Ages?

[Nevermore]

I was wondering if there are many students between 22 and and 26 years of age at Saba. From the small sample of grads I have talked to and from this forum, it appears that most students are older, married, kids, etc. I know there are just as many 'young blood' as older folks at Ross, AUC and St.G's. Thanks for your reply.

[classic]

Well, from my experience so far, there are a number of students who are between the ages of 22-26. (Me included for a few years.) From my chats with other students as well, most are in their mid-twenties. I've seen a few pictures of their 'celebration' get-togethers and most of the folks look to be 'young blooded'. However, cosmetic surgery and botox is always suspected (just look at the John Kerry debacle). :wink:

[scoobz1981]

I was 21 and 1/3 years old when I started Saba, and now I am 23 as of 2 weeks ago. I just finished 5th semester. I guess I am young, although I kinda feel old... lol... Most of our class was between 22-27... a few 27+ students (about 7 of our 33 that originally started with us and finished with our semester).


Val

[HafSabeen]

I'll be 24 and in the May 05' incoming class.

[confusedstudent7]

hey
i'm 22 n starting Jan 05. I now of 2 others that are starting Jan 05 who are between 22-24...i'm sure there are younger people..:)

[Nevermore]

Excellent. Have all you applied to the US? I keep hearing I should give US schools schools at least 2 tries before going to the Caribbean. What do you people think about that advice? Do any of you feel you've exhausted your chances of getting into US schools? Also just curious, has anyone of you also been accepted to St.G's or Ross? Thanks again.

[classic]

I didn't apply to any allopathic schools because my advisor told me it would be superfluous of me to do so considering my MCAT scores (granted I made a 10 and 9 on the science portions). I applied to one Osteopathic school, but didn't persue since I didn't really feel I'd fit the part. I only applied to Saba too (no other islands).
Personally, I think that if you've applied once and you've changed something to make you application look 10% better, then apply again. Some advisors like to feed you the malarchie (spelling??) that persistence is the key. This is true in some cases, but not as many as you think. The only way I'd apply to again to school is if I've made a dramatic change in the one or two areas that the school thought my application was weak in.
I'm not saying persistence isn't important- it does pay off, but it isn't the only key.

[Conway]

Wow, I feel like a little kid again :roll:

I would like to start at Saba in Jan '06. I'll be 20. (I will turn 21 on 1/27/06).

I guess I'll be gaining a lot of wisdom from our [elder] wise ones? :lol:

[swinginislanddoc]

I guess I'll join in this little thread.

I'm 26.

So there! :P

~S 8)

PS - It's friggin' cold in TN! Brrrr

[Conway]

Not as cold as western New York!

It was -4 here last night! Now it's pretty warm, up to a balmy 3 degrees!

[dr.holbs]

Also 25 years old. I agree it does seem like there are alot of "older" students applying to saba. I am glad to see that I won't be the only one getting my cheeks pinched. :wink:

[ttwl]

its -21C today and was -39C with wind yesterday...going to be one heck of a change...

[scoobz1981]

On SABA it's 82°F today... lol.... its gonna be one hot X-mas... although my room is air-conditioned so its a constant 72°F everyday....

Val

[wolfvgang22]

Ok, so this age stuff pushed my button.

I love you guys, but...Seriously, who cares how old anybody is?

So you can "hook-up" or party down? Maybe you should grow up and worry about what matters.

As I look ahead to the future and see the big 3-0 before I graduate med school, I feel more mature, but not "old". Some of the most engaging, energetic, and down right sexy people I know are over 40 (like this one lady I worked with once...wow :shock:). Some of the wisest people I know are under 30 (like Val). Big whoop. Trying to pigeon-hole people just sucks.

Sorry for the rare negative post, guys. The recent posts on age make some of the younger students here sound just like my high school students who thought they were super-hip and cool because they happened to be born later. They said stuff like, "Oh my god, over 21 is so old! So, what were the 80's like?". :roll:
None of them may ever make it so far as med school, due to lack of character.

