How To Get Into Medical School

Medical emergency
Do NOT use the Video for medical emergencies. If you have a medical emergency, call a physician or qualified healthcare provider, or CALL 911 immediately. Under no circumstances should you attempt self-treatment based on anything you have seen or read on the Video.

General information is not medical advice
The general information provided on the Video is for informational purposes only and is not professional medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or care, nor is it intended to be a substitute therefore. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider properly licensed to practice medicine or general healthcare in your jurisdiction concerning any questions you may have regarding any information obtained from this Video and any medical condition you believe may be relevant to you or to someone else. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this Video. Always consult with your physician or other qualified healthcare provider before embarking on a new treatment, diet, or fitness program. Information obtained on the Video is not exhaustive and does not cover all diseases, ailments, physical conditions, or their treatment

[DarrylReiter]

Over a hundred years ago, George Bernard Shaw said “Those who can, do; those who can't, teach.” and it needs to be updated to "Those who can, do, those can't, create social media content." - Until you watch Talking with Docs. Thanks, Dr. Zalzal and Dr. Weening. Your channel is a great resource for those of us going down rabbit holes as we experience age and decay and try to find honest, helpful information online. Keep up the great work!

[pintsizestories]

My son is a dentist. He didn't get in first try but he improved his interview skills and got in the second time. Not a doctor but a similar process.

[kmoney]

Just got accepted into medical school!! Will be starting next month in july

[TheJwjenks]

My husband decided to go back to medical school after being a history teacher for a few years. So he did a year of premed, two years of pre-nursing/nursing school (in case he didn’t get into medical school), year of not getting in, he finally was accepted. One of your best pieces of advice is never give up. He didn’t start practice until he was 40 years old. But he was doing what he really wanted to do. I think the best advice you gave was never give up! Thanks for another great, informative video.

[er..]

Ha! My wife always jokes that if she applied today, she wouldn’t get in. Never did a minute of research. Now she’s the program director of an OB/GYN program.

[rachel]

It’s pretty apparent that we have a shortage of doctors esp since Covid. Six month wait times for appts to specialists seems normal now but is not acceptable. And shortages in rural areas exist. Different paths to enter medicine are needed.

[lynnettecook]

I wish I could go back in time and become a physician. I absolutely love to learn and in the medical field, the sky is the limit! Since I remember when the Dead Sea was very much alive, I'm too old for medical school (62 y/o). Hindsight is always 20/20 and I have wished many times I would have gotten into medical school in the 90's or even the 80's when I was in my 20's and early 30's. I wouldn't want to give up the knowledge I have now, the people I have met, or the degrees I have now, but I still wish I were a physician. To those who are in their 20s or 30s, don't wait: GO FOR

[b.a.d.]

I have participated as a "lab rat" in vascular research for about 8 years and about 22 studies as I have HFpEF PH (a cardiac condition). These have all been high quality studies often funded by the VA and/or NIH. In the process I have met many undergrad, masters and post doctoral students and have always, always been so impressed by the quality and character of these young people! Researchers are desperately needed so even if you don't get into medical school you have an excellent future of choices ahead of you in research.

[todddunn]

When I was an undergrad grades were everything. If you didn't have very close to a 4.0 GPA you wouldn't get to the next step. I didn't go to med school, but interacted with a lot of pre-med students in my chemistry and biochem classes when I was an undergrad, when I was a TA for those classes during grad school and later as a prof. Recommendations were also important. I have written quite a few med school recommendations. I also talked with colleagues from the med school about their admission criteria when I was on the governing board of our grad school and I remember that many people involved in making med school admission decisions were particularly interested in references from non-academics particularly if the student had worked in a medical setting and could get a reference from a physician they had worked with.

[UkuleleIsle]

Your choice of undergrad school might make a difference. And it need not be a big famous place. The college I went to had a pre-med program that over a period of 30 years placed over 90% of grads into med school. When you declared the major, you got a team of mentors on the faculty who made sure you took the right classes, kept your grades up, had extracurricular activities you loved, and your junior and senior years did mock interviews with you. Then for recommendations, your team would write a group recommendation based on the three or four years they had known you.

[Lazzar]

I have nothing but admiration & respect for the YEARS dedicated Doctors invest in knowledge & being the best that they can be. Seeing it in action in person over the years has also developed that necessary sense of trust!

[traceyflater]

How cool that there is going to be another Dr, Zalzal.. You must be very proud.

[DrSteveQatar]

Great insights on getting in, these still continue during your career, currently I am coaching and teaching doctors and dentists to research and publish while they still practice. They need this for progression and promotion, research, critical thinking and analysis are life skills needed to continue getting in.

[azdbuk]

My "c" in earth science was an early indicator of me probably not being med school material. 😄 A friend went to dental school in the early 2000s in US, I remember her transferring undergrads for one year, and doing all or most of her sciences at a different college, as her college was known to have a brutal science dean, upon transferring she got straight A's, (organic chem, microbio, anatomy, physics) etc, then finished back up at her original school, and applied to Dartmouth dental and got in. Seemed like to me med and dental schools really did not tolerate anything but 3.9 averages or above and great mcat scores.

[Traveler]

Interesting and informative, with specific suggestions.

[HamidA-tovy]

Why did you want to become a doctors in the first place? What do you still love about being a doctor and what don't you like? What else do you hope to do in your life if you were not a doctors?

[markboreskie]

My son got into medical school on his fifth try, got a masters degree in the meantime, graduated med school with one of the university’s highest awards and will soon have his PhD. Keep trying!!

[cathydavis]

All though I know MD's I've never personally known anybody in med school, but it seems like the students all have one thing in common. They all have good posture while standing and sitting with a look of confidence. Their hair and clothes are clean and stylish. How do they do that with all the stress they go through for so many years? 👍😇Plus, it's so expensive🤑 they can't retire until their 90. (I'm in the US we don't have socialized medicine)
TV shows like Grays Anatomy show the MD taking advantage of the residents, making them compete against each other, working them on 24 + hour shifts etc. is that true or does that just tv? I just say, thank you for devoting your life helping other like me. 🥰

[kab]

I had a great spot doing research at CHEO just before university but I had to quit to go make money. You all know how expensive it is!😵‍💫

[GreggBB]

I am wondering about the interview process---with so much burnout happening for a number of different reasons; I wonder if any schools will ask if the person realizes it is a problem and waht they aer doing now, as a future doctor to combat getting burned out. I realize no one can fully understand it without experiencing it---however if you don't even give it consideration it's much more likely to happen to you