's only so much your parents can do. They cannot take the exams for you. They cannot get the certifications for you. They cannot build and maintain your network for you, etc.