Hey all,
Been using this site since I was teenager to snap up good deals. Always see these AMA's and I thought it'd be interesting to do one myself since people seem to always have quirky questions for me.
Ask Away!
[AMA] I Am an Australian Medical Student - Ask Me Anything
LimAfunnyGuy on 30/11/2019 - 17:29
closed Comments
It's not the internship spots which are getting harder to get (everyone as long as you graduate in Australia and are a citizen will be given an internship position guranteed, heck even full fee paying students are guranteed!), it's the specialist pathway positions which are highly competitive, especially some surgical sub specs which the pass rate for accreditation is ludicrously low (i.e. urology was like 3% last year).
surgical sub specs which the pass rate for accreditation is ludicrously low (i.e. urology was like 3% last year).
is it that hard for my pepee
Honestly, even international people still have no need to worry about internship spots as long as they’re okay with working a little bit more rural (I’m from QLD and ‘popular’ spots where everyone is pretty much guaranteed is Cairns, Townsville and Mackay)
Work no, Specialising yes. I think there is sth like triple the medical graduates since 2008 but the same amount of specialist training spots. Yet we are still shipping in overseas doctors by the boatloads. Definitely an issue which I hope gets more attention. Talking to some registrars some of the work they have had to do to get their training spots is insane and I can only imagine what it will be like when it comes time for me to specialise.
How does the journey to becoming a qualified doctor differ here compared to America?
Not sure as I'm not an American but for starters I believe there is no undergraduate programs. They also have standardised exams that all students sit in university where as here in Australia each uni does there own thing. Another big thing in America is each state has its own medical board where here in Australia we have a national system. For example if you have an Australian medical license you are free to practise anywhere in australia whereas in American you would need an American license and a New York or Californian license. That state license part can be extremely difficult to get and makes it near impossible for doctors to migrate to a desirable state like California from Australia. Once again don't quote me on this though this is just what I have heard.
have you cut anyone open yet?
Yes! We have disected cadavers.
warning be advised op not afraid to cut someone lolololol
Are you going to specialise in innys or outys?
Am I missing something? Why is everything being a dick with the questions?
Username checks out
Honestly not too sure, just thought I could provide some insight.
It's weird, haven't seen this before with an AMA.
Anyway, my question:
Apparently GPs "only study nutrition for like 3 hours at medical school". Is that true?It's usually nutritionists (which is not a protected title, therefore anyone can call themselves one) who make that (inaccurate) claim
@idonotknowwhy: Hey, I’m a doctor as well. Can confirm only
Had about 2 hours of lectures on diet at medical school. That was in about 2014It’s a special interest of mine and find it appalling that medical schools don’t teach it properly.
That said, I’m not sure what they should teach. Nutrition is poorly understood as a science and it’s not something that lends itself to clinical trials. The other issue is that there isn’t the money in nutrition when compared to a new pill so companies won’t pay for research.
I’ll end my rant here for now :)
Because the intellectual and maturity level of the OP and the average ozbargain user are miles apart
Tall poppy syndrome.
Oz bargain forums lately are like the worst parts of Reddit.
These days everyone on Ozbargain thinks they need to be comedians. As to why, who knows. Attention deficit disorder?
WHY has it taken so long for you to create an account? 🤔hrrrrm
Honestly never gotten around to doing it.
Serious question
Are you worried about burn out, and how is having a life outside of work being promoted in the hospital system
Yes this is something that does concern me in the future. If there are any other medical students or young doctors here I recommend reading all of Atul Gawande's books on medicine, Its a great guide on how to have a life real life and the realities to come. Overall I'm a pretty chill dude I never really get angry and don't get very stressed however I do fear for some of my friends who really do crumble sometimes. I think it is each to their own but its not rocket science the system isn't perfect but it does work, and with advocacy programs the state of overworking is improving and hopefully will continue to do so by the time I am working.
Postgrad? If so how old would you say your cohort is?
I do a guaranteed postgrad degree. (I started straight from high school, but I graduate with medsci and doctorate). Overall we have a huge range. I think when we started the range was something like 18-40. We have a couple moms and dads that worked really hard to switch up their lives and they are some of the most amazing people. I think the age of most people when we started was around 21-25. I really felt like the baby when we first started but being around people older than me really helped mature up and stop being the annoying teenager I'm sure I once was.
