Med School/CRNA Questions

ngl do pre med or smth bio/chem based and get hella lab and clinical experience. Most people find working in a lab interesting and a experienced bio/chem major can often make 80-120k outta schools

WoFlowza experienced bio/chem major can often make 80-120k outta schools

*heavy sigh* ....no they cant.

GrandThings*heavy sigh* ....no they cant.

every single senior ik on my team with 3.4-4.0s is either going to med school or making roughly 90-110k outta school in biotech or pharmaceutical R&D labs

WoFlowzevery single senior ik on my team with 3.4-4.0s is either going to med school or making roughly 90-110k outta school in biotech or pharmaceutical R&D labs

Yes yes and college seniors are notoriously honest about their salaries.

GrandThings*heavy sigh* ....no they cant.

WoFlowzevery single senior ik on my team with 3.4-4.0s is either going to med school or making roughly 90-110k outta school in biotech or pharmaceutical R&D labs

Man do some of you guys who claim to be pre med actually know what it takes and all the studying/work/residencies/clinical hours, etc. you have to do to maybe be even lucky to be considered to work as a medical professional of that level?

You just don't wind up with a six-figure salary after you graduate. On top of that, you're also responsible for patients lives and if you fuck up and get someone killed/misdiagnose/make a mistake, your ass is going to court and it's bye bye to your licenses.

It's frustrating seeing people brag about salaries in the medical field without remembering how poorly ranked our systems are and how incompetency is a huge reason for that because all you people care about is your salaries.

**This post was edited on Jan 27th 2025 at 2:08:12pm

WoFlowzngl do pre med or smth bio/chem based and get hella lab and clinical experience. Most people find working in a lab interesting and a experienced bio/chem major can often make 80-120k outta schools

I'm honestly not into the whole idea of lab work, I don't really care about the salary more about the fulfillment I find in helping others. I've done some volunteer work and shadowing ops in hospitals and am pretty confident in that.

GrandThings*heavy sigh* ....no they cant.

Is that the route u went lmao. I'm not really interested in that to be frank, I wanna work with people more than anything

@Mingg is probably the best resource for these questions here I think

charliewastakenIs that the route u went lmao. I'm not really interested in that to be frank, I wanna work with people more than anything

Lol no no not at all, I work in tech.

I just have numerous friends who did the pre-med route in college, including a few who have now completed med school and are now full time doctors (mostly doing family medicine, but I have one friend who is an anesthesiologist who loves his job and makes bank). I also have worked/lived in Boston for 10+ years which is the hub of the bio/pharma industry and know soo many people who have been lab scientists/chemists/researchers/etc. I don't care if it's a Moderna/Phizer/BioGen/Alnylam/Gingko/Takeda or some early round startup. NONE of these companies are paying 100k for entry level lab work done by a college grad.

I also fully agree with everything @GayWolf420 said. I don't think even my friends who did go the med-school route knew the intensity or mental toll it would take. I have one friend in particular doing family medicine that 100% regrets taking that path. If you're not genuinely motivated by helping people you're going to be fucking miserable. @GayWolf420, sorry if my first post was confusing, was simply trying to point out that Woz's "Senior Teammates" are absolutely not getting those salaries/agree with you that if you're getting into medicine for the money, its kinda fucked.

Sorry long post - but the people I have the most respect for are the ER nurses. They deal with SO MUCH shit and get none of the praise/compensation for what they have to deal with.

If your end goal is anesthesia, med school. ICU nursing is no joke and you will be ripped to shreds by ICU nurses if you go there with the mindset of just doing it for CRNA school experience. You have a good lot of “medical” responsibility, but a ton of nursing care too (brushing hair, bed baths, wiping ass, etc. your patients are generally sedated and can’t do anything for themselves. You’re literally responsible for keeping them alive and cared for in every aspect.)

CRNA schools are not inherently bad, but they HEAVILY rely on your clinical experience and they do NOT teach you how to be an independent practitioner. I personally have been in a handful of surgeries where the actions of my CRNA nearly killed a patient(s). These particular CRNAs had minimal ICU experience prior to school and their practice is scary at times. That said, some of the CRNAs I work with (who have been in practice for 10+ years) I trust more than a few anesthesiologists. Usually they are nicer to patients too, which is preferred lol. But generally speaking MD/DO is preferred if your end goal is anesthesia.