Ok, back to the regularly scheduled programming....pay no attention to the "old" guy in the corner.... :wink:

[33]

Wolf ... I will be 33 when I enter med school, 36 when I finish ... and if all goes well, I will be debt free by the time I am 40 ... what does this have to do with age ... when I was in my 20's, I was always racing to get things done, to achieve the next mile stone ... during this time, I will be the first to admit ... as successful as I was, I missed alot of opportunities because I did not see what was right in front of me. Now ... having taken some time off from work to investigate my family history and reflect on my life ... I have come to realize and understand that life is really about the journey and not the end goal ... it is about the experiences of life ... it is about coming to an understanding of life ... I have met many a successful people ... CEO's, VP's, etc. ... and I have always been amazed how many of them lack an understanding of life outside of there immediate area of expertise ... not only that, I am amazed how many of these individuals have a desire to do something else with there life ... and yet, are unable to make the leap ...

what is my point of my rant ... do not take the age comments to heart. I understand where these "young ones" are coming from ... when you are young ... your focus, thanks to society, is about become successful as fast and as soon as possible ... and rest assured WOLF, time corrects everything ... this is to say ... the "young ones" will learn, as they age, to look at things differently ... however, in the mean time ... let them be.

... just a point of view ...

... 33 ...aka ... "that old guy" ...

[scoobz1981]

I am curious:

How do you become debt free 4 years after med school???

I mean, realistically the shortest residency is 3 years for certain Family Practice residencies... and NO residency pays more than $44,000 per year (actually I think the average is around $38,000 but the range is $33,000-44,000 approximately).... so using this as a number... and your SABA education costing 6500x5=32500 for just basic sciences, and then 7,500x5 for clinicals = 37,500... so just for school you will pay 70,000 plus your living expenses which will conservatively be about the same so thats 140,000 total debt... (I am being conservative I think in this figure - maybe I am just a freak)...

So now you finish your MD, and you start a residency... so in 3 years of residency you will make about $120,000 ($40,000x3 years) before taxes... and not including expenses like a car, rent, FOOD, etc... so basically if you can save about 10,000 a year I think you are doing really well, so you will come out with a savings of $30,000 after your residency... so now you have paid off that and ONLY OWE $110,000... As a Family practice doc, you will pull in an average $125,000 in your first year before taxes and expenses again... so if you are telling me that you will pay off the remaining $110,000 in 1 year then I want some of that good stuff you are on (we do get drug tested here, so you may want to find a way to beat that test, or cut down a little)!!! LOL....

I think what I am trying to say is... I hope you have thought this Medical School thing through, cause doctors don't make as much as they used to... lol... and NO doctor is rich NOW-A-DAYS because of being a doctor, but because they were wise and started other companies, and offshoot's of their initial business's.... so if you plan on breaking even after 4 years... forget it (it's possible, but NOT plausible)!!!

As for me... my residency is 8-10 years (at a crappy salary and even worse hours) depending on if I add on Pediatrics to it (to make it 10 years post medical school in total) so you will probably be making the "big bucks" before me... lol... but I am not here for the money... I just want to cut people open and help em out... and if that meant making 30,000 for the rest of my life.... then sign me up! As long as I get to use the kool rib-spreader... lol... (I am not saddistic... I just like that thing... )



Val

[scoobz1981]

As for the success comment... my definition of success is breaking out of the box that we are all in, and finally realizing that "WHO CARES what society thinks of us! WHO CARES what the person next to you thinks of you. WHO CARES about one persons opinion." When you can be yourself and comfortable with who you are and what you stand for and where you stand in life and be HONEST with yourself and others.... then I will consider you successful... and give you the RESPECT you desirve

You notice how money, job title, nor education level fit into my definition...

LOL,
Val

[wolfvgang22]

As for the success comment... my definition of success is breaking out of the box that we are all in, and finally realizing that "WHO CARES what society thinks of us! WHO CARES what the person next to you thinks of you. WHO CARES about one persons opinion." When you can be yourself and comfortable with who you are and what you stand for and where you stand in life and be HONEST with yourself and others.... then I will consider you successful... and give you the RESPECT you desirve

You notice how money, job title, nor education level fit into my definition...

LOL,
Val
If I finally get fed up with my mother-in-law, can you take her place....:lol:

[scoobz1981]

LMAO... sure... although I am sure that your wife might mind... lol... unless she doesn't mind having 2 dads... lol... and I would love to be there when you tell her and her mother that you are dropping her... lol... OMG, I think I would die laughing...

Too funny,
Val

[islandFEVER]

..........

[islandFEVER]

..........

