u/Super-Knee5498

Hello all! Non traditional premed student (formerly worked in finance, believe it or not). I have found that throughout all my clinical experiences, both in my current clinical job, but also in volunteering (emergency room and working with the unhoused) I am consistently drawn the most to conversing with people, learning their problems and life stories. This is made me consider social work as a potential avenue for medical social work or counseling.

Grades aren't a motivating factor, I've done all the prereqs and have the GPA for med school. It's simply a question of interest and fulfillment; I'm not sure the debt and grind of medical school/residency is worth it to become a prescribing psychiatrist when the conversational time with patients is what drives me towards clinical work. Of course there is a difference in life-time earnings but I prioritize financial stability and fulfillment over wealth accumulation.

Has anyone else navigated this transition? What did you think about, and how did you decide on your career path?

Been seeing a lot of this. Non-trad (but a bio major), career-changer. Presumably not worth it to take prereqs again (3.9+). Edit: I took my prereqs between 2020 and 2023 and plan to take 2 upper div classes (Cell Bio, Neurobiology) to show recent science coursework before applying.

Hi! Non-trad premed looking to start studying with a full time job. No definite test date/timeline, but know that I want to prep for CARs as I anticipate it will be my weakest section (3.9+ Stem major, used to work in finance).

Current strategy: 2 JW passages a day, untimed + with error log and error analysis using Claude. I am also using Claude to help me brainstorm anki cards that cover technique for my most common errors (e.g., picking an answer that uses extreme language, is out of scope, etc.). The plan is to introduce soft timing once I'm consistently scoring ~80%+, then work down to test timing + build endurance blocks closer to the full length of the section.
My current JW CARs average (untimed) is 78%.

Are there other resources for CARs you'd recommend? (Have already used khan academy). Saving AAMC material for a couple months out from the test. Have heard good things about EK and want to make the most of third party resources before I use AAMC material, as I have long runway from now til I test.