Mums*
What's your favourite meme
Saw this on Facebook,
" how can med students be sick, like bro just look at your notes "
I liked: "how can you fail anatomy, the answer is literally inside you"
Not a med student but I like the ones of doctors protesting using big signs with just scribble all over them
are you with the AMA
I do a lot of work with AMSA. Not the AMA. However me being here is just me wanting to contribute :). no one sent me
How many medical schools do you think is enough for Australia? What are the current plans in place for stopping them from cropping up
AMA views are often perceived as being too left-wing right now.
There's a reason why their membership is dropping and dropping rapidly and they're throwing cash trying to increase their membership numbers.
I think most of my comments are based on my experiences in university. I haven't given any medical advice or anything like that. Some people are curious as to what its like I know that a lot of moms and dads use this website. Sorry if you feel that way but from my side just trying to be friendly and answer some questions.
Again, his AMA is as a medical student, not as a MD. As in the title.
Obviously, questions should be related to being a medical student.
You are incorrect. The OP has not held themselves out as a doctor, they have not offered any medical advice whatsoever. As much as medicine is oversubscribed now, the number of people wanting to do it is bigger again and I think anyone considering it as a career would like the insights i'mAfunnyGuy would have to offer.
Your response is disproportionate to the original post and you need to reflect on what's gotten you so upset because objectively, it's not the OP.
Take a chill pill man… oh wait don't could have 'profound consequences'.
If you have any decency you should apologise for your uncalled rudeness.
Unprofessional is what I'd call you, definitely not the OP. What's with the attitude
Mate of mine took me to the basement where they dissect the cadavers whilst he was training to be a GP. The Professor I had been warned about might ask me a question. Got asked and passed with flying colours. The last time a trainee brought in a friend, he was reprimanded severely for it. The question was, with your hand stuck in the back of the cadaver, name each layer of flesh eg, organ, muscle etc
The worst part about it was, when I turned the cadaver over, it was a spitting image/likeness of my grandfather who had died 20 years earlier.
So sorry you had to go through an experience like that. I have heard of this happening before. Unfortunately things like this do happen despite the chances being so small.
Heh. The chances are actually not that small. Having volunteered to induct student into the dissection labs, it is actually almost a certainty that a cadaver is related to one of the students.
At least back then it was.
Today, the many cadavers are sent interstate so that reduces the risk considerably.
Your mate was a GP trainee, not a medical student?
Well, he did become a GP. But yes, I should have said Med' Student.
What your GPA and GAMSAT score prior to entry?
99+ atar and 97 umat. Did not do gamsat. Haven't heard that question in years.
Nice! Which Uni was it? I'm not sure of my chances getting in, but considering. Do you got any classmates who did GAMSAT entry? I think I'm 6.1 GPA but GEMSAS grade conversion says 6.25. I'm not sure if this is competitive enough as other people were just getting in with at least 6.5 GPA.
Id prefer not to say which uni I got too if you don't mind. With a 6.1 you'd probably find a usyd or uq pretty tough to get into. Look into places like Notre Dame, Wollongong, Macquarie and Griffith. If you can get a banging gamsat then anything is possible. Of course make sure you have a really solid portfolio too, I know plenty of people that worked really hard on their portfolios alongside having good marks. Finally interview is everything, some of the smartest people I know (and I mean like people doing phd math now) have failed to get in because of the interview. With a 6.25 you are in good standing but you will need a very high gamsat to be comfortable.
@imAfunnyGuy: GAMSAT iz de wae. Now I'm looking to study on that. One fb group I joined in had 5.2? or 5.4 GPA then got into USyd with 69 GAMSAT! So I guess it's true that with a high GAMSAT, it opens alot of opportunities. What do you suggest to make a solid portfolio?
@DardyMate: Im not 100% percent sure on what constitutes a 'good' portfolio as I didn't do the postgrad gamsat route, but try getting involved with your local community, get out there. I am sure at whatever uni you are at there will be a plethora of outreach programs. Portfolio's are your chance to show them who you are through your experiences.
@imAfunnyGuy: USyd is a great bet as GPA is only a hurdle. UQ was a good bet too as it was a hurdle but they just changed it - now it is used only after the interview stage. Thus UQ a good bet too. Probably disregard the OP advice and check out paging dr instead.
