2 answers
seby
Student
Great Barrington, Massachusetts
2
Questions
Asked
203 views
I want to be a anesthesiologist
How can I become an Anesthesiologist, what are the steps I need to take to reach to my goal. And what colleges can I go to become a anesthesiologist.
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2 answers
Michael Torio
Consultant - Data Reporting & Analysis (HQ Finance)
361
Answers
Alpharetta, Georgia
Updated
Michael’s Answer
Hi Seby:
While in high school, one will need to focus on science and math classes to prepare for a career in Anesthesiology. Physics, chemistry and biology will be the core science courses. For math, algebra, geometry and statistics will be needed. Other classes to take will be anatomy, physiology, computer applications and food and nutrition. The combination of these concentrations will enable you to focus and refine your analytical skills for research; complex problem solving; investigative and innovative critical thinking; attention to detail; etc.
Other skills that will need to be built upon center around team building, team work and communication. In any work culture, collaboration among team members, staff and partner departments occur on a daily basis. As an Anesthesiologist, communication is essential and critical when dealing with patients, medical personnel and other hospital staff. A college course in public speaking, communications and English will help with one's communication and writing skills. While in high school, the debate team will provide the opportunity to sharpen communication skills which are backed with research and factual data and information.
The educational pathway to become an Anesthesiologist will require a Bachelor Degree which takes 4 years to complete. Then, medical school will be 4 years. Anesthesiology residency and licensure will follow thereafter. In total, it can take 12-15 years to become an Anesthesiologist.
According to U.S. News & World Report, here are the top colleges and universities to consider for Anesthesiology:
https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-medical-schools/anesthesiology-rankings
- Harvard University
- John Hopkins University
- Duke University
- University of California - San Francisco
- Columbia University
- Stanford University
- University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
- University of Pennsylvania - Perelman
- University of California - Los Angeles (Geffen)
- Washington University in St. Louis
- Mayo Clinic School of Medicine (Alix)
- Vanderbilt University
When reviewing colleges and universities, it is best to check the following:
- In-State vs Out of State Tuition
- Internships
- Scholarships
- Career Placement upon graduation
- Course work and offered classes
- Post-Graduate Degrees - Master and Doctoral
There will be a application fee to pay for when submitting college applications. The amount of application fee will depend on the college that you are applying to. If there are questions about the college application process, please reach out to the college's Registrar Office.
College and scholarship applications can start to be submitted during your Junior year and will continue throughout your Senior year in high school. It is best to ask your Academic Advisor/School Counselor on the timeline process as well. College and scholarship applications will have specific deadlines and requirements to meet in order to be submitted for review and consideration.
You may want to start to compile your resume/portfolio since a majority of college and scholarship applications will require academic grade point average (GPA), academic accomplishments, school activities (clubs, sports, etc.), community involvement (volunteer, church, etc.), academic and personal recommendations, etc. There may be essay requirements on why you are a qualified candidate to receive the scholarship and to gain entry to the college of your choice, what your future goals are academically and professionally and other questions centering around who you are, your beliefs, etc.
Here are a couple of links for College Scholarships:
https://www.mometrix.com/blog/scholarships-for-college/
https://www.nchchonors.org/students/awards-scholarships/national-scholarships
Also, it will be best to check with the colleges and universities that you will be applying to. You can check with the School/Department of your desired major, the Campus Career Center and the Register's Office for additional information for college scholarships and grants and specific requirements for qualifications.
There should be no limit on the amount of scholarships that one can apply to. It will take time to fill out the scholarship applications and provide all of the necessary required information. Also, there should no fee and no cost to fill out and submit scholarship applications. If there is a fee or cost that is associated with a scholarship application, then please do not send this particular scholarship application in. It will be a scam and money will be lost.
Hope this helps and best wishes for your education and career in Anesthesiology!
While in high school, one will need to focus on science and math classes to prepare for a career in Anesthesiology. Physics, chemistry and biology will be the core science courses. For math, algebra, geometry and statistics will be needed. Other classes to take will be anatomy, physiology, computer applications and food and nutrition. The combination of these concentrations will enable you to focus and refine your analytical skills for research; complex problem solving; investigative and innovative critical thinking; attention to detail; etc.
Other skills that will need to be built upon center around team building, team work and communication. In any work culture, collaboration among team members, staff and partner departments occur on a daily basis. As an Anesthesiologist, communication is essential and critical when dealing with patients, medical personnel and other hospital staff. A college course in public speaking, communications and English will help with one's communication and writing skills. While in high school, the debate team will provide the opportunity to sharpen communication skills which are backed with research and factual data and information.
