5 answers
Morgan
Student
Ann Arbor, Michigan
1
Question
Asked
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What is something you wish you knew before pursuing a career in Health Care?
I am graduating from high school in June of 2025. I am currently taking a course at my school where I have the opportunity to shadow health care professionals. So far I have enjoyed shadowing a Pediatric Physical Therapist, the SWAT team, and nurses working in the Inpatient Psychiatry Unit. I am certain I want to pursue a career in the health care field but am struggling to figure out what I would like to do specifically. Many of the providers I have met told me stories about working numerous jobs within the field before they found the position they loved the most. I am nervous about ending up in a position I don't enjoy as much as I think I would. There are so many different health care jobs that I had never even heard of until recently! There is so much to take in which has made me even more uncertain. I would love to hear of any stories and advice that may help!
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5 answers
Caleb Lindsey
Nursing Assistant
17
Answers
Bloomfield, Indiana
Updated
Caleb’s Answer
Hi Morgan,
This is such a great question to ask. I can empathize with your situation because I was in a very similar position of not knowing which health profession I wanted to pursue. I want to tell you that IT IS PERFECTLY NORMAL TO NOT KNOW WHAT YOU WANT TO DO IN HEALTHCARE! I have a lot of stories that echo this sentiment and I will try to provide you with some advice as well!
- I have spoken to medical students who have no idea what specialty they want to go into.
- I have spoken with doctors who told me that started out wanting to do surgery and ended up wanting to do emergency medicine.
- I shadowed a physician assistant (PA) who started out in medical school, dropped out, went to physician assistant school, became an emergency medicine physician assistant, and now works in orthopedics.
- I myself wanted to be a doctor when I started college, then I wanted to be a physician assistant, then I wanted to go to nursing school, then I changed BACK to wanting to be a doctor, and I just committed 100% to pursuing to PA school a few months ago. I was a flip flopper back and forth SO MUCH because I would have new experiences and think "Wow this is really cool I want to do this!". Then I would have another one and say "No, this is what's really cool, I want to do this!". And this cycle would repeat on and on and on.
- A friend of mine got his Bachelors in Public Health with plans of going to PA school and decided in HIS LAST SEMESTER to switch to nursing school and he is greatly enjoying it!
- I work with nurses who , before they became nurses or even THOUGHT about nursing school, worked as paramedics, truck drivers, police officers, Marines, Army, English teachers, fly fishermen, fast food workers and MANY other careers. I've worked with nurses who started their healthcare careers at 15 and ones who started their healthcare careers at 34. This was VERY reassuring to here as I was going through my own career struggles, so I recommend talking to the people you shadow in inpatient psych, SWAT, and peds PT and ask them what jobs they worked in before and what made them pursue the career they are in now. I'm sure you'll be surprised and encouraged by their answers!
- Two of my close friends who I've worked with as nursing assistants at my hospital are graduating nursing school and starting at my hospital as nurses! And I felt both a mixture of happiness and jealousy. I felt happy because they are great people and I am excited to see where life takes them, but also jealous because they were starting their full-time careers before me and were always so certain of what they wanted to be. One of them is even a full year younger than me, which made me feel like I was behind in life. But after a lot of journaling, prayer, and speaking with trusted love ones I realized I am not behind in life. I am right where I need to be and I should be present and enjoy where I am at. So, to make a long story short, YOU ARE NOT BEHIND YOU ARE PERFECTLY ON TIME.
I hope these stories help alleviate some anxiety. I am sure there are many more that I cannot think of as I write this but I hope you can find these helpful in some way. To summarize, ask people around you for their stories, be patient with yourself and immerse yourself in as many experiences as you can (shadowing, part-time jobs, internships, etc.), and I also recommend keeping a journal to write down your thoughts on where your interests are, what you like and don't like about each new career you experience, and keep track of meaningful experiences that you can reference back to later. I started this a few years ago and it has been IMMENSELY helpful for me.
I wish you the best of luck in your healthcare journey! You're going to do amazing no matter which career/specialty you choose to pursue!!
This is such a great question to ask. I can empathize with your situation because I was in a very similar position of not knowing which health profession I wanted to pursue. I want to tell you that IT IS PERFECTLY NORMAL TO NOT KNOW WHAT YOU WANT TO DO IN HEALTHCARE! I have a lot of stories that echo this sentiment and I will try to provide you with some advice as well!
- I have spoken to medical students who have no idea what specialty they want to go into.
- I have spoken with doctors who told me that started out wanting to do surgery and ended up wanting to do emergency medicine.
- I shadowed a physician assistant (PA) who started out in medical school, dropped out, went to physician assistant school, became an emergency medicine physician assistant, and now works in orthopedics.
- I myself wanted to be a doctor when I started college, then I wanted to be a physician assistant, then I wanted to go to nursing school, then I changed BACK to wanting to be a doctor, and I just committed 100% to pursuing to PA school a few months ago. I was a flip flopper back and forth SO MUCH because I would have new experiences and think "Wow this is really cool I want to do this!". Then I would have another one and say "No, this is what's really cool, I want to do this!". And this cycle would repeat on and on and on.
- A friend of mine got his Bachelors in Public Health with plans of going to PA school and decided in HIS LAST SEMESTER to switch to nursing school and he is greatly enjoying it!