@DardyMate: Yeh no worries. It really is a matter of working out which med schools you have the best chance of getting into and working towards that. I'm rural and managed to get a BMP spot at UQ with a GPA of only 5.7 (but if I applied next year my graduate diploma would count so a GPA of 7) and a GAMSAT of 68. I think I interview well so that helps alot too.
Yes is competitive enough at 6.25. Look at pagingdr, there's a spreadsheet that has people's combined GPA/7 with GAMSAT/100 scores. Combo scores usually hover around the 1.7 mark for CSP and 1.6 mark for BMP. So you'd need around 70-80 GAMSAT (which is doable I know it sounds daunting).
For the person you saw on fb: 5.2 or 5.4 GPA generally isn't good enough unless you go for the portfolio universities or if you have higher than a bachelor qualification e.g. honours, masters (research) or PhD. Or from a rural background.
@diazepam: Thanks, that gave me confidence for my GPA. I've looked at pagingDR, it appears like if I get a high GAMSAT my chances at USyd is higher…? I was never a high achiever in my secondary, in fact I survived it by just copying so I have like zero knowledge in bio, chem, physics etc. Even my first year of Uni is whack. It seems like GAMSAT would be a good way to put my way in, and of course, portfolio.
@DardyMate: Like I said I didn't do gamsat route so not too sure on it, just what I've heard from some friends. Definitely take uwu's advice and good luck! Hope you get there soon.
For the record. My UAI/ATAR was 79 and my gamsat was 63. I’m a 3rd year doctor now.
Your initial marks aren’t a barrier to you doing it if you really want to!
Addit - I think my GPA at uni was like 5.1. :)
Heya, thanks for sharing! Can I send you a PM?
Go for it
Are they demonizing meat consumption and hailing veggies as the holy grail of healthyness in your uni?
Not at all. Balance is key.
How much maths do you use in your general studies? EG; do you need to have a-level maths ability to study medicine?
Have you experienced any pressure or bullying in your study so far? There’s been a lot of talk about unnecessary pressure on medical students, and medical students being pushed such that they aren’t able to have a healthy study-life balance.
Is it what you expected, studying medicine?
What area do you want to go into when you graduate?
Thanks for doing the AMA :) Best of luck with your future studies!
Yikes lot of questions here!
Maths is pretty basic not really any crazy calculus like I did in high school. A lot of formula's and calculations. I think a good understanding of stats is really important as it comes into a lot of the data we look at. I did 4 unit in high school but I think a 2 unit level would set you up to not run into any issues. They teach you how to do everything you need to know so I wouldn't be too worried.
I haven't experienced any bullying. At my uni every seems to get along really well so I am really lucky to have a close knit cohort. Stress is a given when starting medicine it is not any easy course at all and with that there are expectations to do well. I think as long as you understand that it is not going to be easy and have a good mentality then I think any pressure is manageable. In terms of bullying you do get some clinicians who sort of talk to you like you don't know anything which to be fair we really don't, but 99% of the time its to make sure we know that we have a lot to learn and is in our best interest. Once again I've had a really good experience so I can only speak for myself.
Yes, medicine is everything I wanted it to be and more. I still remember my first day I was probably one of the most energetic people in the room. I think if you love biology and talking to people trying to solve puzzles its an awesome pathway to look at.
In terms of what I want to do when I graduate is firstly get an internship in my home state. I had to go interstate for uni so I would like to move back to my city. From there I do have an interest in ophthalmology but its really too early to be definitive.
thanks heaps
Ask and ye shall receive! :)
No, but thanks for the info. Sounds like it’s all going well, which is great to hear.
I’ve noticed several times that you have attempted to create plurals by adding an apostrophe s. This is not correct. Please check out the Apostrophe Protection website to learn the correct way to pluralise words.
Quickly typing these out on my phone not really paying attention. I promise my grammar is fine :)
Do you believe physicians should use the title ‘doctor’ when they have completed neither a doctorate or PhD?
A physician in Australia is a doctor who has completed their FRACP though. What would you call those with a medical degree but with neither a doctorate or FRACP?
Hello my name is SAVE_MEDICARE I'll be your medical degree holder looking after you today?
What alternative title do you propose?