Also, to do practically the same job pay is $200k (or so) as a CRNA, vs $800k+ as an MD/DO. This is averages is buffalo, NY. A slightly lower than average COL area. So make of that what you will lol

GrandThingsLol no no not at all, I work in tech.

I just have numerous friends who did the pre-med route in college, including a few who have now completed med school and are now full time doctors (mostly doing family medicine, but I have one friend who is an anesthesiologist who loves his job and makes bank). I also have worked/lived in Boston for 10+ years which is the hub of the bio/pharma industry and know soo many people who have been lab scientists/chemists/researchers/etc. I don't care if it's a Moderna/Phizer/BioGen/Alnylam/Gingko/Takeda or some early round startup. NONE of these companies are paying 100k for entry level lab work done by a college grad.

I also fully agree with everything @GayWolf420 said. I don't think even my friends who did go the med-school route knew the intensity or mental toll it would take. I have one friend in particular doing family medicine that 100% regrets taking that path. If you're not genuinely motivated by helping people you're going to be fucking miserable. @GayWolf420 , sorry if my first post was confusing, was simply trying to point out that Woz's "Senior Teammates" are absolutely not getting those salaries/agree with you that if you're getting into medicine for the money, its kinda fucked.

Sorry long post - but the people I have the most respect for are the ER nurses. They deal with SO MUCH shit and get none of the praise/compensation for what they have to deal with.

Nah I'm with you man. No insult intended from myself either. Just based off of what some of my peers and even family members (have a sister who is a Critical Care Flight Nurse) did in order to pursue a professional medical career, it's pretty much 8-10 years of seriously busting your ass, never seeing friends or family, no free time, and learning mountains of information and some are still making sub $90k/year. All the ER docs and nurses I worked with as a tech literally lived at hospitals for years before getting their dream job. It's no joke and most give up halfway through and find something else.

Also want to comment that med school is fucking insane. It’s not for the faint of heart. Residency is brutal. People literally work themselves to death for less than minimum wage. You can be extremely intelligent and good in school, and still not be “successful” in med school/residency.

That said, CRNA path as a means to evade med school isn’t fantastic either. CRNA as a long term goal is fine, if you’re willing to work 2-3+ years in the ICU and you actually give a shit about your patients. Meaning you don’t just go through the motions to get your experience and neglect the unpleasant aspects of the job.

If you live in a state that uses anesthesia assistants, this is another option. It’s basically the PA equivalent of a CRNA. It’s a masters degree and present anesthesia from the medical approach vs nursing approach. This program is designed to prepare you without previous clinical experience.

GayWolf420Man do some of you guys who claim to be pre med actually know what it takes and all the studying/work/residencies/clinical hours, etc. you have to do to maybe be even lucky to be considered to work as a medical professional of that level?

You just don't wind up with a six-figure salary after you graduate. On top of that, you're also responsible for patients lives and if you fuck up and get someone killed/misdiagnose/make a mistake, your ass is going to court and it's bye bye to your licenses.

It's frustrating seeing people brag about salaries in the medical field without remembering how poorly ranked our systems are and how incompetency is a huge reason for that because all you people care about is your salaries.

**This post was edited on Jan 27th 2025 at 2:08:12pm

Bio medical engineering can get you six figures shortly after graduating if you find a kush job. I work with medical supplies sales reps in surgery (orthopedic implants) and they make more than mid level providers who are actually performing surgery with the surgeons 😅 kind of wild but true. We have one surgeon who does 14-16 total joint surgeries per week and his sales rep made over $300k last year due to such high volumes of surgeries. So, there’s that lol

These jobs are unicorn jobs though and not the norm lol

dm if you interested in dentistry or have any questions

If your goal is to work in anesthesia, go the MD/DO route. It's longer but you'll be the expert in an exciting job and make bank. Anesthesia folks are always so badass when they get called to a shit show of a code or trauma. So calm and chill.