The educational pathway to become an Anesthesiologist will require a Bachelor Degree which takes 4 years to complete. Then, medical school will be 4 years. Anesthesiology residency and licensure will follow thereafter. In total, it can take 12-15 years to become an Anesthesiologist.
According to U.S. News & World Report, here are the top colleges and universities to consider for Anesthesiology:
https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-medical-schools/anesthesiology-rankings
- Harvard University
- John Hopkins University
- Duke University
- University of California - San Francisco
- Columbia University
- Stanford University
- University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
- University of Pennsylvania - Perelman
- University of California - Los Angeles (Geffen)
- Washington University in St. Louis
- Mayo Clinic School of Medicine (Alix)
- Vanderbilt University
When reviewing colleges and universities, it is best to check the following:
- In-State vs Out of State Tuition
- Internships
- Scholarships
- Career Placement upon graduation
- Course work and offered classes
- Post-Graduate Degrees - Master and Doctoral
There will be a application fee to pay for when submitting college applications. The amount of application fee will depend on the college that you are applying to. If there are questions about the college application process, please reach out to the college's Registrar Office.
College and scholarship applications can start to be submitted during your Junior year and will continue throughout your Senior year in high school. It is best to ask your Academic Advisor/School Counselor on the timeline process as well. College and scholarship applications will have specific deadlines and requirements to meet in order to be submitted for review and consideration.
You may want to start to compile your resume/portfolio since a majority of college and scholarship applications will require academic grade point average (GPA), academic accomplishments, school activities (clubs, sports, etc.), community involvement (volunteer, church, etc.), academic and personal recommendations, etc. There may be essay requirements on why you are a qualified candidate to receive the scholarship and to gain entry to the college of your choice, what your future goals are academically and professionally and other questions centering around who you are, your beliefs, etc.
Here are a couple of links for College Scholarships:
https://www.mometrix.com/blog/scholarships-for-college/
https://www.nchchonors.org/students/awards-scholarships/national-scholarships
Also, it will be best to check with the colleges and universities that you will be applying to. You can check with the School/Department of your desired major, the Campus Career Center and the Register's Office for additional information for college scholarships and grants and specific requirements for qualifications.
There should be no limit on the amount of scholarships that one can apply to. It will take time to fill out the scholarship applications and provide all of the necessary required information. Also, there should no fee and no cost to fill out and submit scholarship applications. If there is a fee or cost that is associated with a scholarship application, then please do not send this particular scholarship application in. It will be a scam and money will be lost.
Hope this helps and best wishes for your education and career in Anesthesiology!
Thank you so much Michael Torio
seby
Brett Schlifstein
Anesthesiologist
27
Answers
Pittsboro, North Carolina
Updated
Brett’s Answer
Hi Seby,
You have chosen a challenging, yet rewarding path. Your journey will start with college. Although you can attend any college, when you apply to medical school, the college that you attended will be a factor, so choose one with a good to excellent academic reputation. During this time, you will need to complete all of the medical school pre-requisite courses. Double check some medical school websites to make sure you complete them all, but will certainly include biology, genetics, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, physics, and calculus. As long as you complete the pre-requisites, you can major in anything you like. I'd suggest picking something of interest to you, as well as something you can use should you change your mind and not go to medical school. During college, you will also need to take the MCAT exam. Medical school admissions are quite competitive, so your standardized test scores and GPA will be important - the higher the better. I would also recommend augmenting your resume with scientific research and/or volunteer work in the health care field.
Next you will need to attend and graduate from medical school - this will take four years. I suggest multiple applications to a variety of schools. Any U.S. accreditied medical school will give you a good education, but some are better than others. The first two years of medical school are mostly classroom work, and the last two years are clinical rotations, where you will get exposure to the many different specialties of medicine. There are multiple portions of the National Board of Medical Examiners exams that you will need to pass along the way - some during medical school, and some during post graduate training (internship). Grades are important during medical school - when you apply for your internship and residency, they will be taken into account.
I should mention that all of the education to this point can be quite expensive. So cost and how you pay for it will definitely be factors. You don't want to accumulate debt that will follow you for decades to come. Compare costs, and explore grants and scholarships. Reach out to school counselors to assist you with this process.
