We asked Hunter freshmen why they chose Pre-Med

Ask a random person in the halls or on the escalators what they are doing and Hunter and chances are they’ll reply that they’re a pre-med student. As a freshmen at Hunter the question of what I’m here to do get’s brought up frequently, and when I tell people I’m planning on doing the pre-med track they aren’t even surprised. Yet as freshmen my fellow pre-meds and myself have only started our journey and it seems that we all have different reasons for doing pre-med and trying to get into medical school. In this era being a physician has lost alot of the prestige it once held, salaries have stayed flat for years, and to top it all off physicians often struggle with the stress of their jobs. According to the New York Times physicians are twice as likely to commit suicide as non physicians, and are also more likely to become depressed or use controlled substances. This doesn’t begin to take into account the toll that it places on your life. Physicians give up a decade of their lives to studying and working non stop. Yet despite this people still aspire to become physicians. Their reasons are as varied as they are.

When searching for reasons to become a pre med, the freshmen I talked to had diverse goals, from helping others to learning more about the human body. For one freshmen at Hunter her decision to become a physician was personal. When Fatama Zhora was born she suffered from thrombocytopenia, a condition which causes a low platelet count.  She was saved by a physician who helped raise her platelet count to normal. Looking back on her ordeal she says: “From that experience on, I was convinced that I had to be a doctor because I wanted to help children like myself, and parents throughout confusing medical problems that seem so much like a curse”. Another pre-med student, Nushrat Anisha, said:“It might sound cliche but I have always loved helping people. I guess deep down I always knew the medical field was the right path for me”. However some students had different reasons, such as Shaista Shoukat who said: “I’m very intrigued by the human body and find it to be quite challenging. Since I’m so interested about the many functions of the human body, I knew I wanted to further prosper my knowledge in this field and pursue a career within this career”.

Another issue for pre med students is the work load. During their freshmen year students are expected to take Chemistry, Biology, Organic Chemistry, Biochemistry, Calculus, Physics, and all the other classes they’d expect to take to fulfill pre-requisites and core requirements. Faltering on this path could very likely lower or even destroy a student’s chances of graduating in for years. Freshmen who are taking pre med aren’t blind to this and know just how serious of a situation they are in. Fatama Zohra described it by saying: “Sometimes, it’s really frightening thinking about how arduous the workload is going to be”. Not only that but they need to do extremely well in these classes to have a shot at medical school. On top of that there’s studying for the MCAT, and many of the students I’ve talked with have said they are already preparing. All of this is an intense workload, but the students I talked with understood and accepted this.

As freshmen, with at least three years left at Hunter, there is always the issue of whether or not they’ll continue down the pre-med track.  When asked about this Shaista Shoukat said: “I haven’t put much thought into the future as of yet. I’ve only thought of plans for the four years I’ll be in college such as when I will be taking internships and jobs and volunteering”. On the other hand a student who wished to remain anonymous said: “I’m 100 per cent sure of my plans. At times I do feel unsure of myself and I do get a bit worried as to whether anything could come in the way of my dreams, but I know my dream is to become a physician”. For some students the future is a blank slate while others have their eyes set on a goal and intend to reach it no matter what.

A big question that always get’s asked of pre med students and physicians alike is if they’re doing this for the money or out of a genuine desire to help others. When asked about this Fatama Zhora quickly pointed out “If I was focused on the money, I wouldn’t be in this field”. The same was true of many other pre med students that I talked to. Nushrat Anisha even said “The only reason I’m pursuing medicine is having the ability to help people. I can never look towards money and be satisfied or even happy”. To really be successful in medicine you need to focus on more than just money, especially since that’s something you won’t see much of until after your residency or fellowship.

Talking to other freshmen on a pre med track has shown me that people’s goals for wanting to practice medicine vary from person to person. The freshmen I talked to have shown me that pre med students at Hunter are a diverse bunch with varying goals and ambitions, and I wish them the best of luck in reaching their goals.