If a quick way to good money is all you're after, and you have the intelligence and grit to make it through med school, then go be an ER doc. 3-4 years med school + 3 years residency and you're looking at $350-400k easy. Depending where you work and how much, that number can easily be doubled. The lifestyle of many er docs aligns perfectly with the risk taking/adrenaline hobbies of most people on this site. This job is the most burned out of all physician roles tho so understand that. There's also a shortage of docs everywhere (without any substantial changes factors affecting that) so pretty much will be able to command your salary for the indefinite future.

Source: my buddy is an ER doc and I've seen his offer letters for hospitals in the Midwest. They're generally pretty transparent with sharing their salary info to students so when he was in med school and residency I heard all about what the attendings were making. Ohio State medical center (not where they work) also posts salaries of all employees.

If you wanna be filthy rich and not a CEO, go be a surgeon. They can top CEO salaries at many hospitals. Source: you can view non-profit tax returns which include info on high earner salaries.

Before anyone gets up in arms about the salary comments, if there wasn't some aspect of money being a factor then professions would not have such dramatic variations in salary.

MinggIf your end goal is anesthesia, med school. ICU nursing is no joke and you will be ripped to shreds by ICU nurses if you go there with the mindset of just doing it for CRNA school experience. You have a good lot of “medical” responsibility, but a ton of nursing care too (brushing hair, bed baths, wiping ass, etc. your patients are generally sedated and can’t do anything for themselves. You’re literally responsible for keeping them alive and cared for in every aspect.)

CRNA schools are not inherently bad, but they HEAVILY rely on your clinical experience and they do NOT teach you how to be an independent practitioner. I personally have been in a handful of surgeries where the actions of my CRNA nearly killed a patient(s). These particular CRNAs had minimal ICU experience prior to school and their practice is scary at times. That said, some of the CRNAs I work with (who have been in practice for 10+ years) I trust more than a few anesthesiologists. Usually they are nicer to patients too, which is preferred lol. But generally speaking MD/DO is preferred if your end goal is anesthesia.


Also, to do practically the same job pay is $200k (or so) as a CRNA, vs $800k+ as an MD/DO. This is averages is buffalo, NY. A slightly lower than average COL area. So make of that what you will lol

As for ICU Nursing, I've heard that a lot. I mentioned it somewhere in this thread before but my sister is a PICU Nurse at UChi and formerly at Johns Hopkins so she briefed me on most of that (including a lot of her horror stories). I've spoken in excess to my Mom's college roommate who is the Anesthesia Chair at a Hospital in St Louis. She had similar things to say, but mostly that if I want to have a personal life and still go into Anesthesia then to become an RN then go to CRNA School somewhere down the road. The environment is a huge passion of mine, so as of now I think I will do BioChemical Engineering so I can keep multiple routes open. I just don't think I can fully close myself off to nursing before I even start I guess.

MinggBio medical engineering can get you six figures shortly after graduating if you find a kush job. I work with medical supplies sales reps in surgery (orthopedic implants) and they make more than mid level providers who are actually performing surgery with the surgeons 😅 kind of wild but true. We have one surgeon who does 14-16 total joint surgeries per week and his sales rep made over $300k last year due to such high volumes of surgeries. So, there’s that lol

These jobs are unicorn jobs though and not the norm lol

I just saw this BioMedical comment lmao. Ironic

Angioedemadm if you interested in dentistry or have any questions

Orthodontics or Dentistry?

charliewastakenOrthodontics or Dentistry?

well im general dentist graduate in 4 months, but as far as ortho goes you're allowed to do ortho as a general dentist. Same with all of the specialties. Dentistry is unique compared to medicine that once you're in (graduate) you're good to do any procedure you want to do, whether that requires you to do a weekend course to feel confident, or if you're just confident from dental school in that area. Medicine often requires you to lock yourself into a procedure - you're basically forced to specialize thru residency which takes and extra 4-6 years ontop of the 8 years it takes to make it thru the basic program.

For me in ortho I actually got into dentistry because of ortho then changed my mind and figured I would do a lot better with more variety in my work schedule- hence my change of mind to stay as general dentist.