Thinking about medicine when I've already started law

"No comparison" Someone like 30% of Docs after the foundation years leave for academic or private medicine because they can;t get their desired speciality.

First year undergrad at a top London uni doing law but I've always struggled with choosing between med and law. In fact, I chose bio and chem for a level but I ****ed it up and left everything last minute before my AS exams so dropped out and then took on humanties instead and aced them obtaining A*A*A. I've always been naturally better at essay based subjects but I really need to work hard for sciences. thought that would be the same case when it came to doing law at uni which is one of the prime reasons I chose it. But honestly? This all just seems like a completely different language! I feel like I'm doing maths with words when it comes to contract problems for example. Also, the environment here is so competitive and it's making me wonder if I even want to get a career in law anymore. There's so much emphasis on magic circle firms and honestly I've never been interested in commercial law. I keep wondering if I should have just stuck to my sciences. I know there are some (very few but still) unis that have foundation courses for those without science background but ultimately if I were to drop out of law and apply for med now it'd be entry for 2019 so that would be another 2 years without uni and graduate in 2025 (for a 6 year foundation year) or could I straight up re-do my a levels in sciences in that 2 year gap? idk how that works considering I already have a level grades ? vs continuing law for 3 years then do an LPC for a year and start my training contract 2021/22.
I'm just so confused and lost and I feel like I went into law without thinking about it realistically and so I don't want to make that mistake again by just continuing with it before it's too late and I've wasted all that money. It's been a month into the degree so I think it's now or never that I really start considering if it's for me.
Do you think it's realistic switching to medicine and am I throwing away a great opportunity with law considering my current a level grades, the uni I'm at and the fact they gave me a law scholarship?

Umm, that 30% thing was directly from the NHS, 1/3 of Doctors trained in the UK leave the NHS after foundation training.

A few posters here have assumed that the OP is only considering medicine and law because of perceived status. I don't get this from the OP at all, particularly as one of the reasons they are turned off law is because their cohort only appear to be interested in selling their souls to corporate law firms.

The reality is that medicine and law are similar in many respects - they are both professions, vocational courses with clear end points, secure (albeit less so for lawyers) careers, have reasonable salaries, require life long learning and application of expertise to solve patients'/clients' problems, provide opportunities to support/advocate for the vulnerable, etc.

I don't have much faith in work experience as providing any kind of true insight into work as a doctor. The OP's lack of work experience (so far) is hardly a reason for him/her not to develop a medical school application. People who are 18/19 now have enough time to change direction lots of times before they settle on a final career.

DOI: Another LLB MBChB.

I was in a similar situation to you a few years ago. I am now currently in my 4th year of a Levels (2 separate 2 year courses) with predicted A*A*A* (and achieved A*AB) and I have just sent my application off.
I agree with the majority of the posts, Medicine is very competitive! A lot of medical schools won’t consider resits if you fail the first time, also a lot may not consider you if you drop out of another degree as it shows no commitment. You also need a really strong UKCAT which is extremely hard and a lot of experience.
You should get some experience before dropping out. I’d also look to study a foundation course rather than re-do your a Levels as most unis will not accept this and if you said you struggled with bio and chem the first time there’s really no point. But again these schemes are even more competitive with only a handful of courses and around 20 ish places on each course.
Medicine is an extremely hard career but extremely interesting and rewarding, I loved my experience and I knew that it was 100% what I wanted to do.
Honestly you have an uphill climb I would only drop out if you feel you NEED to do medicine rather than want.
I would continue your degree aim to get a 1st and then look at post grad courses

you said you're in 4th year of a levels, does that mean you didn't actually start a degree, but have just chosen to do different a levels?

They usually lead to very different routes though and the main connection is the prestige factor. The OP dropped science A-levels because they weren't easy enough and now they want to drop Law for the same reason. I doubt that they'll be able to coast through Medicine! Rather than rushing in, the OP should think about things carefully. Dropping things because you find them hard can become a very dangerous habit.

Yes, basically I finished 2 years of a Levels at one college and then went straight to a different college to do different a Levels

i see. what unis have you applied to this year then? good luck with the application!

I’ve applied to HYMS, Sheffield, Newcastle and Leicester, thank you! Are you an applicant?

nope,if I were I wouldn't have made this thread :P

You clearly didn't read my post. I didn't drop my science A levels because they were hard. I said I left everything to the last minute and it was not possible to learn a whole year's content in a month! The reason for that was because I was suffering from depression the whole year and had no motivation to study at all. I don't want to drop law because it's hard, there's a lot of content but completely doable if I were to put all the work in. My problem is whether I should put all the work in considering my heart isn't completely in it and my future is so uncertain. In terms of career I did not expect the focus to be on commercial law either, an area which I have absolutely no interest in going in to but then if I don't will I find a firm rich enough to help fund my LPC?

I was in a similar situation to you a few years ago. I am now currently in my 4th year of a Levels (2 separate 2 year courses) with predicted A*A*A* (and achieved A*AB) and I have just sent my application off.
I agree with the majority of the posts, Medicine is very competitive! A lot of medical schools won’t consider resits if you fail the first time, also a lot may not consider you if you drop out of another degree as it shows no commitment. You also need a really strong UKCAT which is extremely hard and a lot of experience.
You should get some experience before dropping out. I’d also look to study a foundation course rather than re-do your a Levels as most unis will not accept this and if you said you struggled with bio and chem the first time there’s really no point. But again these schemes are even more competitive with only a handful of courses and around 20 ish places on each course.
Medicine is an extremely hard career but extremely interesting and rewarding, I loved my experience and I knew that it was 100% what I wanted to do.
Honestly you have an uphill climb I would only drop out if you feel you NEED to do medicine rather than want.
I would continue your degree aim to get a 1st and then look at post grad courses

Oh aha, I didn’t realise you were the initial poster!
What are you thinking now?

You clearly didn't read my post. I didn't drop my science A levels because they were hard. I said I left everything to the last minute and it was not possible to learn a whole year's content in a month! The reason for that was because I was suffering from depression the whole year and had no motivation to study at all. I don't want to drop law because it's hard, there's a lot of content but completely doable if I were to put all the work in. My problem is whether I should put all the work in considering my heart isn't completely in it and my future is so uncertain. In terms of career I did not expect the focus to be on commercial law either, an area which I have absolutely no interest in going in to but then if I don't will I find a firm rich enough to help fund my LPC?

So what area of law do you think you might be attracted to? Just because others on your course are attracted to selling their souls for money, doesn't mean you have to be the same. Once you get on to the optional courses, you can design your own degree according to your interests.

So what I'm thinking rn is I want to figure out if med is really for me but also not drop out and take that risk. I'm going to do some work experience and if I really do think it's for me, that's when it comes down to the big decision: re-do a levels or apply for a non science background course such as the one keele offer. It just comes down to what route is more realistic for my situation.