- I work with nurses who , before they became nurses or even THOUGHT about nursing school, worked as paramedics, truck drivers, police officers, Marines, Army, English teachers, fly fishermen, fast food workers and MANY other careers. I've worked with nurses who started their healthcare careers at 15 and ones who started their healthcare careers at 34. This was VERY reassuring to here as I was going through my own career struggles, so I recommend talking to the people you shadow in inpatient psych, SWAT, and peds PT and ask them what jobs they worked in before and what made them pursue the career they are in now. I'm sure you'll be surprised and encouraged by their answers!
- Two of my close friends who I've worked with as nursing assistants at my hospital are graduating nursing school and starting at my hospital as nurses! And I felt both a mixture of happiness and jealousy. I felt happy because they are great people and I am excited to see where life takes them, but also jealous because they were starting their full-time careers before me and were always so certain of what they wanted to be. One of them is even a full year younger than me, which made me feel like I was behind in life. But after a lot of journaling, prayer, and speaking with trusted love ones I realized I am not behind in life. I am right where I need to be and I should be present and enjoy where I am at. So, to make a long story short, YOU ARE NOT BEHIND YOU ARE PERFECTLY ON TIME.
I hope these stories help alleviate some anxiety. I am sure there are many more that I cannot think of as I write this but I hope you can find these helpful in some way. To summarize, ask people around you for their stories, be patient with yourself and immerse yourself in as many experiences as you can (shadowing, part-time jobs, internships, etc.), and I also recommend keeping a journal to write down your thoughts on where your interests are, what you like and don't like about each new career you experience, and keep track of meaningful experiences that you can reference back to later. I started this a few years ago and it has been IMMENSELY helpful for me.
I wish you the best of luck in your healthcare journey! You're going to do amazing no matter which career/specialty you choose to pursue!!
This was super helpful, thank you! I will definitely start journaling about each experience, very genius.
Morgan
Martin Schoen
APRN
320
Answers
Ocala, Florida
Updated
Martin’s Answer
I really wish I had realized earlier how much I don't enjoy the business side of healthcare. Before I became a nurse practitioner, I earned advanced degrees in healthcare administration and worked in that area for a while. However, I just didn't find happiness there. I learned a lot, but I much prefer taking care of patients.
Thank you so much for the advice.
Morgan
Loryn Studer
Doctor of Physical Therapy
2
Answers
Bend, Oregon
Updated
Loryn’s Answer
Hi Morgan,
Echoing what Caleb said, it is totally normal to have this question and for the answer to change throughout your pursuit of education or even within your career. Medical, physician assistant, physical therapy, and occupational therapy schools all have very similar prerequisites that you will take in undergrad, which means you still have time! When you are taking the pre-req courses, think about how they apply to people or populations you may want to work with. Do you like biology? Do you prefer physics? Questions like that will lead you towards the types of applied sciences you enjoy which can narrow down the career options. Most pre-med/PT/OT/etc. Undergrad programs require an internship or continued shadowing of healthcare providers, so your exposure to new careers might not be over. Each healthcare profession has a large scope of practice, which allows for change even within a field. I know so many providers who work at hospitals and split their time between inpatient and outpatient or have completely changed from one speciality to another. There are lots of options within each career, so it's okay if you pick something and change your mind. The best thing you can do for yourself at this phase is just be open to opportunities. Find clubs and groups on campus or in your community for young healthcare professionals or pre-healthcare degrees. Surround yourself with others who are also uncertain of what they want to be but are passionate about being in healthcare. Hope this helps. As a healthcare provider, I'd like to welcome you to the community! Best of luck to you and your future career
Echoing what Caleb said, it is totally normal to have this question and for the answer to change throughout your pursuit of education or even within your career. Medical, physician assistant, physical therapy, and occupational therapy schools all have very similar prerequisites that you will take in undergrad, which means you still have time! When you are taking the pre-req courses, think about how they apply to people or populations you may want to work with. Do you like biology? Do you prefer physics? Questions like that will lead you towards the types of applied sciences you enjoy which can narrow down the career options. Most pre-med/PT/OT/etc. Undergrad programs require an internship or continued shadowing of healthcare providers, so your exposure to new careers might not be over. Each healthcare profession has a large scope of practice, which allows for change even within a field. I know so many providers who work at hospitals and split their time between inpatient and outpatient or have completely changed from one speciality to another. There are lots of options within each career, so it's okay if you pick something and change your mind. The best thing you can do for yourself at this phase is just be open to opportunities. Find clubs and groups on campus or in your community for young healthcare professionals or pre-healthcare degrees. Surround yourself with others who are also uncertain of what they want to be but are passionate about being in healthcare. Hope this helps. As a healthcare provider, I'd like to welcome you to the community! Best of luck to you and your future career
Allison Rosa
Physical Therapist
4
Answers
Guilderland, New York
Updated
Allison’s Answer
It is totally normal to not know exactly what you want to do!! The best advice I can give is to continue shadowing (it is so great that you have already started!). That is how I landed in pediatric physical therapy, but I’m not sure I would have known that was an option if I hadn’t shadowed a pediatric PT when I was in high school.
Elyse Crotty
Certified Surgical Technologist
13
Answers
Jacksonville, Florida
Updated
Elyse’s Answer
Health care is a huge and diverse field. Never limit yourself to one speciality or the other. The best health care workers are adaptable, flexible, and versatile. You will find your way.