Do you want to make your son or daughter a doctor?
I asked a few students who became medical students as to how they made it to medical school with out a strong background. Here are the things they mentioned.
Elementary School (grades 1-5):
Some areas/states will have advanced or gifted programs for kids early on.
Discover these and take advantage of them.
Biggest factor that is useful throughout all schooling is READING.
The smartest kids are the ones who read the most.
It doesn’t have to be science related, whatever they’re interested (space, dinosaurs, cars etc.).
Take family trips to the library, the goal is to facilitate and environment were kids want to and can easily learn while enjoying it.
Middle School (grades 6-8):
Try to see if your school has talented/gifted/advanced programs.
Many schools will have programs which allow students to take advanced math and science courses.
If possible enroll children in those.
High School (grades 9-12):
Important to get good grades, and be involved in something outside of school as well (band/sports/clubs).
Take AP (advanced placement) classes which can give you college credits and also boost your GPA (grade point average).
Some schools have an IB (International Baccalaureate) program which is an advanced program but not an American system.
I would recommend taking the AP system if given the option.
SAT is the admissions/entry test for college.
There are multiple prep courses for this such as Kaplan.
I would recommend getting a prep course in person with a teacher, as it is more engaging and helpful that an online one.
Khan Academy is a good tool which is free and which works with the college board.
Overall: College application is based off your GPA, your SAT score and your extracurricular activities (things you do outside of school).
Make sure to have a good balance, but also focus on scores.
[Photo by JAFAR AHMED on Unsplash]
College (grades 13-16):
Very important to get good grades at beginning of college because classes are easier.
Your GPA (grade point average) needs to be a 3.7/3.8 or higher to be competitive for medical school.
You will also take your MCAT (Medical College Admissions Test) which you want to have at least a 510 or higher to be competitive on.
For MCAT, Khan academy and Exam Krackers are the best preparatory tools I know of (One student used these two and got 97th percentile on the test).
It is also important to get to know your professors well as you will need letters of recommendation when applying to medical school.
Make sure to do extracurricular activities as well (sports, clubs, leadership positions etc.) as there is a large portion of the application for these things.
Make sure to complete the three core medical school requirements.
These include shadowing doctors, volunteering, and research if possible.
Write all of these down and document them as well as all your other activities so you can reference when you are applying to school.
Make sure to do things that you enjoy and are passionate about.
Everyone is doing the basics do something that makes you unique/stand out.
Are there any other things that were missed?
Good Luck.