Medical School at 42 - Fayetteville,NC

Yes. My friend is 45 and just started her medical degree. I don't think there's a too old. The person is going to be 47 anyway. They can be 47 with a doctor's degree, or 47 without a doctor's degree.

Not med school but I know a couple people that have done major career changes in their 40s and are so much happier.

(If this person does do it, please have them join this site to answer medical questions that people insist on asking! Lol)

There really is an age where you are too old. I went back to school in my 50's, and it was verging on too old. I don't have tens of thousands of dollars in student loans, so for me it will ultimately be worth it.

Your friend really does need to consider the cost vs. how long s/he can reasonably work. I've heard getting a medical degree these days costs something like $200 grand? Someone can consider an amount like that when they have 3+ decades left to work, but probably not if they will only be able to put in 15 years or so.

My husband, age 43, is finishing his second year and starting rotations this year. He has wanted to be a doctor for quite a while. Hi is going to a DO school. They are interested in and respect non-traditional students. It's a LOT of hard work and sacrifice. If he is married, his spouse has to be supportive because it's like becoming single again. They both have to be in it together. In Texas, the in-state schools are significantly cheaper for residents. Check that out first as it makes a huge difference in the loan amount.

There was a person in my veterinary class who started when he was 40. Did 20 years military service and then started. He dropped out after our first year - was very not used to school. However there were at least a few in their 30s who did fine. I don't think it has anything to do with how much money one will make. It has way more to do with what one will find rewarding as a career. While being a nurse is a fine profession it is in no way the same as being a physician. If one yearns to be a nurse - sure, go for it. If one wants to be a doctor, being a nurse will only be frustrating. Plenty of nurses later go on to medical school. So if you start med school at 40, finish at 44, finish internship/residency at 48, you could very reasonably have a 20-25 year long career doing what you love. Doesn't seem unreasonable to me.

You can become a cardiologist with a DO (Doctor of Osteopathy) degree. Cardiologists do an internal medicine residency (3 years) followed by a cardiology fellowship (2-3 years). Cardiologist salaries apparently average $461,000 (much higher than most specialties like family practice), so paying off loans should be very feasible.

Does this person already hold a BS degree in some kind of life science (anatomy, physiology, neurology, biology, etc.) from a prestigious university? I don't think age is an issue so much as competing with all the brilliant kids coming out of college with these bright, shiny, CURRENT degrees. Medical school is very competitive. So getting in is the biggest hurdle, then paying for it, then of course doing the work...

I have only done the cost benefit analysis for masters in accounting vs juris doctorate. The JD lost by a mile. You lose three years earning potential right out of the gate. Then in the case of the JD you have to establish yourself so we are talking 20 years out before you break even.

An MD would actually be worse.

In my case that I did a cost benefit and a break even, kind of drove the point home accounting was for me.

In the case of the medical field, by the way I work for doctors, your friend is better off getting an advanced nursing degree and then working toward becomming a certified nurse practitioner while she works as a nurse. In the end your friend would be nearly a doctor without destroying their finances.

Oh, by the way, the children of our doctors, brilliant, have been raised to be doctors, still sweat entrance into med school. If you took a break I doubt your friend has a chance getting in

They'd have to figure how much it's going to cost and how long it would take to pay off the student loans.
Going into retirement and still paying off loans or having to work till I dropped dead would make me think twice about doing something like this.

I am not opposed to anyone following their dreams .. but I have also become more pragmatic over the years.. I like the idea below where someone suggested a nurse practitioner.. less money but still in the medical field and in my opinion, often better than the docs.... that said.. passion for a career is one thing.. but some things are not always worth the debt..
example. I am 51.. been going to the local city college.. have been tossing around the idea of applying at the university level.. (which is VERY expensive) .. at 51, it's not smart for me to take out loans and spend all my savings on tuition and while I am not wealthy, I am not eligible for grants or financial assistance.. so.......... while I now think I am a better student and think that I would have been a great doctor (I too love that field) .. well... to me, it' s just not worth the debt.. I also love plants and gardening.. and my school and others have horticultural programs, again an investment.. so what I might do instead is do a master gardner program.. it's not nearly as expensive but you still get extensive experience...
again, I think dreams are great, but do weigh the realistic monetary aspect of it all.. present and future...... if your friend has the money.. then hey.. go for it..heck why not.. but IF money is a concern.. one needs to really think that through.. again, the nurse practitioner might be a good idea too.. or even something within the medical field..
good luck to your friend

I would consider nurse practitioner programs. Less money, less time but great jobs.

yes. My BIL started med school I believe at age 40. It was the best thing he ever did. He is now 50+. He won't be retiring any time soon, but I know he does not regret it. He could not get into an M.D. program and took a D.O. program instead, but it has still worked out great. Matching to cardiology at that age may be hard. But I don't really know how competitive cardiology is. Its probably somewhere the middle. All I know is that if you are starting late or accepting a D.O. training you are more than likely going to match to family practice or internal medicine.