Nothing. They haven’t undertaken unique research
Just grabbed this from wikipedia,
Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin Medicinae Doctor) is a medical degree,
You're giving your uni away there dude, might want to delete that ;)
most uni's do MD these days right?
Thought only JCU and a few others still do MBBS?
@MessyG: It's all degree/prestige creep. More unis are transitioning every year to be more attractive to 17 year olds coming out of high school
@MessyG: Yeah most uni's are doing MD now. My uni changed a couple years back and I think it is a great opportunity. Some of my graduating friends had some really awesome projects to show for it.
Correct me if wrong, but it is not mandatory for physicians to undertake a Doctor of Medicine
It's all changed - some of the universities changed to Doctor of Medicine as a cash grab. Because it's now technically a masters they can charge a hell of a lot more.
1) The Doctor of Medicine is not mandatory to become a physician
2) Does the Doctor of Medicine involve unique research? If not, then it’s a misrepresentation of what a doctorate is
It was profession before it was a research title ;)
The original meaning of doctor had nothing to do with being a physician. The title is a misappropriation & physicians only have bachelors level education.
Presuming you are referring to all medical practitioners as 'physicians' (which as mentioned in Australia would generally mean a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians), the title is a fairly longstanding societal courtesy- anyone can use it who feels it applies to them; though traditionally is used by doctors, vets, dentists and most recently chiropractors.
The protected titles under legislation are 'medical practitioner', 'medical specialist' and each of the recognised specialties (ie. cardiologist, ophthalmologist).
The proviso is if the title 'Doctor' is used in a way which may mislead a patient to thinking the holder is a medical practitioner, the relevant Act is breached.
The 'Doctor of Medicine' (MD) degree is in fact a professional Masters level, and in itself wouldn't grant an academic qualification for a Doctor title, similar to how holders of a Juris Doctor (JD) aren't entitled to use the title 'Doctor'.
Yes, I know it’s longstanding. I consider it misappropriation, as their training no longer includes mandatory unique research
The title of Doctor was not taken due to 'mandatory unique research', so this isn't the qualifying element. It was the job itself, and probably in some way to differentiate from barber surgeons (which was a apprenticeship model, and the historical basis of surgeons reverting to Mr/Ms) and apothecaries.
@johnnyb: The original title of ‘doctor’ was for those who undertook a PhD or a professional doctorate.
Doctor comes from the Latin for teacher.
To become a physician requires neither & hence they have no right to the title. All they do is bachelor’s level degree.
If I pass high school, do I have the right to use the title ‘professor’? No different
Without any medical backgrounds, come from mathematics and physics, can someone study from the beginning in med school at his late 40s to start a new career? How long will it take.
Not too sure the entry requirements but assuming you were to get in it'd take you 4 years to finish med school about another 3 in the hospital then you'd start looking at specialising pathways. Id say if you were lucky and got through everything straight away 9-13 years is a safe bet before you'd be settled. In terms of non medical background, that shouldn't be an issue if you have a science background, might have to hit the books for any entry hurdles.
You can justwii - I had no maths or science (you do have to study it for the GAMSAT though but you can get high school and first year uni textbooks and work your way through). As for how long it takes - 4 years med school + 2 years residency plus minimum 2-3 years specialising if you get in on the first go and remember GP is a specialty now. All specialties have exams which plenty of people fail and need to have one or more goes at. Bare minimum of 8 years and that's not accounting for not getting a high enough GAMSAT score on the first try, getting into med school on the first try, failing any exams in med school, not getting into the specialty you want to (people do get rejected from all training programs due to numbers), failing specialty exams, and well, life slowing things down (illness, injury, kids etc). It's becoming less and less common to burn through it all in 8 years because the pressure inside the system is so great that most people need a break in there somewhere. I'd allow yourself 10-12 years and anything less is a bonus. Also can't work in med school really because it's a 9-5 job and your bank account takes a big hit.
Are you aware if he would have do finish any prerequisite subject? Once again I am not from a gamsat entry so I am not too sure but do universities have anything like anatomy or physiology units that need to be completed before starting?
Some do and some don't, you would have to check with the individual universities. Hop onto http://www.gemsas.edu.au/ and start there.
Hi OP, what if you have low GPA. what should you do to enter Medical school?
Get a higher GPA.
Are students truly worried about finding work when they graduate? A lot more students than previous years.