Choosing the Right Medical Specialty for You
Hello, Future Physicians!
This newsletter is about choosing the right medical specialty for you. Choosing a specialty can be difficult, but it is also a crucial part of your journey in medical school and to become a doctor. It is important to choose a specialty that you enjoy and could see yourself working in. Sometimes, the specialty that you have in mind may impact the medical school that you choose. There are many different specialties available that cater to diverse strengths, weaknesses, skills, and interests. Some specialties even serve specific populations. It is important to thoroughly evaluate your passions and where you would be comfortable working before officially deciding on a medical specialty. Creating a pros and cons list may be helpful in deciding what specialty may be a good fit for you.
Assess Your Strengths and Weaknesses: Evaluating your strengths and weaknesses can be a great way to narrow down what specialties you may be a good fit for. For example, if you enjoy working with children, pediatrics may be a specialty for you to consider. Think about what makes working in the medical field exciting for you. Parts of your response may be able to be connected with some aspects of a particular specialty. Some specialties, such as family medicine, require working directly with patients more than others, so if you enjoy getting to work and talk with patients more than something like performing surgeries, you may consider specialties like this.
Some questions to consider when choosing a specialty include:
Do you work well in intense, high-stress environments?
Would you like to regularly see patients?
What topics in medicine interest you the most?
What ages would you like to work with?
Would you like to perform surgeries?
What would you like for your work schedule to be?
Would you like to work with a specific patient population?
What impact will working in this specialty have on your mental health?
Are you able to “go with the flow” or do you prefer to have a more structured schedule?
Do you have a specific passion for helping patients with a specific disease or other medical issue?
What areas of medicine interest you the least?
What is your reasoning behind wanting to work in the medical field?
What impact do you want to make on patients and the medical field as a whole?
Answering some of these questions can help you further develop a sense of what your passions are, which can help you evaluate your fit for particular specialties.
Shadowing/Internships: Participating in shadowing and internship opportunities can play a major role in helping you decide what specialty is best for you. It can allow you to experience the day-to-day life of a doctor in a specific specialty, and it may even allow you to gain some hands-on experience. You will get to see firsthand what doctors in these areas do, which can be much different from just reading about these specialties. It can also be helpful to shadow multiple doctors in different specialties so that you can make an informed decision. It may even be helpful to shadow a couple doctors in that same specialty to see how the job and specialty might differ from office to office. It can also help you get to hear the experience of different medical professionals and the way they got to where they are today. Some hospitals and companies may host multiple interns at a time. In this case, you can connect with other aspiring medical professionals and learn about what they are doing to reach their goals.
Talk to Experienced Doctors: With shadowing, internships, research, and other opportunities, you will likely have the opportunity to talk to experienced doctors and other medical professionals. While you participate in these things, it can be useful to ask these professionals about their jobs and specialties and what drew them to pursue them. They may be able to give you more insight into their jobs, and they also might be willing to mentor you and guide you through your medical journey. Talking to other doctors can be useful in networking and being aware of other jobs and opportunities to develop even within a particular specialty.
A list of medical specialties include:
Radiology
use x-rays, sound waves in ultrasounds, and radioactive substances to diagnose illnesses in patients
Pediatrics
treat patients from infancy through adolescence
subspecialties include pediatric sports medicine, pediatric rheumatology, pediatric critical care medicine, child abuse pediatrics, pediatric cardiology, and more
Anesthesiology
dedicated to patient pain relief before, during, and after surgery
subspecialties include critical care medicine, sleep medicine, and pain medicine
Emergency Medicine
provide care for infant, adult, and child patients during a time of emergency
take action in decision making to prevent further harm or injury
work in a fast-paced environment
Neurology
work with the nerves and the nervous system
diagnose and treat diseases in the brain, spinal cord, autonomic nervous system, and more
Family Medicine
focuses on treating the patient as a whole and treat patients of varying ages
trained to provide comprehensive health care
Allergy and Immunology
work with patients who suffer from allergies and diseases that affect the immune system and the respiratory tract
can also pursue opportunities in clinical practice, education, and even research
About Future Physicians: Future Physicians is a nonprofit organization that connects aspiring doctors and medical students with opportunities for internships, shadowing, research, and more. As previously mentioned, participating in these opportunities can help you decide which medical specialty and career path you would like to pursue. If you would like to learn more about medical school and the medical field, please feel free to sign up for our newsletter below. Also, please share Future Physicians with a friend to help them reach their goals. Thank you so much for reading!
Keep growing and learning!
The Future Physicians Newsletter Team
(Made with the help of St. George’s University School of Medicine)