Does this person have money to pay for medical school? My friend's daughter graduated from med school two years ago and her student loans total more than $200,000. She is in her second year of residency and is making a little more than $50,000 a year. It will be a long time before her loans are paid off and she is making more money in order to live comfortably. I think she is estimating it will be better 10 years from now.

Medicine is changing, and like others have said here, it might be wise to consider a physician's assistant program, or advanced practice nursing. Corporations are moving away from hiring expensive medical doctors if they can hire someone else to do the job.

Don't push someone into doing something like this. It has to be their vision, their idea and goal. I have a friend who went to veterinary school in her 40s. She is now in her late 50s and loves what she does. People actually tried to talk her out of it rather than into it. But it was her dream and nothing was going to stop her. You really have to have intense drive to go to medical school.

well, it's certainly possible, especially with the pre-reqs in place. but there's a reason so few do it. it'll be much harder for a mature brain to absorb the insane amounts of information and have the energy to keep up with the brutal schedule.
makes me tired just thinking about it.
khairete
S.

Oh see ... if I had the means and could do it, I would. I think it's never too late to follow your dreams. I think having had obstacles in life (I became ill a number of years ago) I know you get one shot at things, and if it makes you happy - do it.

I do have a neighbor who became a nurse practitioner recently (after having kids) and a friend who went back and became a nurse in the NICU.

Both of them are super happy they did it (around same age you mention).

What was hard ... doing it with kids. Being a parent and doing the schooling. The nights, the assignments ... but they didn't regret it.

My GP went back to specialize so although she was already in the medical field she wanted more of a niche for herself. I know she found doing the rounds etc. challenging being so much older than the rest, but she had years of experience they didn't. She was glad she went back to school and left her practice.

Hope that helps :)

I know an engineer that went to law school and became a lawyer in his 50's.

I looked into this in my 40's and all of my research on going to med school was very discouraging. What clinched this decision for me was that med students have very little time for their families. It was the same thing for becoming a physician's assistant. My son is on the med school track now, and he says he's married to that in his "relationship status"! It's more difficult than anything he's ever done, and he has always made almost all A's all his life.

Many of the prerequisite courses would have to be re-taken before even applying. That's a lot of work and money with no guarantees of being accepted.

Another option to consider is suggesting that your friend explore being trained for a different medical role, such as those who handle medical testing.

To become a cardiologist will take what might as well be forever. 4 years of med school and then years of residency and internships. I'd ask myself if it's financially reasonable to do this. If she is single, then sure, why not. But unless money is not a factor, it would be a pretty rough financial road.

As someone who has a hand in hiring professionals (lawyers, not doctors), I actually prefer hiring people who did not go straight from undergrad to law school. The intervening work experience and maturity has significant value in the workplace. You can hire someone with more experience with working in general- being professional, working with others, dealing with clients/customers, etc.-for the same cost as a new professional who is also new to having the responsibility of a full time job.
Over half of my law school class was over 25, the oldest was over 60. Though Julie got it right on the cost/benefit, I am swimming in law school debt!

I have a friend that started med school at 31 and is a brilliant doctor. Still 31 and 42 are different. Why not apply and see what happens?

I think they should go for it. They know what they're getting in to right? The hours and time commitment?

They can always decide to do something different within the school if they find it's really more than they want to do. A friend of mine wanted to go through medical school too, she ended up finding a love for burn victims and helping them with prosthesis items and making their scar areas not be so noticeable. So even though she had wanted to be a doctor her whole life...medical school helped her find a career and a love for a forgotten group of people.

I worked at a medical school once and they had the interviews with potential students. One time there was a female in her early 30s that applied. They asked her all kinds of questions because she was an "older" student. Her answers impressed the board and she was granted a spot in the next class. That was 40 some years ago.

Today, there are more people with degrees that are competing to get into the schools. So your friend would have to be on their tippy toes to make sure they have all the requirements and hope they get in. If this person is married I hope that they have sat down with the spouse and proposed a schedule of what can and cannot be done to help out around the house and with the children. The next 10 years of the family are going to be quite stressful because of the schooling.

I hope all works out and that the friend can have the dream and the family stays together. Divorce coupled with student loan funds is a huge undertaking.

the other S.

I would hesitate to encourage this. Med school plus residency and fellowship means that your friend will be at least 50 before he can start to repay loans abs med school is incredibly expensive. I'm not sure he will have time to break even in terms of getting out of debt. With Obama care, even the 25 year old med students are worried about how long it will take to get out of debt because health-care is quite unpredictable right now.

I would encourage a PA program - shorter and less expensive and great career prospects right now. Many practices are hiring PAs instead of bringing in more MDs because they are more cost effective.