fancyfeast Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 Considering rejecting all my offers and doing I don't know what for a year. I looked at MIT and Berkeley for chemistry and I think I like Berkeley better but even then, I am not sure I want to do this. I was interested in med school for a long time and did well in my classes (I even took the MCAT and got a good score), volunteered etc. I work a ton in my lab and find that fulfilling too but 5 years is a long time and in the end I think a career as a doctor sounds more appealing to me. It's a tough call to make. MIT is more prestigious to the average person, but for whatever reason I just didn't feel this "connection" like I did with Berkeley, but Berkeley is huge and far away from my family and SO. I feel like the decision shouldn't be this hard and since it is I should just say no to all my offers and find scribe/RA job somewhere (I feel like I'm letting down my letter writers, my PI, my lab, etc - all my friends think in going to grad school so I would have a lot of explaining to do haha). Any input on MIT or Berkeley or the attitude I would need to survive grad school (because right now I am not sure why I am going other than I like doing research) would be great Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mechanician2015 Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 Wow... beefgallo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rising_star Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 You need to defer your acceptances or just turn them down if you're really not feeling it. There are moments in grad school where you aren't feeling it but, if you want to succeed and come out with the degree in the end, you have to make sure that either those don't last too long or that you find a way through it. If you're already not feeling it and don't really want to do the work of getting a PhD, don't go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SublimePZ Posted April 11, 2015 Share Posted April 11, 2015 I went to Berkeley for undergrad and had an amazing time. The school has a lot of um... personality and diversity, with a vibrant/energetic community. It sounds like you would enjoy your time more at Cal than at MIT and that sounds like a pretty large factor to me. As far as grad school in general goes, you always read/hear about people who question themselves and their work during grad school, but you're already questioning this decision? It sounds like maybe you need more time to sort out your feelings for your career. Just an aside, people with MDs can still do research - you don't need a PhD to do research, strictly speaking. In fact, many med schools require research on the side (during the summer, etc.). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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