EMT vs. CNA: Prospective premed planning for future
I am an incoming HS senior applying to schools, and as of now I'm applying with the desire to do my four years on the pre med track. I'm trying to plan for the future because my end goal is to go to a T20 med school. And clinical hours are really important and I've been thinking of productive ways to get them. One of my friends served as EMT for a local rural community near my city and she's inspired me to want to pursue that path. However, I've heard and read that most cities in the United States do not let anyone under 21 work as an EMT. This means that if I spent my spring working to get an EMT certificate or doing training, I might not even use it until my senior year of college. I'm really drawn to EMT because of the fast paced environment, and it definitely seems more exciting and something that I'm more interested in than becoming a CNA
On the other hand, CNA services do not have such restrictive age limits and I'd most likely be able to have a really flexible schedule and start clinical hours the fall of my freshman year in college
Something else that's a really big factor is that I haven't had a paying job at all in high school. I'm really privileged to have been able to spend my summers doing unpaid research because my family has been able to financially support me throughout all four years of high school. Unfortunately, I realized that this has made me less financially, knowledgeable, or responsible in comparison to my friends who do have paying jobs. I want to be able to make money during my undergrad years so I can start to pay for myself and learn how to be financially independent.
Aside from just telling me to wait until I see where I get into and where I commit what advice do you guys have? Is there any way that I'd still be able to get paid clinical hours aside from being a CNA or an EMT?
Thank you!!
