My name is Michelle Vazquez and I am a Chemical Technology major student at City Tech College. I want to be a physician and I plan on entering the medical field with this major degree studies as my starting point, then I plan on transferring to York college where I can really get moving with my career choice. I want to be a doctor because of the finance the job comes with, the preparation for any medical situation and the it’s a degree with no limits.

The Chemical Technology program, from the claims of the City Tech catalog what we learn is, “a understanding of the fundamental principles of chemistry, skills in written and communication, in experimentation and scientific method, in problem solving, critical thinking, analytical reasoning and a general knowledge.” What this means is this degree covers the “baby steps” of what a Pre-med program covers. It is a program that can also get me a job with a bachelor’s degree in other scientific fields such as chemistry, biochemistry and chemical engineering.

Throughout my entire life finances has always been an issue. In the medical field there is a high guarantee of a stable income. No job is inferior than the other but to be able to compare and see the relationship between the jobs within the field and the income we have to create a hierarchy. The categories  will be composed of assistants, general, and specialize. In the assistant section there is an assistant nurse and an  assistant physician. According to Outlook handbook, a nurse per year earns $24,400 and a physician per year earns $90,930. Next, in the a general/regular section we have a registered nurse and a optometrist. In the statistics of outlook handbook, a eye doctor earns $97,820 per year while a nurse earns $65,470 per year. Lastly, the specialized doctors. A dentist earns $149,310 per year and both a physician and a surgeon earns $187,200 per year. It is very hard to even create a hierarchy because even among the categories there were jobs who were paid more than the other and this is only a few that were mention out of many other medical jobs.

In my mind there is always this fear of seeing someone dying and feeling completely helpless. A physician may not be a surgeon but they can still help save a life. According to the york college catalog, “ admissions requirements of medical schools and/or schools of dentistry can only be met with at least three years of college work, with a strong preference for a baccalaureate degree. The student can meet admissions requirements with the BS in Biology program.” To be consider for medical school I would have to transfer to York college and take their bachelor’s degree in biology. Now the classes for their biology course, their department requirements alone would take about four years. This includes “ General Zoology, General Botany, Medical Terminology, Nutrition, Human Anatomy, Human Physiology, General Microbiology, Environmental Science, Concepts of Biological Origins, Genetics, Developmental Biology, Cell Biology, Natural Sciences Seminar”and within these classes the content would take more than those years to be learned. The content of these classes are what physicians must know to perform their jobs. In this other article “‘The next step’ alumni students views on their preparation for their first position as a physician” by Ola Linberg they make a study case of how all these practices and education actually plays in the “real” world. This was her conclusion to her study case “some alumni, perhaps the perfect pre-paration for work as a physician is not attainable. Real-life situations such as encounters with sick patients, decision-making under pressure and conflicts with colleagues cannot be easily or realistically simulated.” So this article may say that no matter how well students are prepare for the medical field it still can’t be compared to a real life situation but it is still better than not having any preparation for medical situation.

Previously I mention that the last reason was because this degree has no limits. What I meant by that is according to Filip Derke this degree once you have earned it can be used anywhere. It could be earned in Europe and you will still be qualify to work as a doctor in Texas or anywhere else in the world. To me this is a privilege that is right for this degree because all the hard work and knowledge can now be used in different places that may not have easy access to the medical. I personally once I have earned this degree would like to travel to such places.

My advice for anybody who wants to also be a physician is to not only look at the benefits of becoming one but also look at the negatives. For example, schooling for us is another  7-8 years coming right out of high school. The working environment of a physician can also be a problem if you might consider having a family or already have one. Also the person has to be 100% sure they want to go through this or else it’s a waste of time. Another thing that is important is being able to handle stress from both work and their personal lives. If they are willing to put up with stress then they are good to go if not they should reconsider and think of other fields or options.

In conclusion, the road to becoming a great physician is a bumpy path but at the end of it are many rewards. Not just the money, the studies themself  or the doctoral degree benefits but a personal accomplishment. As I mentioned before considering both the benefits and the negatives of this job is a must or it could lead to wasting money on college courses not needed and wasting time on a career that is within their desire for what they want to do in the future. However, if we are successful we can become inspiration to future children or billionaires; who knows but the reward possibilities of a physical or mental reward are endless.

Works Cited

Bannett,Nina. Personal interview. 20 April 2015. United States. “Physician.” Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. Department of Labor. Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2014-15 Edition. Web. 20 April 2015

Derke, Filip. “Top 10 Reasons to Study Medicine” Student portals. 18 Jun 2013. Web. 20 April 2015

Lindberg, Ola. “‘The Next Step’ — Alumni Students’ Views On Their Preparation For Their First Position As A Physician.” Medical Education Online 15.1 (2010): 1-8. Academic Search Complete. Web. 11 May 2015.

N.p “ Bachelor of Science in Biology.” York college Catalog, 2014-2015 Edition. 17 August 2014: 43-44, 85-86. Web. 20 April 2015

Zimmerman, Henry. “Chemistry.” College Catalog, 2014-2015 Edition. n.d: 89-92. Web. 3 March 2015.