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Routes In The Medical Field
What different routes can you take to become a plastic surgeon?
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Garrett’s Answer
There are multiple paths to becoming a plastic surgeon but the commonalities are college then medical school and then you can either do a plastic surgery residency or do general surgery followed by a plastics fellowship. Regardless it's going to require you to be well-rounded and excel in academics plus at least 14 years of commitment after high school until you can practice on your own.
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Carri’s Answer
Great question! The road to becoming a plastic surgeon looks like this:
4 years of college (on average) for a Bachelor’s degree - Usually in biology, chemistry, or biochemistry, but I also had med school classmates who majored in art, psychology, history, music, etc. It’s really just a matter of making sure you take the correct prerequisite courses. Your pre-med advisor in college will help you with this. You will need good grades, lots of volunteer experiences (any volunteer work counts, but especially related to healthcare), and it will help if you shadow a few different specialties during this time, because medical schools like well-rounded applicants. You will also need to do well on the MCAT exam.
4 years of medical school (on average) - Some people will take extra time to do research or get a PhD.
After medical school, there are two main ways that people become plastic surgeons:
1. Apply directly to plastic surgery residency - Most programs are 6 years long, but some have extra research years as well. This is one of the most competitive specialties in medicine, and it’s very hard to get into these programs, so you will have to do VERY well in medical school to match into one.
2. Some students choose to go into general surgery originally (which is a 5 year program) and then decide later to apply for a fellowship in plastic surgery (usually 3 years). General surgery is not quite as competitive as plastic surgery residency, but you still need to be a very good candidate with excellent grades in medical school to get into general surgery residency. You also have to maintain a good status during your surgery residency if you want to apply for plastics fellowship, because your acceptance will depend on your performance during your residency.
I hope that helps!
4 years of college (on average) for a Bachelor’s degree - Usually in biology, chemistry, or biochemistry, but I also had med school classmates who majored in art, psychology, history, music, etc. It’s really just a matter of making sure you take the correct prerequisite courses. Your pre-med advisor in college will help you with this. You will need good grades, lots of volunteer experiences (any volunteer work counts, but especially related to healthcare), and it will help if you shadow a few different specialties during this time, because medical schools like well-rounded applicants. You will also need to do well on the MCAT exam.
4 years of medical school (on average) - Some people will take extra time to do research or get a PhD.
After medical school, there are two main ways that people become plastic surgeons:
1. Apply directly to plastic surgery residency - Most programs are 6 years long, but some have extra research years as well. This is one of the most competitive specialties in medicine, and it’s very hard to get into these programs, so you will have to do VERY well in medical school to match into one.
2. Some students choose to go into general surgery originally (which is a 5 year program) and then decide later to apply for a fellowship in plastic surgery (usually 3 years). General surgery is not quite as competitive as plastic surgery residency, but you still need to be a very good candidate with excellent grades in medical school to get into general surgery residency. You also have to maintain a good status during your surgery residency if you want to apply for plastics fellowship, because your acceptance will depend on your performance during your residency.
I hope that helps!
Updated
Hava’s Answer
You will have to go to medical school and then do a residency in surgery, specializing in plastic surgery. The basic pathway involves going to college, usually with a premed major. That major will ensure that you take all the prerequisite classes you will need to get into medical school. You will need to have very good grades and you will need to take the MCAT (Medical College Admission Test) and get a good score. Medical schools like to see someone who has shown a commitment to the field so it's a good idea to get some volunteer work in at a hospital or other health care environment. This can also help you get an idea if this is a field you really are interested in. I would also recommend seeing if you can find a plastic surgeon who is willing to talk to you about the career, the pros and the cons, etc. Often, things are not as glamorous as they seem!
Surgery residency is grueling. You have to be the type of person who can function and maintain a stable mood without a lot of sleep, at least for a few years of your life! Medical school can also be pretty grueling as far as hours. There is a lot of memorization and also nights of call with little sleep. That said, you do not have to be a genius, just a hard worker. It's important to keep in mind that it is just a period of time and the medical school and residency experience is not what the rest of your life as a physician will be like.
Surgery residency is grueling. You have to be the type of person who can function and maintain a stable mood without a lot of sleep, at least for a few years of your life! Medical school can also be pretty grueling as far as hours. There is a lot of memorization and also nights of call with little sleep. That said, you do not have to be a genius, just a hard worker. It's important to keep in mind that it is just a period of time and the medical school and residency experience is not what the rest of your life as a physician will be like.
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Waseem’s Answer
First step is to become a general surgeon followed by subspecialty training in plastic surgery
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George’s Answer
There is not much I can add to the advise given by the other doctors. You did mention about "routes" in the Medical field. If you are not able to pursue Plastic Surgery, there are other Surgical Specialties you may enjoy. In my case, life took me to a Podiatric Medical School and a field I did not know much about. It turned out that Podiatry has grown into a very challenging Surgical Specialty. After 4 years of post-graduate education you will then do a 3-year Residency learning simple to very complex foot and ankle surgeries. Some of these procedures, of interest to you, involve plastic surgery techniques such as closure of very difficult wounds, lengthening of short digits, improving congenital deformities, etc. There are now Fellowships available that may emphasize plastic surgery techniques that can be performed within the scope of Podiatry. In any case, the Medical field is highly competitive (my son is an ER Physician) and, if your dream is to be a healthcare professional, try to learn about all careers that may be within your reach and meet your interests.
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