Post graduate training for an anesthesiologist consists of four years of training - one year of internship, and three years of residency. These can be done at the same institution, or different ones. The internship must be in a primary care field - internal medicine, surgery, OB/GYN, pediatrics - there may be some others. Most people choose internal medicine, as the anesthesiologist is kind of the internist of the operating room and manages the patients medical conditions before, during, and after surgery. Anesthesiology residency trains you how to pratice anesthesia for a variety of surgeries - pediatric, cardiac, thoracic, obstetrics, transplant, trauma, orthopedics, etc. You will also receive training in critical care medicine and pain management. Your residency will make you the anesthesiologist that you will be for the rest of your career - so I would choose the strongest program possible.
You are paid during internship and residency, but not very much. Hours will be long, and when you do the math, you will be making a little more than minimum wage. But it is enough to live on, and when you finish, you will have a big increase in income.
After residency, I would strongly recommend achieving board certification. This consists of both a written and oral exam and usually can be accomplished within a year of finishing your training. At this point you will be prepared to practice in the field of anesthesiology. Some people choose to undergo additional sub-specialty training . This is call a fellowship, and one can sub-specialize in pediatric anesthesia, cardiac anesthesia, pain management, critical care medicine, or neuroanesthesia.
If you change your mind during any portion of this journey, do not be surprised. This happens quite often, as one's vision of a field and what they actually experience can be quite different. Best of luck!
Brett Schlifstein, M.D.
Anesthesia Director
ECU Health Roanoke Chowan Hospital
You have chosen a challenging, yet rewarding path. Your journey will start with college. Although you can attend any college, when you apply to medical school, the college that you attended will be a factor, so choose one with a good to excellent academic reputation. During this time, you will need to complete all of the medical school pre-requisite courses. Double check some medical school websites to make sure you complete them all, but will certainly include biology, genetics, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, physics, and calculus. As long as you complete the pre-requisites, you can major in anything you like. I'd suggest picking something of interest to you, as well as something you can use should you change your mind and not go to medical school. During college, you will also need to take the MCAT exam. Medical school admissions are quite competitive, so your standardized test scores and GPA will be important - the higher the better. I would also recommend augmenting your resume with scientific research and/or volunteer work in the health care field.
Next you will need to attend and graduate from medical school - this will take four years. I suggest multiple applications to a variety of schools. Any U.S. accreditied medical school will give you a good education, but some are better than others. The first two years of medical school are mostly classroom work, and the last two years are clinical rotations, where you will get exposure to the many different specialties of medicine. There are multiple portions of the National Board of Medical Examiners exams that you will need to pass along the way - some during medical school, and some during post graduate training (internship). Grades are important during medical school - when you apply for your internship and residency, they will be taken into account.
I should mention that all of the education to this point can be quite expensive. So cost and how you pay for it will definitely be factors. You don't want to accumulate debt that will follow you for decades to come. Compare costs, and explore grants and scholarships. Reach out to school counselors to assist you with this process.
Post graduate training for an anesthesiologist consists of four years of training - one year of internship, and three years of residency. These can be done at the same institution, or different ones. The internship must be in a primary care field - internal medicine, surgery, OB/GYN, pediatrics - there may be some others. Most people choose internal medicine, as the anesthesiologist is kind of the internist of the operating room and manages the patients medical conditions before, during, and after surgery. Anesthesiology residency trains you how to pratice anesthesia for a variety of surgeries - pediatric, cardiac, thoracic, obstetrics, transplant, trauma, orthopedics, etc. You will also receive training in critical care medicine and pain management. Your residency will make you the anesthesiologist that you will be for the rest of your career - so I would choose the strongest program possible.
You are paid during internship and residency, but not very much. Hours will be long, and when you do the math, you will be making a little more than minimum wage. But it is enough to live on, and when you finish, you will have a big increase in income.
After residency, I would strongly recommend achieving board certification. This consists of both a written and oral exam and usually can be accomplished within a year of finishing your training. At this point you will be prepared to practice in the field of anesthesiology. Some people choose to undergo additional sub-specialty training . This is call a fellowship, and one can sub-specialize in pediatric anesthesia, cardiac anesthesia, pain management, critical care medicine, or neuroanesthesia.
If you change your mind during any portion of this journey, do not be surprised. This happens quite often, as one's vision of a field and what they actually experience can be quite different. Best of luck!
Brett Schlifstein, M.D.
Anesthesia Director
ECU Health Roanoke Chowan Hospital