12yo very interested in studying medicine - any advice?

Valzer

Hi.
I have a 12 year old daughter in 1st year of secondary school. Academically she is doing very well, and she seems determined to strive towards a career in medicine (she wants to be a Neurosurgeon). I work in construction and I've honestly no idea how to assist her. I'm looking for some advice from people in the know.

She will be 13 in July and she has asked me if it would be possible for her to view a surgery (perhaps from the gallery) for her birthday present, is this even possible? Would it be suitable for a 13 year old? And of course if so how would I go about arranging it?

Dingle_berry

A lot can change in a persons teenage years. The worst thing you can do is lock her in to becoming a doctor. Make sure she knows she can become who she wants to become. Make sure she looks into related jobs like vetrinary, pharmacy etc.

In terms of academia the more science she does the better. More than just doing it and getting good grades she needs to be interested and to understand the principles. She will need good English and communication skills. And French/Spanish/German etc to get into most universities. Building teamwork through team sports would be good and studying music.
With regard to watching a surgery I have no idea. I don't know if modern theatres are true "theatres" with audience galleries etc. if they were these would be strictly for staff only. Look for something like the DVDs of "Anatomy for beginners" with Gunther Von Hagens by/with BBC or channel 4. They're on Netflix. Watch them yourself first though as I don't think they're suitable for a teen. I'm sure there are documentaries on the life of doctors too.

Just Like Heaven

As posted previously the more Science she does the better, chemistry and a 3rd language will probably be required depending on what schools she applies to. Honours Maths comes with a points bonus these days too.

I don't think it'll be possible for her to see any surgery in the country. There are plenty of DVDs and documentaries on the human body though. Perhaps even an illustrated anatomy atlas if you can get your hands on one each cheap.

ArthurG

Why not bring her along to an open day at one of the unis that offer medicine?. Whilst she's still a bit young I'd imagine the usual people manning the stalls at would be delighted to talk to someone interested in their area at that age. Admittedly the open day season is probably over for now, but they should be kicking off around the time of her birthday.

j.mcdrmd

Check out the Centre for Talented Youth Ireland here.

http://www4.dcu.ie/ctyi/index.shtml

Possibly too late for assessment for next summer courses at this stage but it is worth a look.

HeadPig

Valzer wrote: »

Hi.
I have a 12 year old daughter in 1st year of secondary school. Academically she is doing very well, and she seems determined to strive towards a career in medicine (she wants to be a Neurosurgeon). I work in construction and I've honestly no idea how to assist her. I'm looking for some advice from people in the know.

She will be 13 in July and she has asked me if it would be possible for her to view a surgery (perhaps from the gallery) for her birthday present, is this even possible? Would it be suitable for a 13 year old? And of course if so how would I go about arranging it?

Show her the thread on doctors current working conditions in the Health Sciences Forum. If she still wants to do medicine a psychiatric evaluation can be arranged.

:pac:

Just Like Heaven

j.mcdrmd wrote: »

Check out the Centre for Talented Youth Ireland here.

http://www4.dcu.ie/ctyi/index.shtml

Possibly too late for assessment for next summer courses at this stage but it is worth a look.

Happy birthday indeed.

Anthony16

All i cared about at 12 was football,women and food.In that order

Joeyjoejoe83

One word: reading. Encourage her to read books, all types, be it the crappy twilight novels to the classic masterpieces. If she wants to do medicine she has to be prepared to spend hours upon hours taking in information and learning and have fantastic concentration, and having her read is the best way. The person with the best memory for information in my class is by no means the most intelligent, but he has a fantastic memory for facts and he is really into his reading.
It may be difficult, but if you can get her to love reading and to do well at school, that's a huge part of the battle.

AndrewJD

As someone coming from almost exactly the position as your daughter, but 10 years down the line, I'd say just leave it just now. If you're determined there are opportunities in transition year and the like to attach to a medical team for a few days but you're not going to get much of that, least of all at 12. Just encourage her academically and when she's a bit older and looking at subject choices look at the situation again.

And definitely don't push her down Medicine, let her figure it out. The most depressed people in the class (and the people who drop out after wasting 1 or 2 years and a boatload of their parents cash) are the ones who only chose Medicine to satisfy their parents.