Would you become a doctor?

If you were capable of doing so, would you/should you become a doctor?
Is it right to think that other courses e.g. History or Law are almost a waste of an academic mind that could be put to use saving people's lives?
(I don't mean for this to be too controversial, just curious)
Thankyou.

What in particular do you like about it?

If you were capable of doing so, would you/should you become a doctor?
Is it right to think that other courses e.g. History or Law are almost a waste of an academic mind that could be put to use saving people's lives?
(I don't mean for this to be too controversial, just curious)
Thankyou.

Yeah, I understand that. That's why I'm beginning to wish I'd gone down the Medicine route.


Posted from TSR Mobile

I believe on an academic level I already fit the standards an aspiring doctor must have...so by answering yes to the question "If you were capable of doing so, would you/should you become a doctor?" I would gain no extra intelligence.

Is biology my favorite subject? Not even close.

Does a job being "prestigious" having any weighting on if I would like to do it? No.

Do I like the idea of being a doctor on a day to day basis? No.

Is the pay of a doctor higher than what I am trying to become? (actuary) No.

Would I feel like I am doing more "good" in the world/doing something of social value if I became a doctor rather than an actuary? Probably.


So nope, besides the feeling of "helping people" there are no other elements of being a doctor which I see as appealing.

I think the fact that you mentioned you want to be an actuary shows you could never be a doctor.

Can't really see what you're saying. Elaborate please?

Well if you want to be an actuary and mentioned their salary then im guessing you're motivated by the money.

See that doesn't make any sense as doctors are paid very well...and if it was money that I was motivated by, I would be trying to become a banker or something surely?

From what I understand actuaries work good, social-able hours while still being paid very well. You use lots of maths which I enjoy and I'd say I'm pretty good at. Working with or around a close knit group of people you see on a day to day basis sounds better to me than being thrown around different areas (early on in a doctor's career) and having to talk to sick annoyed strangers all day if you don't want the stress of working in a hospital (by becoming a GP). I guess some people would call being an actuary boring, I dunno...sounds like a good gig to me.

Paul McCartney's mother wanted him to become a doctor - whilst I'm sure that Macca would have done a lot of good as a doctor, I think the world is infinitely better off because he did what he WANTED to do and formed the Beatles and made all that amazingly wonderful music instead.

You should follow your passion in life...if medicine is your passion then you should absolutely do it, but being a doctor is not the pinnacle of all achievements - if being a great historian or a lawyer is what makes you happy, then that's what you should do.

(I say this as a medical student myself).

'Being academically capable does not make you a good doctor.
There is this myth on TSR that if someone gets good grades they should go to medicine/Oxbridge or else they are wasting their ability.

Unfortunately people also don't realise that medicine isn't all about saving lives as well. There's a lot of paperwork, looking after people with chronic illnesses, bureaucracy etc... and very little "life saving".

Yeah, I understand that. That's why I'm beginning to wish I'd gone down the Medicine route.


Posted from TSR Mobile

In a way, I feel like Medicine is almost the most important field we have. It's a fundamental field - e.g. if were were to dispense with economists or lawyers the world would not crumble, perhaps regress a few decades, but everyone would still be very much alive. The same can't be said for doctors, they're indispensable, we depend on them a lot more than other professions.

In a way, I feel like Medicine is almost the most important field we have. It's a fundamental field - e.g. if were were to dispense with economists or lawyers the world would not crumble, perhaps regress a few decades, but everyone would still be very much alive. The same can't be said for doctors, they're indispensable, we depend on them a lot more than other professions.