[33]

scoobz1981 ... the answer is as one has already posted ... I have personal savings. At 33 ... I have spent 7 plus years working ... and as such have some savings. If all goes as plans ... I believe I will be around 30 thousand Canadian in debt after my four years ... and at a salary of 38,000 US per year for residency ... I think it is possible to pay the debt off in 3 years ... however, only time will tell.

Now with respect to the question of what comes first LOVE and or MD? ... first and foremost ... what a fantastic question ... for me, if I found LOVE ... I do not believe I would be going to med school ... and or if I would go ... it would only be with the full support of my significant other. Med school has always been an interest ... and as I am still single ... I am following through on the dream. I believe, in life, that one of the most important things to have ... outside of a relationship with GOD ... is a relationship. Life suck, regardless of your situation, if you have no one to share it with. Granted, a relationship does not neccessarily mean a wife, girlfriend, etc ... it is simply a relationship with people ... one must be able to share one's experience with someone ... anyone. I have found though my short life to date ... that what makes a job and or life ... are the people around you versus what one is actually doing ...

... if you think about it ... the majoirty of jobs that are out there in the world are jobs of habit ... that is to say, they are jobs filled with routines ... from engineers to police officers to health professionals etc. ... in the end, that is what a job, in time, comes down to ... routine. You know that stat that says the majority of people have two or three careers in there life time ... I think ROUTINE is the reason why? ... people switch jobs to keep themselves young and motivated ... versus young, stagnet and complacent ...

... that is just my point of view ...

33 ... aka "that old man" ... aka "I can rant like the best of them" ...

[scoobz1981]

You go IslandFEVER!!! I like you already!

As for the financial questions... I personally couldn't go to a job that I hated, so I probably couldn't go off and work till I was 40 doing something that would probably make me want to kill myself just so that I could have some sick days in the hospital away from a job I didn't like... lol... now, I am grateful that my parents planned for an expensive education and I do not have to get loans... go parental planning!!! See, parents are good for something... LOL... I am just teasing... I love em...

As for the relationship question (I was 21 when I started Med school btw)... mmm... my ex-bf and I ended up talking about marriage (obviously not in america... it's kinda illegal there, but since i am of dual citizenship, we could have gotten married in Canada or Europe...)... but I was not interested, and I don't think that personally I will ever be. Sad... but true... I just don't believe in it, and I don't think that I need a piece of paper to tell me that I love someone and will be monogamous with them... i think that's called TRUST??? LOL....

As for relationships at med school... what I have gathered from the hetero community here on SABA, I think that there are alot of relationships that form, and alot that also end... but it seems like the same old thing like back home, there are a bunch of one nighters, and a bit of dating, and some long term things too...

Now back home when we get into clinicals and stuff and then into residencies, i think that it will be harder for some people to meet and hook-up, and there will be more stress, and longer hours, but I think that relationships will develop, and that life continues even with the rigors of med student/resident life. I don't plan on letting that stop me from going out and having a good time, and maybe meeting a hottie... and I guess the kids thing is really not an issue with me, cause well, its physically impossible... lol... so someone else will have to field that part.... sorry... as for the LOVE or MD question... I think its all relative.... I personally have known what I want for a career for along time, so my main drive is MD, and if someone comes along, then he has to deal with my MD baggage.... and if he can't, he can't, and there is nothing I can do about it, cause I can't make his mind up for him....


Val

[djinbh]

"WHO CARES what society thinks of us! WHO CARES what the person next to you thinks of you. WHO CARES about one persons opinion." When you can be yourself and comfortable with who you are and what you stand for and where you stand in life and be HONEST with yourself and others.... then I will consider you successful... and give you the RESPECT you desirve"
Who cares what you think too! :wink: I believe that one of the nice things about older people, is that many have had time to settle those issues.There is nothing wrong with wanting to hang around people your own age,or wanting to be around fellow Indians,or fellow gays for that matter. But in the spirit of growth, learning, and becoming better doctors, it behooves us to mingle. I plan to!
By the way,I am sure 33 has personal savings. No magic formula here.

[djinbh]

Sorry for the last post lateness. In regards to love or M.D.,I tend to agree with scoobz here. School puts a drain on relationships, especially long distance.Those pangs of love will divert your attention from your career goal, at least during school.The possiblity of meeting and falling in love with a like minded person later in residency seems more realistic.