Whoever is telling you that you must grind yourself down in high school to become a doctor is utterly ignorant of the process. Allow an old college prof to try to fix it.

First–you must get into college. There are solid statistics that show that a student who completed four years of English, four years of math, and all the standard lab science (bio, chem, physics) in high school will do much better than those that didn’t. In the meantime, try to keep yourself broad and varied–do some extracurriculars that you like in a range of activities. Make certain you begin and maintain a good healthy physical fitness regimen–it will serve you excellently when you must do a medical internship!

Now, unless it’s a top-10 or Ivy League university, which college you attend will not matter. I’d recommend starting with two years at a community college, then transfer to a four-year that will allow you to complete a pre-med major. Try to finish the pre-med major with as little student debt as possible.

While in college, try to work–for pay or as a volunteer–in a health care setting (hospital, clinic, urgent care center, doctors’ office, public health clinic, campus health service). You will want to meet doctors (if you know some already, so much better!). They can advise you which med schools in your area are most respected–and they come in handy for other purposes, noted below.

You will want to understand what medical schools consider when you apply:

1. Grade-point average in college courses (grades from other than your latest studies won’t matter–finish college, and high school GPA becomes a footnote).

2. Score on the MCAT exam (like the SATs or ACTs, but it’s especially for med school and you’ll take it around your junior year in college–prepare for it as thoroughly as you can!).

3. References. The best letters of recommendation come from doctors you know–especially ones that graduated from that med school.

4. A broad undergraduate curriculum. Major in pre-med if you like, but make sure you get a lot of electives in a range of arts, social sciences, humanities, ‘soft’ sciences’. Or major in anything, making sure you get most of your electives in that case in biology (anatomy) and chemistry (organic).

5. Interview–many med schools interview you before admitting. If you know doctors, they can coach you on what you’re likely to be asked and how to answer.

Med school will provide you with little free time to pursue anything but medicine, and that pressure builds to maximum during the internship. Until you get to that level of study, I strongly recommend that you live a balanced lifestyle, don’t stress yourself unduly, work for excellence but know your limits.

Adv. Alg & Trig Honors

Chemistry Honors

English 10 Honors

Spanish 4 Honors

C.M.

A.P. Euro

yes we’re on the right track but we need to take more science classes such as Anotomy and Phisiology (srry for mispelling) or physics