Is It Worth it to Study and Work in Medicine?
Choosing a career path is likely going to be one of, if not the biggest decision a person ever makes throughout their lifetime.
It’s going to affect their earning potential, happiness, quality of life, and just about everything else that’s important.
Medicine and healthcare is one of the most well known, sought-after and competitive career paths out there, due to its high compensation and prestige.
However, medicine is also known for the high costs and commitments required to obtain a degree in the field.
For many, these costs simply aren’t worth it.
But it can still be one of the most worthwhile and fulfilling career paths to go down.
In this article, I’ll help you decide on whether or not you really should be planning to study and work in medicine, or whether you’d be better off picking another profession.
Let’s get into it!
Should You Study Medicine?
Well, I’ll start things off by saying that for most people, studying medicine simply isn’t going to be worth it.
What the people say really is true; the costs (not just money) involved with pursuing studies in medical school simply aren’t worth it for most people.
Here’s Why You SHOULDN’T Study Medicine
For starters, you need to think about the following:
- Lengthy education and training process (typically 8–13 years)
- High tuition fees (hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of student debt)
- Intense workload that most people aren’t cut out for
- Mental and physical health concerns due to burnout
The length of the education and training requirements are enough to push most people away from pursuing a career in this profession.
Yes, it means that most people would still be in school or in training by the time they reach their late twenties, or even early thirties if they’re pursuing a medical career!
Then, it is generally advised that you should not get yourself into any significant student debt if possible unless you’re going to a top school program and have a plan to pay it back, as it’s just an extra liability that you don’t need.
However if you can imagine, tuition fees and student loans can add up to significant amounts over the course of 8–13 years of schooling, training and residency in medicine, with students often ending up paying hundreds and thousands of dollars worth of tuition fees.
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Basically, it’s a huge time and money investment to pursue a career in medicine, and it’s not going to be worth it for most people.
That’s not talking about the impacts that these rigorous medical school programs can have on your mental and physical health, either.
Here’s Why You SHOULD Study Medicine
Now, just because these high costs of studying medicine aren’t worth it for most people, doesn’t mean that nobody should be studying medicine.
After all, we do need doctors in this world, right?
Well, here are the good things about studying and working in medicine that make people choose it; regardless of its high costs.
- Your services create a genuine impact on the lives of other people
- Medical care is one of the careers with the most meaningful work
- Good work opportunities if you can graduate
- Good compensation
The main reason that people choose to go into medicine, and to go and pursue a career in this field despite its high costs, are that they are drawn to the prospect of having a job where they can genuinely help people, and make a meaningful difference in the lives of others.
If you think about it, the work that most people do generally isn’t the most rewarding (emotionally) or the most meaningful.
I mean, sure, an investment banker might be able to facilitate big financial decisions and investments, but at the end of the day, some people view it as simply running numbers to help rich people make more money
But, in the case of medicine, helping solve others’ health issues and being able to relieve your patients of their stress can be one of the most emotionally rewarding things a working professional could ever experience.
Many choose to go down the medicine route because they want to be able to have a job that truly makes a difference in society, and to the lives of other people, instead of simply working to earn money and survive.
It’s their values coming into play, and them chasing the things that they believe will give their lives meaning, instead of simply chasing a big paycheck.
That being said, medicine does generally come with very good compensation, and many high performing medical professionals will get the chance to earn salaries in the multiple six figures a year range shortly after finishing their education/training, or even into the seven figure range later on in their careers.
Lastly, job stability and the demand for general medical professionals in the global workforce is also pretty good, especially as we’ve seen with all these strikes and medical professional shortages recently.
So, yes, there definitely is meritocracy to choosing to pursue a career in medicine, and it all just comes down to what you value most, and deciding on whether or not it’s worth it for you.
Deciding On Whether or Not Studying Medicine is Right for You
Well, it all comes down to what you prioritize in life, and the reasons that you’re considering pursuing a career in medicine in the first place.
If you’re considering medicine for anything other than the fact that you are genuinely passionate about it and want to make a difference in the society around you, it’s probably not going to be worth it.
The costs and requirements for a career in medicine are extremely high, and not worth it unless it’s genuinely what YOU want to do with your life.
If you simply want to earn a good salary, there are other professions for that.
If you simply want a prestigious job, there are other professions for that.
Do it for YOU and your passions.
Don’t do it because of societal pressures like earning a good salary.
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Conclusion
Medicine, although an extremely prestigious career path, is not for everyone.
Anybody choosing to go and pursue a career in this field needs to make sure they’re doing it for the right reasons, and not just because they’re falling victim or conforming to societal pressures, or their parents’ wishes.
If you’re going to do it, you need to make sure that it’s because it’s genuinely what YOU want to do.
I hope this article has been helpful, and that you’ve been able to learn something from it!
If you’d like to learn more about excelling as a student and making the most out of your time in college or university; check out the rest of the Medium publication, Grad Excel!
